Meditations on Psalm 1

Psalm 1 is the preface to the Book of Psalms, and describes how the collection as a whole. Here are some thoughts on how that works, with a few selected references (not exhaustive by any means) for each:

• "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful" - The Book of Psalms is concerned with the antithesis, or what we would call the division between good and evil. There is a lifestyle of righteousness, and there is a lifestyle of wickedness. The Psalms teach us the difference. (Psalm 15, 37, 73)



• "But his delight is in the Torah of Yahweh, and in His Torah doth he meditate day and night" - The most obvious relation to the book as a whole. The man who reads, studies, meditates upon, and delights in the Psalms will be greatly blessed. Note the word Torah, which has a richer meaning than the translated word "law". It means the loving instruction of a father, our father Yahweh. (Psalm 19, 119)



• "And he shall be like a tree planted by rivers of water... The ungodly are not so, but are like chaff which the wind driveth away" - Both of these images refer to the effects of wind. The first describes the transplanting of a tree from rocky, barren soil to deep, rich soil, so that wind will not uproot the tree, but will strengthen it by making it take root. And chaff is separated from wheat by the action of the wind as well. The Book of Psalms is a collection of songs of struggle, sung by righteous men who are afflicted by the "Wind of God". The promise here and throughout the book is that Yahweh will deliver and prosper the righteous, but His Wind will destroy the wicked. (Psalm 11, 23, 142)



• "Which bringeth forth his fruit in his season. His leaf shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." - After trial, the righteous man receives glory to the praise of God. The Book of Psalms describes those trials and battles, but ends in glorious praise of God, with no troubles in sight. (Psalms 145-150)



• "Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment" - This is a promise to godly men that the writers shall remember and bring to God frequently. There are many prayers that claim this promise in this book, Psalms that we call imprecatory. This is a promise that God hears those prayers and takes vengeance for His people. (Psalm 35, 58, 69)



• "Nor sinners in the congregation of the upright" - There is a congregation of the upright, and righteous men will arrive there. Some of the most beautiful Psalms in the book are in Songs of Ascent, Psalms that pilgrims would pray as they approached Jerusalem for the holy day congregations (Psalms 120-134). "The righteous shall compass me about, for thou shalt deal bountifully with me" (Psalm 142:7)



• "For Yahweh knoweth the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish - The Psalm writers were Calvinists, or better to say that Calvin was a Psalmist. When troubles come in the Psalms, they come from the Hand of God (Psalm 88, 89). But Yahweh knows us in our troubles (Psalm 139, 142), and delivers us from them all.

Dealing with Error

This is my outline from this week's Sunday School class.

"As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him..." - Romans 14:1-15:7

Introduction

We are rightly trying to build a church with an emphasis on sound doctrine. This is a difficult task, as errors are prevalent today. But the task is more complicated than being able to identify error: we must be able to respond in a biblical manner as well. And Paul wants us to learn that there is a deeper right than being right.

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Vegetables Only?

Paul takes the Roman Christians aside to discuss a hot topic in the first century- abstaining from certain foods for spiritual reasons. Regardless of the reason for the prohibition, Paul identifies this as the doctrine of demons (I Tim 4:1-3), and says that those who are caught up in it have a weak faith (v. 2). A good minister has the responsibility to stand against it (I Tim 4:6), because it has the power to steer Christians into destruction (I Tim 4:16). This is not a mild academic discussion- souls are in the balance.

Salvation is from God

Calvinists are always subject to the temptation to forget that Calvinism is true. We are not saved by our works, or by our understanding, or anything else we do, say or think. God is in charge of our salvation, and His work is not up for peer review (v4). Being critical of a brethren’s spiritual state is to be critical of God’s work, for He is our master. And He is no perfectionist.

Judging Motives

When we’ve studied a matter out of sincere love for God and come to a conclusion, it’s easy to question the motives of others who come to a different conclusion. Make up your mind, Paul says (v5), but consider other’s motives charitably (v6). We belong to God, and He accepts our sincere works because Christ died (v9). So remember that man judges the outside, but God (alone) judges the heart. And He will judge you (v10).

Where is the Sin?

Ancient Gnostics believed that sin was resident itself in material things; food, wine, sex, etc. Judaizers held the same belief, remembering (wrongly) the Old Testament law.

But we know better- God has made all things for us, and all of them are good (v14). The sin is in our hearts, and comes out in how we use the world. Are you using the world to gratify your fleshly desires for sensual pleasure? How about your desires for the pleasure of quarreling with the brethren? Put it away (v16), and put on love.

The Kingdom of God

The Kingdom of God is not about right opinions, but about peace with God, man, and one’s self (v17). God loves the man who learns to live this way, and so do other people (v18). Pursue it hard, Paul says (v19). Do these three types of peace characterize you? Or are you constantly at war with everyone and everything?

Revolution and Reform

There are two basic ways to react to problems in the world. The first is the way of the revolutionary, who just wants to know who is black and who is white. This has the benefit of instant results, but fighting sin with sin only multiplies sin. The way of the Gospel is reformation, which is patient, longsuffering, and trusting in the Holy Spirit. God is doing a good work in us, but our rashness can destroy it (v20). So mind your own business (v22), and keep your conscience clean (v23). You have an obligation to bear with those who are weak or confused (15:1), just like Christ did (v3). Of course, this takes great patience and endurance, which God will give, especially through the Scriptures (v4,5).

As Christ Has Welcomed You

Paul doesn’t mind repeating himself, and so he urges you again to accept one another as Christ has accepted you (v7). Understanding that Christ has accepted you is the only way carnal man can accept someone else. So has God called you to Himself in peace this morning? Yes He has- so be at peace with each other, and all those God has called. Does God invite you to His table to eat with Him in peace? Yes He does- so be at peace with the others who eat. Does God forgive your sins generously and willingly? Yes He does- so forgive one another.

Night Bugs

If you've spent any time in your backyard this summer, you've probably noticed how loud it gets right at sunset. (Hopefully it's not because the neighbor's dogs bark all day and night.) Pennsylvania has three common insects that call from ground and tree during the evening (and at times during the day). Try to listen for these:

The Tree Cricket makes the steady trill you'll hear in the background. Sometimes these modulate their call up and down, but it usually has a steady feel like this sample.

The Field Cricket is the more common cricket, one you'll find easily if you turn over rotting logs or compost. These little guys chirp day and night, a "cheep cheep" sound that varies its rate with the outdoor temperature.

The loudest is the Katydid. These grasshopper-like bugs call to one another from the tree tops starting at about sundown. You can hear their name in their call- "Kay-Tee-Did, Kay-Tee-Did" (or sometimes "Kay-Tee-Did-Did-Did").

All of these insects make their sounds by rubbing their legs together vigorously. They don't have the ability to make sounds with their mouths, and their hearing organs are along the edge of their legs. Calls are for mating, and for your backyard hearing pleasure.

Links (with thanks for the sounds and pictures):

• Insect Sounds from NatureSounds.com


• Sample Sounds of Crickets and Katydids from the University of Florida


• Wikipedia

Discerning Dad's Will

Once upon a time there was a teenager who needed to find his first job. He was just past sixteen, and had struck a deal with parents that involved some cash on his part in exchange for driving privileges. But he, being sixteen, didn't know the first thing about getting job.

And both his mom and dad realized this. So late one night in their bed, mom asked dad, "Are you going to give Richie any help with finding a job?"

Dad was prepared for this. "Yes I am. I think this is a great learning opportunity for him. I'd like to help him in a way that will teach him how to make wise decisions on his own. He'll need to learn how to do that soon, you know."

Mom pulled closer to her husband and rested her head on his chest with a deep "Mmmmm".

"Here's what I have in mind", dad said, encouraged by her touch. "I really want him to work at Agway loading feed. Denny needs some help down there, and Richie would really enjoy it. So that's what he needs to do. If he picks something else, I'm going to be angry with him, take away the driving privileges that we agreed upon, and probably not speak to him until he quits. This is still my house, and although he is sixteen, he's got to obey my rules.

"But here's what I want you to do. If he comes to ask your opinion about it, don't tell him anything. He'll be wondering if it's a good idea to just pick something he likes: let him wonder. He'll probably be thinking that he could cause himself some real problems by picking the wrong place to work: let him think that. He'll be sure that we have a strong opinion about this (which we do), and he'll want to know it. Don't give in: let him wonder and worry and try to figure it out on his own. We need to make this as hard for him to figure out as we can. If he seems like he's going to screw it up and pick something else, don't warn him in anyway. We'll let him know that he chose wrong after the fact, believe you me.

"I really think this can be a great opportunity to let him try and make decisions on his own, a wise lesson he'll carry with him for a long time."

That night, Richie thought for a long time about his decision, and decided the best thing to do would be to ask his dad's opinion over breakfast. But he forgot altogether about asking when he came down early and found his dad still sleeping on the sofa.

A Useful Baseball Guide

Perhaps you've taken the opportunity this summer to catch a baseball game or two. If that's the case, and you're relatively new to the sport, Bill Simmons has a useful primer on one of the game's best features: the Baseball Brawl.

Birding Expedition

I had a fun camping trip last night in celebration of a day off work, and this morning I did some hiking and four-wheeling around the Quehanna Wild Area. I wanted to see some new birds, and I got a few. I got pictures of these two, but they just weren't blog quality, so I stole these from usgs.gov.

The first is a very common mountain bird, the Eastern Towhee. This bird is very common along the edges of the forest, so if you ride down the dirts roads in the summer you're very likely to see their distinctive black and white tails flying away from your car. I believe that these are sometimes referred to as the Roufus-Sided Towhee because of the patches under their wings. I got close enough to see a pair: the one you see here is a male. The female has a browner head. The song is distinctive as well: click here for a sample (thanks again USGS).

The other new bird I saw was a Yellow Throated Vireo. I'd never seen a vireo before, although I'd heard them many times- probably every trip to the forest. They are noisy singers, but reclusive treetop birds. For some reason, one of these little yellow guys was down in the mountain laurel today long enough to be observed in the binoculars.

I was also able to use my bird song CD and the USGS website to identify two other bird songs, although I couldn't see either of the birds on this trip. The first was the Whippoorwill, an enthusiastic caller that comes out during the night. The other is another reclusive tree top caller with a very distinctive sound, the Veery. Click on the name to hear a sound sample.

The Man With the Golden Key

To us he appeared to be indeed the Man with the Golden Key, a magician opening the gates of goblin castles or the sepulchres of dead heroes; and there was no incongruity in calling his lantern a magic-lantern. But all this time he was known to the world, and even the next-door neighbours, as a very reliable and capable though rather unambitious business man. It was a very good first lesson in what is also the last lesson of life; that in everything that matters, the inside is much larger than the outside. On the whole I am glad that he was never an artist. It might have stood in his way in becoming an amateur. It might have spoilt his career; his private career. He could never have made a vulgar success of all the thousand things he did so successfully.

G.K. Chesterton on his father, Autobiography