Psalm 1

1
Psalm 1 True Happiness

• The world is so full of a number of things, I'm
  sure we should all be as happy as kings. Robert
  Louis Stevenson
• But are we? How happy are kings?
• To what extent can we control happiness?
• Circumstances, make up, background, mood
• We will have eternal happiness!
• What about this life? 1 Cor 1519, Ps 3, 5, 10
• Happiness must not be our chief aim - but if we
  can move towards it legitimately, we should!
• Happiness at the expense of God and others ends
  in tragedy anyway (Gal 6 710)

2
Who are the Wicked? v1

• Psalm 1 contrasts the righteous and the wicked
• Who are the wicked?
• Particularly bad people?
• Non-believers?
• Believers who dont avail of Gods resources?
• Anyone who is a bad influence?
• Anyone who puts God out of the picture?
• Do not let the world squeeze you into its mold
  (Rom 122) 1 Jn 215
• Walk, stand, sit progression towards allegiance
  to wicked
• Jesus stands at the door and knocks we dont
  answer

3
Delighted - v2

• How can we develop a greater appetite for Gods
  word? (We have more of it now than at that time.)
• What dominates our thought life (Mt 1244, 2 Cor
  10 4-6)
• Do we know how to meditate?
• To reflect on to contemplate
• Good at worrying!
• Good at dwelling on injustices!
• Good at coveting!
• We need to make the world grow strangely dim in
  the light of his glory and grace

4
C.S.Lewis on Faith

• "Now Faith is the art of holding on to things
  your reason has once accepted, in spite of your
  changing moods
• Now that I am a Christian I do have moods in
  which the whole thing looks very improbable but
  when I was an atheist I had moods in which
  Christianity looked terribly probable. This
  rebellion of your moods against your real self is
  going to come anyway. That is why Faith is such a
  necessary virtue unless you teach your moods
  'where they get off', you can never be either a
  sound Christian or even a sound atheist, but just
  a creature dithering to and fro, with its beliefs
  really dependent on the weather and the state of
  its digestion.
• Consequently one must train the habit of Faith.

5
Tree by Streams of Living Water v3

• Think of Rev 22 again.
• Trees look beautiful and provide fruit and much
  else.
• A tree needs light, water, roots, nourishment
• Are we more like fake trees, cut flowers,
  tumbleweeds?
• We must be
• Separated from the world
• Saturated by the word
• The law is all about God.
• To bear the fruit of the Spirit, we must allow
  the Spirit to work in us and through us Gal
  519-25

6
Not So the Wicked

• Chaff is utterly useless for anything.
• They will have no part in the New Heaven and New
  Earth.
• They do no good in this world unless God uses
  them for his purposes despite themselves (Rom
  917)
• Will not stand in the judgment
• Some try to run with the hare and hunt with the
  hounds
• The LORD will separate them out Matt 312
• LORD watches over the way of the righteous
• God declares us righteous when we believe.
• God makes us more righteous throughout our lives.
• We will be righteous in the heaven.
• To perish isnt to fade into non-existence see
  Revelation!