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.”
If we are blessed of the Lord, what does that mean? This has
to do with God extending his benefits towards us, his favor, his grace, his
provisions. And benefits are what are for our good spiritually, morally, emotionally
and physically. They are helps and aids, and God’s protection, and they are for
our welfare, for our well-being. Included in these are forgiveness of sins,
deliverance from slavery to sin, empowerment of God to live holy lives free
from the control of sin, and the promise and hope of eternal life with God.
So, who are the recipients of these benefits? And this is
not just Old Testament teaching, for this is what the New Testament under the
New Covenant teaches, too. We are those who are not walking in the counsel of
the wicked. We are not getting our biblical teachings from those who are still
walking (in conduct, in practice) in deliberate and habitual sin, and/or from
those who are diluting and altering the message of the gospel to make it more
acceptable and appeasing to human flesh.
We are not depending on other human beings to tell us what
the Scriptures teach, but we are those who are students of the Scriptures
ourselves who are studying the Scriptures in their context and who are
following in the ways of the Lord in doing what his word teaches his followers
that we must do and not do. Although we will listen to others’ sermons and
teachings, we will be those who diligently test what we are hearing against the
Scriptures, in context, to make certain that what we are hearing is the truth.
We are also people who do not take a stand in the ways of
the unrighteous and the ungodly who are making sin their practice, whether or
not they are those who profess faith in Jesus Christ. We are not to join in
with them in their sinful ways, nor should we be those who approve of and who
applaud them in their sinful practices. And this includes us not being
entertained by what is sinful, ungodly, and immoral. For we are to be those who
live different from the world because we are being made to be like Jesus.
We also should not join in with those who are scoffers, who
make jokes and poke fun at what is holy and righteous, or at those who are
living holy and righteous lives, or at those who are different from us. Bible
humor is often making light of what is serious and holy and godly so that those
who adopt such humor become insensitive and desensitized to what is holy and to
what should be revered and respected and honored and not made fun of. For we in
America live in a culture where mocking is quite acceptable.
Instead, our delight should be in the law of the Lord. Yes,
we are not under the Old Covenant. Yes, we don’t have to obey all those old liturgical,
ceremonial, sacrificial, purification, and dietary laws and restrictions that
the Jews of the Old Covenant had to obey. But our Lord never did away with his
moral laws. He summarized them into two – to love God with our whole heart,
mind, and strength, and to love our neighbors as ourselves in preferring moral
purity, honesty, faithfulness and obedience to our Lord.
And the New Covenant teaches us that we must be those who
obey the word of God and who keep to (practice) God’s commandments (New
Covenant) and who do not walk in sin, in the ways of this sinful world. For if
sin is what we practice, and if righteousness, dying to sin daily, and walking
in obedience to our Lord are not what we practice, we will not inherit eternal
life with God, regardless of what faith we profess with our lips. And these are
not my words. Please read the following Scriptures:
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; 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; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2
Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; 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]
My Sheep
An Original Work / June 24, 2012
Based off John 10:1-18 NIV
My sheep hear me.
They know me.
They listen to my
voice and obey.
I call them and lead
them.
They know my voice,
so they follow me.
They will never
follow strangers.
They will run away
from them.
The voice of a
stranger they know not;
They do not follow
him.
So, I tell you the
truth that
I am the gate, so
you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find
forgiveness and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever
enters
Not by the gate;
other way,
He is the thief and
a robber.
Listen not, the
sheep to him.
Oh, I am the Good
Shepherd,
Who laid his own
life down for the sheep.
I know them. They
know me.
They will live with
me eternally.
The thief only comes
to steal and
Kill and to destroy
the church.
I have come to give
you life that
You may have it to
the full…
They know my voice,
so they follow me.
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