Blessed

DEVOTION

PSALMS

BLESSED

Ps 1:1

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.

NIV

Today we begin our journey through the psalms. This first one we have spent much time with as I have written a book on it. But still it continues to speak to our heart. To be blessed rather than cursed is a wonderful thing. Just to think God has determined to bless us. However, this blessing has have some conditions. We are not to walk in the counsel of the wicked. Counsel means in the original language to accept advice or a plan. This has many implications. This is not to say we cannot learn information from the world, such as with education or in other matters. It simply means they are not to give us a plan for our lives. They are not to tell us how we are to live, or help us make a choice, or decision about our lives. This could apply to our careers, our marriages, our finances, our health, or legal matters. If we want to be blessed, our only advisor has to be the Holy Spirit. Secondly, we are not to stand in the way of sinners. That means walk in the same manner they do. This would seem rather self-evident once we became born again. We died to that way of life, we repented of it and became a whole new life in Christ. This word stands, in the original language means a course of life or mode of action. This would imply that we not only live differently, but that we live in a whole different mode of action. We should not be guided by, or respond to situations like people who do not know Christ. It is not about the list of do’s and don’ts, but about how we react in life to situations and people we encounter. Thirdly, to sit in the seat of mockers has a different point of reference. Many might think this is to mock people. To make fun of them. In some sense some might mock us, because of our faith. Some might think we are foolish for trusting God rather than money. But the original language carries the idea to make mouth at, to scoff. We might see this two different ways. We might see it that we are not to scoff at the unbeliever, thinking of them as foolish for not trusting in God. We would then not be seeing them through the eyes of Jesus. We would not be seeing them as lost and in need, in assistant of finding their way. We would not be loving them as Christ does, for while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. But we also might see this making mouths at in different way. It could be seen as scoffing God. That is we give him lip service, but do not actually live according to his plan for our lives. These three conditions seem to be needed to be met if we are to be blessed. This is not like an unconditional covenant God made with us in Christ. But this covenant has conditions. To be blessed, meet this three requirements of ways not to think and behave. There seems to be no options otherwise, if we want to be blessed.