1. Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2. But his delight is in the Law of the Lord, and in His Law does he meditate day and night.
It is said that we are not sinners because we sin, but we sin because we are sinners. Paul explains in Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” So we understand by this passage that just as we are born dying, we are also born sinners. At first glance, these truths would seem to relegate Psalm 1:1 to nothing more than poetic ‘injustice’ — for if we are born into sin, how can we fulfill what Psalm 1:1 commands?
“Free will” isn’t explicitly stated in the Bible, yet we see throughout the Old and New Testaments, that God allows believers and nonbelievers alike to follow the path of righteousness, or the path of sin. The path of righteousness is not without sin, but to the contrary, the path of sin is without righteousness. Though we are born into a fallen world, and as such we will stumble, it is God’s desire that we don’t fall into a life lead by sin — which is a life that excludes Him.
For the vast majority of us, we begin life on the path led by sin. God, knowing this would be our condition, sacrificed His only begotten Son to bear our sins and pay our sin debt. When we turn from the path of sin to the walk with Jesus, Psalm 1:1 becomes poetic ‘justice’. God can now bless us because we are no longer walking in the counsel of the ungodly or standing in the path with sinners. We become meek with humility, no longer angry with a scornful tongue, that speaks the devils lies to weaken others.
Walking with Jesus means you have accepted Him as your Lord and Saviour. In your heart — not with your tongue only — you believe the Gospel: that Jesus died, was buried, and rose three days later. When God sees this faith in your spiritual heart, He sends the Holy Spirit to dwell within you. This begins the transformation of your desires from being carnal to spiritual. You practice denying your flesh while growing a desire to be obedient to God. As 2 Corinthians 5:17 declares, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new.” This is the true definition of being “born again.” The words of scripture become clear where they used to be misunderstood or overly complex. Where you once saw a God of anger, you now see a God of love and discipline in the Old Testament — a Father that chastised His children to bring them back to Him — just as He does with us today.
Don’t believe the voice of the evil one who tells you you’ve done too much wrong to be deserving of God’s grace. Instead, get to know God by reading His Word and seeing the many examples of those that were forgiven — and even chosen to serve Him. Paul was the chief persecutor of those that followed Jesus, not only imprisoning, but sending many Christians to their deaths. He lived with a devilish desire to eradicate all that followed Jesus, whether they were Jew or Gentile. Yet Jesus chose Him to be the apostle to the Gentiles, and to establish churches throughout the then known world. Paul is a testimony that God, in His infinite wisdom, will choose what we consider to be the “worst of the worst”, to bring the brightest glory to His name, gathering lost sheep back into His fold.
Father God in Heaven, being born into this world, I was born into a life of sin that separated me from you. Your calling to my heart proves you will never leave nor forsake me. Your sacrifice of Your only begotten Son proves that neither hell nor high water can keep your love from me, unless I choose to deny it. I pray for strength to walk the path lit by your light, that leads to life — with conviction to live godly in the way of the righteous, sitting among the humble. In Christ Jesus’ Name, Amen.