One of the signs that the God of the Bible is merciful and kindly disposed toward human beings is the way he begins some import­ant messages which he has sent to the inhabitants of the earth. The first Psalm begins by showing us how a person may be 'blessed'. That is to say that God starts this communiqué by pointing us to genuine happiness from the start to the end of life. Jesus spoke the same way in his Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7). He began this amazing sermon by giving nine 'beatitudes'. Each one points out a quality of human character which will bring true and lasting good fortune to the one who possesses it.

The Lord does not have an ugly disposition, one which hopes that man will suffer failure and misery. He stresses the way of blessing and urges everyone to walk in it. He is full of mercy and compassion toward men, even in a fallen and broken world. Knowing that fallen man can­not bring himself to part with wicked companions or to fill his mind with delight in God's Word, the Lord stands ready to grant both the ways to blessing in Psalm 1 and the qualities of character in the Beati­tudes to those who humbly ask him for them. It is by grace through faith in God's Son that any person comes under God's blessing.

Still, we are living in a very serious world. God has not placed us in a playground or an amusement park. There are great dangers in this world of ours. You cannot travel very far on the earth without meeting 'wicked' folks, 'sinners' (with lives decidedly devoted to evil practices), and those who mock truth and morality.

All of these are mentioned in the very first verse of this Psalm. Such evil persons want to advise you, want to enlist you in their way of life, and want to have you become one of their inner circle of outspoken opposition to God and his truth.

There are Only Two Roads to Travel in Life⤒🔗

What God is saying in the most emphatic manner is that there are only two basic choices for living. To be drawn into the fraternity of the wicked, the sinners, the mockers, leads away from genuine happiness and usefulness in life.

In fact, in the very first verse three emphatic negatives are given. The blessed man is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked. He does not stand in the way of sinners, participating in their habits of life. He does not compete with mockers in belittling God's truth or God's way of righteousness. These three influences must be avoided in order for one to be blessed.

Jesus made the same observation in his Sermon on the Mount. 'Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few' (Matt. 7:13-14). How one begins his travels in life is frequently determinative of one's destiny in blessedness or sorrow. Far from there being many paths to follow, there are but two. Life is very serious! A change of destiny is far more difficult than most imagine.

Two Means are Noted as Leading into the Way to Blessedness←⤒🔗

The careful choice of companions in life is a means to blessedness. The process of selecting close friends and mentors carries with it huge conse­quences.

Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the compan­ion of fools will suffer harm. Disaster pursues sinners, but the righteous are rewarded with good.Proverbs 13:20-21

Of course everyone must have casual social contact with both the wise and the foolish – in business, family and wider circles of acquaint­ance. But those you choose to give you counsel, to be your friends, shar­ing an outlook on life, must be wise if you would be blessed in life.

The company you keep is the social circle you are likely to imitate. Making an example of drunkards, pornographers, those who are dis­obedient to parents, violent, or lawbreakers will ruin you. As Paul warned in 1 Corinthians 15:33, 'Do not be deceived: bad company ruins good morals.' In modern times we can keep company by phones, i-pods, computers and televisions as well as by assembling in the same room.

A second means to blessedness which becomes a conscious choice is the thoughts with which we flood our minds. Psalm 1:2 contrasts the association of evil companions with, 'but his (the blessed man's) delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.' When a person loves the Word of God he reads it daily. Exactly as one picks fresh fruit from a garden each day, so a believing Bible reader notes thoughts he wants to explore more carefully. Through the many hours that follow his reading, anyone who delights in God's Word will ponder and apply practically what he has read.

He will also want to attend a church in which the Bible is seriously taught. Entertainment, fun, and games will not attract the happy man, but the presence of biblical discussions and sermons will deepen his sense of joy.

Two Marks of the Blessed Life are Given←⤒🔗

When a man seriously employs the two great means that lead to hap­piness, how will a life of success appear? When one enters the narrow gate and walks on the narrow path which leads to life, how will his happiness be noticeable?

We have seen already that he will have godly and wise advisors, teachers and friends. He will find much time for the Scriptures, because he delights in them.

First, God will watch over the happy man. Psalm 1:6: 'The LORD knows the way of the righteous.' Happy is the man whom God is always noticing and approving. God is not an uninvolved observer, but the Most High is watching him in order to care for him.

The happy man is like a tree. It is the Lord who plants such trees. They are implanted beside streams of water. Streams nourish such trees constantly. Some trees may suffer from seasons of drought, but those God himself plants suffer no such ills. Because they are planted next to irrigating streams, such men are not in want.

Second, the tree is fruitful. It is useful and reproductive. Through fruitfulness the godly man brings blessings on his family, church and community. The fruit of the Spirit in this tree is an influence for good to all around him. Even in dry times, when other trees have withering branches, 'its (this tree's) leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers' (Psa. 1:3). He is constantly successful and contributing to God's kingdom.

Two Destinies in the Day of Judgment←⤒🔗

Scripture frequently reminds us that for moral creatures there is a day of reckoning. Those who are made in God's image must answer to their Maker for their lives. 'The wicked are not so!' (Psa. 1:4). They are un­like a fruitful tree that prospers in all that he does. They are unlike those who choose good companions and delight in contemplating the Word of God.

The wicked are likened to 'chaff that the wind drives away' (Psa. 1:4). Chaff is the lightweight husk rubbed off from grain. It is entirely insubstantial. It is worthless. Wind will carry it away as that which is unwanted.

God smiles on the way of the righteous. But the wicked 'will not stand in the judgment' (Psa. 1:5). The wicked cannot pass the final exam of life given by Jesus on judgment day. 'Sinners will not stand in the congregation of the righteous' (Psa. 1:5). 'The way of the wicked will perish' (Psa. 1:6). When those who have lived a fruitless and god­less life approach the awesome moment when Jesus summons all to stand before him, disaster and destruction will fall upon them.

Not everyone who dies goes to a better place, a better world. Some who have turned their backs on God and his Bible love to comfort themselves with the Christian's hope when death approaches. For the ungodly it is a false hope. Chaff does not have the same destiny as do fruitful trees. Those who have prospered in all that they do enter the courts of God for ever and congregate with the righteous ones in great joy.

'But the way of the wicked will perish' is the conclusion of Psalm 1. It is fearfully urgent and difficult to persuade all to choose good com­panions and to fill their hearts with Holy Scripture. It is, in fact, a grim and daunting task. The sudden ending of Psalm 1 resounds as an echo of warning. 'The way of the wicked will perish.'

It is actually a further sign that the God of the Bible is merciful and kindly disposed toward humans that God so clearly sounds the alarm concerning the Day of Judgment. Others will think it is not necessary to tell of the tragic end of the wicked. But the Almighty calls to you to change your ways before the great destruction falls upon you.

A New Year's Check-up←⤒🔗

At the end of one year and the start of another it is good to examine ourselves. Is our pathway straight? Or have we begun to deviate from God's directions?

It is possible to make choices which distance us from godly friends. It is possible to drift into the entwining of our lives in ever deeper relation­ships with the ungodly, with sinners, with blasphemous mockers. Do we need a fresh resolve to cherish and protect godly companionships for us and for our children? Should we withdraw from relationships with harmful, sinful influences?

Have the times spent and the discipline exercised in Scripture medit­ation declined? When iniquity abounds the love of God's Word and of good books cools (Matt. 24:11). Have we even made a series of choices which diminish our presence in a biblical church? Should a correction of course be taken because we value God's blessing above all temporal acquisitions?

Are our spiritual leaves withering? Is our fruitfulness in Christian grace and service obviously drying up? It is possible for genuine Christ­ians to have seasons of relative dryness and lack of productivity. But if we long to remain under the care of God and to find success in our devotion to him, we must keep watch over our souls. We cannot allow our walk to veer off into sheer worldliness and neglect of heavenly matters.

Although we experience ups and downs in the strength of our faith­fulness to God and of the enjoyment of his felt assistance, '... those who endure to the end will be saved' (Matt. 14:13). We must return to the ways in which we first drew near to God. We must be in the midst of those who love and obey the Lord. And we must fill our thoughts with his Word.

It is always soul-refreshing to return to these early measures which gave us a good beginning. When we draw near to God again we have his promise that he will draw near to us with renewed grace (James 4:8).