Psalms 1:1-2 ESV
“Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.”
Who are the wicked? They are the ungodly. They are all those
who make sin their practice, who practice wickedness (evil, malice, immorality,
lying, cheating, and adultery, etc.). And many of them profess faith in Jesus
Christ, but they are continuing in deliberate and habitual sin, many of them without
conscience. For they are being taught a gospel which does not teach repentance
and obedience to the Lord but which coddles people in their sin, instead. So,
they are not those of genuine practicing faith in Jesus Christ.
They are also liars and deceivers who purposefully twist the
Scriptures to make them say what they do not say in order to persuade their
adherents to buy into a gospel message that does not put sin to death in the
life of the sinner, but which allows sin to reign supreme. And they are those
who use charm and cunning and manipulation to lead people into sin and not away
from their lives of sin. And they will use all sorts of tactics and tricks and
schemes to convince people to sin against God and to not be faithful.
So, just know that their counsel may sound good, and it may
sound biblical, and it may sound kind and thoughtful, and even full of grace. But
many people are teaching a false grace which is not the grace of God at all but
a twisted and perverted grace that is free license for immorality and
sensuality. For they are not teaching that the grace of God trains us to say “No!”
to ungodliness and fleshly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and
godly lives while we wait for our Lord’s soon return (Titus 2:11-14).
So, please be in the practice of testing everything you hear
and read and think you see coming from the writings and the words and the
actions of people who are in positions of prominence and of great influence,
even if they are highly respected in the Christian community. For remember that
Satan disguises himself as an angel of light and his servants masquerade
themselves as servants of righteousness. So, they may appear righteous and good,
and their words may sound good, but they may not be good at all.
But the only way you are going to know if they are telling
you the truth or not is if you are walking according to the Spirit and not
according to the flesh, and if you are listening to Jesus, and if you are
obeying him, in practice, and if you are students of the Scriptures who study
them in context, and if you are diligent about testing the doctrines of men
(and women) to see if what they are teaching lines up with what the Scriptures
teach as a whole, and in context.
Psalms 1:3 ESV
“He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.”
So, if we are those who are being spiritually discerning
with regard to the counsel and teaching of other humans, because we are testing
what we hear against the Scriptures as a whole, and in context, and so we are
not walking in the ways of the ungodly, but we are walking in the wisdom of
God, then we will be steadfast in our walks of faith. And we will walk in
holiness and in righteousness, and we will bear much fruit in keeping with
repentance for God’s eternal kingdom, by the grace of God and in his power and strength.
And, when this says that in all that we do, we will prosper,
this is definitely not teaching that everything is going to go great for us,
with no barriers, and with no opposition at all. The New Testament teaches us
that if we are following the Lord Jesus in obedience, and if we are sharing his
gospel with other people, and if we are exposing the lies and calling people to
repentance and to obedience, that we are going to be hated and persecuted as
Jesus was hated and persecuted. And who were his fiercest opponents?
They were the children of God of the Old Covenant, and they
were rulers in the temple of God, and they were the teachers of the Scriptures.
And they were hounding him left and right, always trying to find a way to trip
him up so that they could accuse him of wrongdoing. So, don’t be surprised if
some of your greatest opposition and persecution comes from within the
gatherings of the church and even from church leadership, because so much of
what is being called church today are just businesses of men, and so many of
them are appeasing human flesh and are not obeying God.
So, we can’t measure our success in ministry by human
standards and thinking and reasoning. For if we are doing what our Lord says to
do, and if we are obeying him, and if we are saying “No” to sin and “Yes” to
holiness and righteousness daily, and if we are going where he sends us, and we
are saying what he gives us to say, and if we are teaching or sharing with
others what his word teaches on holy living and repentance and obedience, and
on what constitutes God-given faith, then we are successful in the eyes of God.
Psalms 1:4-6 ESV
“The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
Therefore the wicked will 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 wicked will perish.”
Now, the wicked may very well be successful in the eyes of
humans, and according to worldly thinking. And they may have huge followings,
and even be people of good reputation and be well admired and respected in the
Christian community. But if what they are teaching is false doctrine, and if
they are doing so deliberately in order to deceive people, and to turn people
away from genuine biblical faith in Jesus Christ in order to follow after a
flesh-driven gospel of men, then they are not successful in the eyes of God.
And they will not stand in the judgment regardless of any
professions of faith they have made in Jesus Christ. For the Scriptures are
clear on this subject. If we walk (in conduct, in practice) according to the
flesh, and not according to the Spirit, we will die in our sins. We will not
inherit eternal life with God. For Jesus said that not everyone who says to
him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one DOING the
will of God the Father who is in heaven (Mattew 7:21-23). So, take this to
heart.
[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom
6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal
5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col
3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb
3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
Be
Thou My Vision
attr. to Dallan Forgaill
tr. by Mary E. Byrne, pub.1905
arr. by Eleanor H. Hull, 1912
Irish melody
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that
Thou art;
Thou my best Thought, by day or by
night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my
light.
Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true
Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me,
Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee
one.
Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the
fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high
Tow’r:
Raise Thou me heav’nward, O Pow’r of my
pow’r.
Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty
praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou
art.
High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright
Heav’n’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.
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