We now turn to Psalm 1, the description of the two ways, the contrast of thought and pattern. Let us hear the Word of our Lord. 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. 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. 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." Thus far, the reading. Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. How do we start and end our day? Surveys can help us by displaying the trends of the modern day and age in which we live. Quick digging reveals that many Americans begin and end their day with a smartphone. There is also a survey on a smaller scale done recently by a Christian website which asked specifically of Christians, do you first do spiritual disciplines in the morning or check your phone? And for every age group, More than 50% of people said the first action of the day before spiritual disciplines like prayer or scripture reading was to check the phone. And for those under the age of 40, it is more than 75% of all Christians. So there are many good tools in our modern age, but even good tools can lead to a pattern of distraction along the way of life. And tonight we consider the two ways of man and the patterns of those two ways. First looking at the way of the man of God, then the way of the wicked man, And then we will consider the final character of the psalm, the Lord Himself, who is the judge of the two ways of man. First, the godly man, or as the word here names him, blessed. The blessed man. And there is a fullness of blessing which is implied in this text. We could even say the completely blessed man. This is His title. The title of all those who follow God, call Him Father and call Him Lord. And Psalm 1 begins by giving us a three-fold description of what He is not, or a three-step description of what He is not. First, He does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, counsel which includes more than just advice. It includes the principles, the worldview behind that advice. All advice, all counsel comes with certain presuppositions or truth claims or worldview behind it. For example, the counsel of an ungodly man might claim that we come from apes. And therefore, the life of an endangered species of an ape could be more valuable than a human life. While the Bible clearly teaches us that while animal life has value, all people are made in the image of God, with a soul mind and affections. And human life is always more precious than animal life. Usually, it is more subtle than that, though, especially for someone who is drifting into sin, which is the pattern before us in these one, two, three steps. Usually, the counsel of the ungodly is self-centered rather than God-centered. And since all of us, by nature, all people, are naturally self-centered, there is an inclination to love the selfish advice of the world which surrounds us. So, on the surface, it can be difficult to discern between the wise counsel and the foolish counsel. As the people of God, we must strive to be good, not only at hearing what counsel people give to us, but also discerning the worldview and the principles which are behind that counsel and that advice, so that we may discern whether it is the self-centered advice of man or the God-glorifying advice from Scripture. This also implies that we know when something is counsel. In other words, we must constantly be on guard of all messages we are receiving. And counsel includes not just the people we talk to. It includes movies we watch. It includes the songs we listen to. It includes the media that we consume on our phones and in our newspapers. Messages can be counsel in their own form. So, since the man of God is not even to walk in the counsel of the ungodly, we should be careful what we consume in all of these areas, and to discern what is a message of counsel. It may be a broader category than we think. So, to state it differently, we should be careful what movies we watch, how we watch them, or else we may find ourselves walking in them. And that brings us to the second step. The blessed man does not stand in the path of sinners. After walking in the counsel, after being saturated with the message of the world and accepting it, there is a movement toward actually doing the bad counsel. There is a lifestyle of sinful behavior which follows the advice of the world. We might ask, is this psalm demanding perfection? Yes and no. Yes, because in order for the law to be fulfilled, the demand is perfection. But no, because only in Christ is there a perfect fulfillment of the law. All have sinned and fallen short. But even though This psalm demands perfection in that sense. There is still a clear and distinct line between the people of God and the people of the world. There is a clear antithesis between the world and the church, a battle which rages around us. So while we still sin, while we still struggle against the sin, even as the people of God battling the old man, The godly man does not live a lifestyle of sin. He does not stand in the path of sinners. And this is the sense which the psalmist is getting across to us as he describes the descent into sin. It is as if the psalmist is saying, I know we all sin. But the blessed man will not descend into a lifestyle of sin. The man of God will hate sin. That is why it is important to know our sins. In order to hate those sins and to confess those sins before God, as David does in Psalm 51. Psalm 51 verse 2 and 3, wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin for I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is always before me. In other words, in order to not live and drift into the ungodly lifestyle, we must discern what that lifestyle is, just as we must discern between the counsel of the world and the counsel of God. And this brings us to the third step of the descent. of those who drift into sin. After living the lifestyle of sin, that sin is now boldly proclaimed. The scoffers. I cannot help but think of the term gay pride here. Not to pick on that particular sin, because this is true of all sin. But that very expression gets at the heart of what is said here. Not just walking in the council of the world, not just living the life of sin, but sitting in the seat and boldly proclaiming it. Gay pride. Sinful pride. Another word to translate the scornful could simply be the big talker. This is the one who gives the counsel of the world. This is the scoffers in the days of Noah. These are the priests of Baal who mock Elijah on Mount Carmel. This is anyone who sins loudly and proudly and mocks the name of God. And while there is still hope for the scoffers to repent, This is the eventual state of those who do not repent from the lifestyle of sin. This is the eventual habit of those who surround themselves with worldly counsel, live in sin, and then boldly proclaim that sin. So, what does the man of God do? What is the man of God like? The man of God delights in the Law. This, of course, involves a desire to know the Law, to follow the Law, and to hate sin, which must be present in order to not drift, according to the illustration of verse 1. And when I say drift, I'm intentionally using a passive word. If we are not actively delighting and meditating on the Word of God, the natural tendency is to drift, like a boat which drifts like the current. The natural drift of man is the progression of verse 1. To walk in the council, and then to stand in the path, and then to sit in the seat. But the contrast is given to us here. The contrast is the man of God who actively delights in the Law. And that delight leads to action, the action of meditation. And this ought to be a day and night action, a day and night pattern. This is difficult. Some here may excel at that. They may know the blessing of that. But if you are like me, it is a struggle to establish this kind of pattern, to keep it consistently. The numbers from the surveys mentioned at the beginning of this sermon help to illustrate that there are distractions all around us in this fast-paced world. But even so, we are commanded to strive to find the pattern of day and night, reading Scripture, contemplating Scripture, praying, even when words are hard to come by, meditating. Scripture has much to tell us about prayer, worship, the good patterns of prayer and worship, Daniel prayed three times a day, even though it doesn't say specifically what time of day that was. The pattern of morning and evening sacrifice from the Old Testament, a pattern which we even follow today in our own services, meeting here this morning, meeting here tonight. But this is not works righteousness. as we will see clearly in a moment. But they are good patterns, helpful, even commanded of us as the people of God. And for those who do not know God or are coming to know God, those who are new in the faith What better than to be saturated in the Word, to be saturated with God's Word, which is the double-edged sword? And this pattern which the man, this pattern of the man, this pattern of the man, what does it lead to? For this, the psalmist gives us the image of a tree, a tree which is planted. And that, right there, is our reminder that this is not a works righteousness. A tree does not plant itself. Just as Nicodemus comes to Christ in the night and asks Him, how can a man be born again? How can a man enter again into his mother's womb? So we can ask, how could a tree plant itself? A tree can plant its own kind, other trees, but not itself. We speak rightly of Jesus on every page. Jesus on every page of Scripture. But may we not forget the Holy Spirit. who is also the author of every page of Scripture. And just as we are born again of the Spirit, an action which cannot be done by us, we cannot enter into our mother's womb again. So here, the image of the tree which is planted, that cannot plant itself, is the work of the Holy Spirit. So, reading from John 3, to further illustrate John 3, verse 6, reading to verse 8, that which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit. Do not marvel that I say to you, you must be born again. The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit." And if one is born of the Spirit, these things are sure. This is a great comfort to us as the people of God. This tree is sure. Its strength is sure, even as it is an illustration. It is here before us, and it is helpful. But we should not think of trees in West Michigan. That's not the tree that the author here has in mind. We can think of many strong trees which are not by rivers. There's cloud cover. There's rainfall often around us. But in Israel, that is not the case. The trees depend on the river. And the word here, river, is even a broad word. It can describe a natural river, and it can also include canals and irrigation, all of which are necessary in a dry, desert-like area for a tree to survive. So when the psalmist gives this image, this illustration, he has in mind that trees which are not planted by the river do not survive. There are no West Michigan forests with constant cloud cover and rainfall. If the tree is not by the river, it will not survive. But if it is by the Even with irrigation and canal and the help of men to sustain that plant in a dry climate, it will survive. It will thrive, even without rainfall, even in a difficult climate. The tree by the water is strong, and it does bear fruit. just as the planting can be associated with the Holy Spirit, so we rightly think of the Holy Spirit, who is the author of both Psalm 1 and Galatians 5, where there is a further description of the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, self-control, against such things there is no law. That is also the mature fruit of Psalm 1, the fruit of the Holy Spirit, which comes in its season. And this tree does not wither. The blessed man will persevere. Again, not a West Michigan tree, which the author has in mind. the beautiful fall colors which we see before the leaves go and we are left with bare trees. No, this would be an olive tree or a palm tree. The trees in the area of Israel which do not completely lose their color, their leaves, their fruit. The closest thing we have to that in West Michigan is a pine tree, an evergreen tree, which does not lose its needles. All year round it is green. That's why we use it as a Christmas tree for those who do. It is green all the year. So the blessed man delights in the law. This leads to meditation, and meditation on the law leads to fruit, and this strong tree will never wither. Not withering, which is paralleled with the language of prospering at the end of verse 3. Because there is a last enemy, namely death, on this earth, all of us who do not live to see the Second Coming will face death. And that is a physical withering. But while there is physical withering, while there is a final enemy which must be faced on this earth, There is eternal prospering. And in the context of this psalm, which soon turns to the seat of judgment, the congregation of the righteous, the Lord who knows and judges, whatever He does shall prosper. On this earth, it may be hard to see that, even as the Lord works for good all things for those who serve Him. But what is difficult to see on this earth is not difficult to see when we stand in the congregation of the righteous, when that prospering is made eternal and clear. Now the wicked man, the ungodly man, whose description is not lengthy, concerning his work, his lifestyle, we have already considered much of it. Because it can be inferred from verse 1 through 3. Why? Because the psalmist simply states, to make a clear contrast again between the godly and the ungodly, the ungodly are not so. They do follow the drifting, the progression into sin. They do not delight in the law. They are not a strong and sure tree planted by the rivers which give life. And while, ultimately, God is judge, man does not judge man, this psalm reminds us that that distinction can be made The church itself does hold the keys to the kingdom and can rightly call members to repentance. So, when we consider those steps of drifting into sin, when we observe fellow brothers and sisters who are perhaps in the first of those steps, perhaps walking in ungodly counsel, we can, even as we examine our own lives, we can also call others to not drift down the dangerous path. And when that second point comes, in the light of that sinful lifestyle and evidence, the church can call that member to repent. In other words, By your fruit you shall know them." And as we see the patterns of that fruit and the man of God and the ungodly man in Psalm 1, that is, those are the tools that our elders put to use when they encourage us and say, we do see that fruit. We do see your hatred of sin. We do see you in repentance. But the church can also call to repentance when it does not see that fruit. Psalm 1, Galatians 5, they tell the elders what to look for. They tell us what to be on guard against. This teaches us the importance of self-examination, because that first step is difficult for brothers and sisters to see and to lovingly call us to repent. The outward evidence is not yet clear if one is simply walking in the counsel of the ungodly. If that ungodly lifestyle is not yet present, self-examination is that first step. And it teaches that while we are not perfect, while we struggle against sin, our lifestyle at least should not be one of sin. In Matthew 7, the great Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7 verse 16, God describes the two ways, the two gates, beginning with verse sixteen, "'You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.'" That is the work of the wicked, the fruit of the wicked. Now, what does the wicked man reap? What is his reward? He is like the chaff, the worthless excess that is beat out on the threshing floor. The heavy grain is valuable, but the light and worthless chaff is thrown up to be scattered by the wind. For this reason, often the threshing floor would be on a hill. where wind can be caught more easily. The alternative, if there is no good source of wind, is to burn the chaff. Either way, it is destroyed. It is worthless. Matthew 7, verse 19, Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. eternal consequences for the lifestyle of sin. They do not stand in the judgment, which here is referring to that final judgment, the second coming of Christ. Again, we rightly talk about Christ on every page. And what we mean by that is, every page of even the Old Testament points toward that first coming of Christ, the great work of Christ. But we can also think of Christ on every page for the second coming of Christ. Scriptures are constantly reminding us of eternal joys and of eternal sorrows. And that is for both the Old and the New Testaments, constantly looking forward to Christ in that sense for His second coming. And that eternal congregation, the congregation of the righteous in which the wicked man does not stand, that is the eternal congregation which our local church even here anticipates. The fellowship which we imperfectly reflect will be glorious and wonderful and perfect on that day. even as all of the goats are removed from the sheep, and all of the chaff is removed from the wheat. Perfect celebration. Perfect congregation. And this brings us to the third character of the psalm. Psalm 1 is appropriately the first psalm, because in many ways It is an introduction to the entire book of Psalms. Describing the two ways, and there are only two ways. Describing the one Lord who knows, and there is only one Lord. The remaining Psalms merely flesh this out and describe it in more depth and fullness. There are those who live by faith and there are those who are driven away like chaff. There is no in-between. But even so, even as there are three characters, we cannot oversimplify. Because even as Jesus Christ is the only judge, even as He is the only Lord who knows, He is also the perfect fulfillment of the blessed man. Christ not only never sins at all, He never walks in the counsel of the ungodly. He perfectly challenges and rebukes that counsel. He doesn't walk in their lifestyle of sin. He never sins once. And He does not sit in the seat of the scornful. He challenges the scornful. He bears the mockers. He wears the crown of thorns. So, even with the focus on lifestyle, of drifting into sin, of the patterns of life, which are all clear in this psalm, there are demands which are only met by Christ, not Abraham, who doubted God's promise, not Joseph, who provoked his brothers, not Moses who loses his temper, not David who commits adultery, not Abel or Enoch, who though we are not told of specific sins that they have committed. Romans 1 reminds us that all have sinned and fallen short. So, as Psalm 1 gives us the pattern, gives us the assurance of the strength from our tree planted by the Holy Spirit, it also makes a demand which only Christ, in both deed and thought, perfectly fulfills. And He knows. He knows the heart. He is the perfect and ultimate judge. So the just shall live by faith, and the tree planted by the Holy Spirit will enter through that narrow gate which leads to life. But the way of the ungodly shall perish. So if you are not a tree planted by the river, look to Christ, who fulfills the demands of this psalm, who fulfills the demands of the law. And if you are that tree, then delight, delight in the law, delight in the promises, delight in the Holy Spirit who plants you assuredly, strongly, and leads you to bear fruit and live a pattern of life in service to Him. Amen. Let us pray. Lord, we are thankful for Your Word. We are thankful for Your Holy Spirit, who makes us to walk that narrow way which we could not walk on our own strength, and for Christ, who not only knows all and judges all, but also fulfills the demands of the law perfectly Himself. This we pray in His name. Amen.