This is the third article in a series of four based on Psalm 1. This week’s article focuses on the tools God tells us to use to pursue the blessed life. Check out the previous articles in this series by going to wnewsj.com .
Psalm 1 offers us two wonderful tools to pursue God: The Scripture and meditation.
None of us can merely turn away from evil to escape its temptations. We must turn toward something better, or we will go down dangerous paths.
Verse 2 of Psalm 1 tells us that while avoiding the traps of the wicked, the blessed person turns toward Scripture. Blessed is the one… “whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on His law day and night.”
The word “law” when read in the Bible takes on a slightly different meaning based on context. Law can mean the Ten Commandments, or the five books of Moses (The Torah), or when talking about the entire Old Testament, “…the Law of Moses, the prophets, and the Psalms.” (Luke 24:44).
However, the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ gives this verse increased meaning. The “law of the LORD” to the follower of Jesus, is a calling to delight in all of Scripture, both Old and New Testament.
The word “meditation” in the second line of the stanza clarifies what delight in the law looks like with tangible action. Filling up our minds with Scripture, and traveling thought paths which spring from those ideas, starts us on the road of meditation.
If you’re like me, you know what this kind of “filling up” feels like.
If I love a new Netflix series, I binge watch it, and tell my friends about it. If I get a yearning for ice cream, I eat a lot of it (although, I have a tendency not to share ice cream). If I discover a great audio book, I want to listen to all of it in one sitting.
Sometimes, I’ll fall asleep listening to a book, and my dreams take on the plot of whatever I envisioned as I fell asleep. That’s similar to how we meditate on Scripture.
Psalm 1, verse 2, tells us the blessed person delights to binge on God’s law. By memorizing Scripture, thinking about Scripture, applying the commands of Scripture, and sharing these insights of Scripture with others, we fulfill the instruction to meditate on God’s law.
What is the connection between meditation on Scripture and being blessed? God reveals who He is and what He desires in His Word to us.
The more Bible we know, the more we know the mind of God. The Bible, conveyed by the Holy Spirit through the prophets — written and compiled over a period of 1,500 years — contains historical narratives, poetry, prayers, wisdom literature, biographies, and prophecies all with a singular purpose of pointing us toward the Savior, Jesus Christ.
God even promises that the Holy Spirit will use the Scripture as a tool to transform our thinking, reveal the thoughts, and attitudes of our heart, and help us develop maturity.
Our task now is to keep thinking about Psalm 1 and figuring out how we can apply it to our lives. Take about five to 10 minutes, right now, and think through (meditate) Psalm 1, verses 1 through 6.
Go back and reread the articles from the last two weeks. In what ways can you apply the principles found in this Psalm to your life? Be specific.
Then share these thoughts with a friend.
God promises to bless those who apply and share the principles of Scripture.
Dale McCamish is Pastor at the Wilmington Church of Christ.
This weekly column is provided to the News Journal on a monthly rotation basis by members of the Wilmington Area Ministerial Association.
