Uplook for October 2021: “Blessed Man” (Curt Darling)

The Blessed Man

1. 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; 2. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. 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. 4. The ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind drives away. 5. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish. — Psalm 1 NKJV

This psalm begins

This psalm begins with the man who is blessed. Immediately we read of three things God said the blessed man does not do. The first is that he does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly. There are all kinds of voices giving various kinds of counsel today. You hear them everywhere, telling people what to do and how to live. We need to weigh them very carefully. Consider who it is we are hearing and what advice they are giving. The ungodly are those who do not accept God’s rule in their lives, but our walk as believers should be of a heavenly character.

The blessed man, as we read on, has to reject standing in the path of sinners, which is the road sinful men are traveling. It is easy to observe this, for it is “the course of this world.” This cannot be separated from him who is “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2) – Satan himself. We must not stand in the path of sinners.

At the end of Psalm 1:1, we see that the blessed man does not “sit in the seat of the scornful.” There are those who want nothing to do with the ways of God. They treat Him with contempt and distain. To sit in their seat would be to join them. Instead, we must have an attitude for giving the Lord all honor and glory.

While the blessed man

While the blessed man must avoid certain things, he delights in other matters. “His delight is in the law of the LORD” (v.2). This is the law given from God through Moses for Israel, including the Ten Commandments. As believers we should have no trouble with that law. Our Lord and Savior fulfilled it for us (Rom. 8:3-4). In the New Testament, Christians are given the law of Christ (Gal. 6:2). Therefore, we now can delight in it. Even more, we should take pleasure in all of God’s Word, the whole counsel of God. May we meditate on it at all times – “day and night” (Ps. 1:2)

If this is our way of life, we will “be like a tree planted by the rivers of water” (v.3). We may think of the “rivers of living water … the Spirit” (Jn. 7:38-39). There are no withering leaves. Instead, there is plenty of fruit, and whatever we do will prosper for it will be done in Him.

The ungodly are not like this

The ungodly are not like this, and they do not prosper in God’s eyes. There is no fruit coming from them. The ungodly are simply compared to chaff. In the harvest, it is blown away. These individuals – the ungodly – will “not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous” (Ps. 1:5). God will judge them at the great white throne (Rev. 20:11-15). Psalm 1 ends by telling us “the way of the ungodly will perish” (v.6). This is a warning. If you fit into this group you need to accept Jesus as your Savior and Lord before it is too late!

Yet, before that final statement we find a very special phrase: The Lord knows the way of the righteous. The word “knows” is like the intimate knowledge between a married couple in producing a child, such as Adam and Eve in Genesis 4:1. God is delighted with our way, as those who are blessed, because we are seen in Him.

Some have said

Some have said “the blessed man” is typical, or a picture, of the Lord Jesus. May we keep the Lord as the center of our thoughts.

By Curt Darling