Sermons from Good News: decide to be blessed

Note before sharing the sermon: one of the parallel passages to the first three verses of Psalm 1 (especially the third verse) comes from Jeremiah 17, especially as both verses talk about the benefits of being rooted in God and His Word equating to always being fruitful no matter the season (i.e. seasons of plenty and seasons of trial). Here they are, back-to-back:

But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper. Psalm 1:2-3, NKJV

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit. Jeremiah 17:7-8, NKJV

But what I found particularly striking about this message is that it highlighted the contrasts between the righteous and the wicked (usually when I've had Psalm 1 brought before me, the "positive outcomes for the righteous" aspects had always been highlighted more so than the "negative outcomes for the wicked" aspect). See more below:

Church 12/11/2024

Sermon message:

Thesis: decide to be blessed

Point #1: What the righteous should not do.

Psalm 1:1 (all translations NKJV)

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

Context/definition of a few key words from the above verse:

Blessed = happy, content

Walk = take advice from

Stand = behave or act

Sit = becoming like unto, on an even deeper level (for example, making fun of or criticizing Godly people)

Walk, stand, sit: a progression of what you become if you’re around certain people

Ask: is this Godly advice? Is this person that’s talking to me right with God?

Point #1: What believers should do.

Psalm 1:2

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,

And in His law he meditates day and night.

Meditate = chew on something, think on it

Joshua 1:8

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

Point #3: How the righteous are blessed.

Psalm 1:3

He shall be like a tree

Planted by the rivers of water,

That brings forth its fruit in its season,

Whose leaf also shall not wither;

And whatever he does shall prosper.

The payoff is you’ll be strong in the Lord when tough times come.

Point #4: The dangerous place of the ungodly.

Psalm 1:4-5

The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

There are earthly consequences.

And there are eternal consequences.

Point #5: You and I can decide to be blessed.

Psalm 1:6

For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Jesus isn’t happy when we don’t walk rightly with Him.

Psalm 103:1-5

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul;

And all that is within me, bless His holy name!

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

And forget not all His benefits:

3 Who forgives all your iniquities,

Who heals all your diseases,

4 Who redeems your life from destruction,

Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,

5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things,

So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Note after the sermon: I wanted to again split my reflections into two parts because what I have to say, while I believe it holds some importance, should not be more important than what my pastor has to say. God spoke to him first, at which point he spoke to us, after which I had connections made in my mind related to the message, what I knew beforehand, and especially what I didn't know beforehand that connected at this time.

I had mentioned above how this sermon tended to give more emphasis on cautioning us to not slide from our faith by spending time with negative people and people who weren't right with God (which honestly, can be any of us at any time!). It highlighted the progression from walking (taking advice from) to standing (behaving or acting like) to sitting (my take: really buying into the mentality thereof), which, around the right people (i.e. Godly) is a good thing, but around the wrong people (i.e. ungodly) is not a good thing. Once our pastor moved down the Psalm to the last few verses, he highlighted very clearly the distinction between the results of Godly actions vs ungodly actions.

Pause: some of you who may read this may be confused or even triggered by the words Godly vs ungodly. Here, I'm not going to provide a definition in my own words but rather will let the Bible do the talking.

Before the sermon, I showed the connection between the benefits of spending time with God and rooting in His Word (that's a Godly action). Here, I'm going to share the other connection that I believe God made in my head, which is the results of not spending time with God or committing to knowing Him:

The ungodly are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the ungodly shall perish. Psalm 1:4-6

Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from the Lord. For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good comes, But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, In a salt land which is not inhabited. Jeremiah 17:5-6

The above two passages highlight both the earthly consequences and eternal consequences of disobedience and running away from God. We don't want to do that. The reasoning is provided below, which I think cuts at the heart (pun intended) of the matter:

“The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings. Jeremiah 17:9-10

Two lies we've been taught and are still prone to believe if we don't fight against it:

1. humans are by nature good (a lie; the truth is that humans are by nature evil, and we need Jesus to restore us and make us right with God)

2. "you have a good heart" (a lie, as the above passage refutes this; indeed, God will judge our hearts)

Another connection that I believe God made as I was writing the above just now:

• the line "Whose heart departs from the Lord" (Jeremiah 17:5C)
• and what Jesus says to those who don't get into heaven: And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ Matthew 7:23 (read the full context here)

OK. Enough fire and brimstone for now. I want to close this post with an encouragement: 

For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. 1 John 3:20

We shouldn't have to resort to a lifestyle of self-hatred, because even that won't please God.

for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. James 1:20

But rather we should trust in Him, not our own understanding, and not in our own hearts.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; Proverbs 3:5

Let's surrender and give our lives to Jesus Christ as King and Lord, for when we esteem Him as such, we can then truly receive Him as our Savior also.