How Very Blessed Is That Man

[Psalm 1]

There is a piece of church humor known as “Satan’s Beatitudes.” Among the eight listed, I’d like to share the three that stood out to me:

First Beatitude –
"Blessed is the one who does not attend church because they are tired or too busy,
for they will become one of my most trustworthy workers."

Second Beatitude –
"Blessed is the one who points out the faults and mistakes of the pastor,
for even if they hear a sermon, they will receive no grace."

Seventh Beatitude –
"Blessed is the one who is too busy to read the Bible and pray,
for they will easily fall into my temptations and eventually become my laughingstock."
(Source: Internet)

When I reflect on these three of Satan’s beatitudes, I believe this humor sadly applies to many Christians today.
Especially when I read the seventh one, I feel ashamed and embarrassed, realizing how many of us believers have become laughingstocks in the eyes of the world.
Why have Christians become objects of mockery to the world?
I believe one key reason is that we are not bearing the fruit of the Word.
In other words, we are not living lives that embody the Word, and that’s why we are ridiculed.
In this flood of biblical knowledge, only our heads have grown.
We Christians may have much information, but there is far too little transformation in our lives.
This is the true condition of many believers today.
We need to go back to basics, back to the Word of God, in order to experience life transformation.

In Psalm 1, God clearly teaches us who the blessed person is.
More precisely, in the original Hebrew, Psalm 1 tells us “How very blessed is that man”.
We must learn this teaching of God and obey it, so that we may live lives that embody His Word.
In other words, we must pursue a transformed life and become people who are truly blessed in God’s eyes.

Then who is this “very blessed person” before God?
I would like to reflect on two aspects, in order to receive the lessons God wants to give us.

First, the person who is very blessed keeps away from sin.

Look at Psalm 1:1:
“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stand in the path of sinners,
nor sit in the seat of mockers.”

From this verse, we can see that a truly blessed person distances themselves from all sin—from small sins to great ones.
Here, a "small sin" refers to walking in the counsel of the wicked.
The truly blessed person not only refuses to follow such counsel, but doesn’t even look at it or show interest in it.
When standing at the crossroads between the way of the righteous (v.6) and the way of sinners (v.1), he does not even set his foot on the path of sinners.

Today, many Christians frequently fall into the enticement of the wicked, surrendering not only their eyes and ears but even their hearts to them.
We ought not to set foot on the path of the wicked at all, yet here we are, placing our feet on that path while reciting the Lord’s Prayer: “Lead us not into temptation...”
Then, we go on to justify our choices and circumstances.
And now, we are no longer even surprised by this.
Why?
Because we’ve become so accustomed to walking the path of “small sins.”

But here’s what we’ve forgotten:
If we keep walking that path of small sins, we will eventually fall into greater sin.
And what is that greater sin?
It is standing in the path of sinners.
At first, we walk in the counsel of the wicked;
but before we know it, we find ourselves standing in the path of sinners.
Is it possible that you and I, perhaps without even realizing it, are already walking that path?

But the truly blessed person did not follow the counsel of the wicked,
and therefore, he is not standing in the path of sinners.
Instead, he walks the path of the righteous, the one approved by God (v.6).
Moreover, the truly blessed person does not sit in the seat of mockers (v.1).
That seat refers to where the wicked sit—those who despise and mock God.
The one who grows close to sin begins by following the counsel of the wicked, then finds themselves standing among sinners, and eventually ends up sitting in the seat of those who scorn God.
But the truly blessed person distances themselves from all these sins—from the smallest to the greatest.

We must seriously reflect on this statement:
“In avoiding sin, we cannot ignore its gradual progression—from small to great.” (Yoon-Sun Park)
We must be on guard against this progression of sin.
We need to cut off even the root of small sins.
Why?
Because if we treat small sins lightly and, out of curiosity, follow the counsel of the wicked even once,
we may eventually find ourselves sitting in the seat of mockers.

Recognizing this danger, we must stay away from even the smallest of sins.
And to do that, we must draw near to the Word of God.
There are only two choices:
Either you draw near to God’s Word and distance yourself from sin,
or you draw near to sin and distance yourself from God’s Word.

Secondly and lastly, the person who is truly blessed draws near to the Word of God.

Look at Psalm 1:2:
“But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.”
The truly blessed person keeps away from sin by drawing near to the Word of God.
He delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night (v.2).
Because he loves God, he desires to hear God's voice.
He praises God saying, “There is no greater joy than Your voice, O Lord” (Hymn 500, verse 1).
The soul of this truly blessed person rejoices and is satisfied when it hears the Lord's voice, so he meditates on God's Word day and night.

What blessings does such a person receive? There are three:

(1) The blessing of a fruitful faith.

Look at Psalm 1:3:
“He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season…”
This blessing stands in sharp contrast to the wicked mentioned in verse 1.
The wicked bear no moral or spiritual fruit (Park Yoon-Sun), but the truly blessed person bears moral and spiritual fruit.
Moreover, not only does this person live a life where God’s Word is gradually embodied in their character, but they also continue to be sanctified, becoming a person who bears the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Without a doubt, such a person is truly blessed.

(2) The blessing of a vibrant, living faith.

Look again at Psalm 1:3:
“… whose leaf does not wither.”
This blessing also contrasts with the sinner mentioned in verse 1.
The sinner falls short of the goal, but the truly blessed person possesses vitality, which is the very goal of faith, and for that reason, they are indeed blessed.

(3) The blessing of prosperity.

Look at the end of Psalm 1:3:
“… and whatever he does prospers.”
The truly blessed person prospers in whatever they do because God is with them.
What an abundantly blessed life that is!
Even in the midst of severe trials and suffering, they enjoy the blessing of prosperity because God is with them.

Look at Job in the Bible.
Even though he was in great pain and suffering, he stayed close to the Word of God, endured patiently, and kept himself from sin (Job 1:22; 2:10).
As a result, he went from only hearing about God to actually seeing Him with his own eyes, experiencing God’s presence (Job 42:5).
Furthermore, he received even greater blessings than before (v.12).
Likewise, the truly blessed person bears fruit even in the midst of suffering and lives a life of vital, living faith.
Therefore, they experience the blessing of seeing God work all things together for good (Romans 8:28).

However, the wicked are “like chaff that the wind blows away” (Psalm 1:4);
they will not stand in the judgment (v.5), and in the end, they will perish (v.6),
never able to enjoy the blessings of the righteous.

The truly blessed person turns away from sin.
The truly blessed person draws near to the Word of God.
My hope is that you and I may become such a truly blessed person.

By the grace of God,
a truly blessed person in Christ Jesus,

Pastor James
(With a heart that earnestly longs to hear God say, “James, you are that truly blessed person.”)