IF YOU ARE AN average adult, on any given day you make about 35,000 conscious decisions. Many of these decisions are pretty mundane, but some of them are pretty weighty. Now, you can look at this fact that you make so many decisions in any given day and think that it’s a negative thing. But actually there is a positive side to this.
Making 35,000 conscious decisions each day means you have 35,000 opportunities every single day to put a smile on God’s face. You have 35,000 opportunities to glorify God in both small and big decisions. God made us in His image – and part of that image is that we are able to make decisions, and those decisions really matter to Him.
The first chapter of Psalm lays out two very simple pathways for life that we choose to take: the path of the righteous and the path of the wicked. And it outlines certain key differences between these two paths.
Appetite
The first difference between these two paths is appetite. There is a difference in what you’re hungry for depending on which pathway you’re on. The person who chooses the path of the wicked has an increased appetite for sin, an increasing hunger for the things that dishonor God. And there are three components of this appetite. People in the path of the wicked
- “walk in the counsel of the wicked” (v. 1), referring to the mind and what is put into it;
- “stand in the way of sinners” (v. 1), referring behavior and actions. It’s about hanging out with people who do things that dishonor God. And as you stand in the way of sinners, you’re not blocking their way, you’re standing right there with them;
- sit “in the seat of scoffers” (v. 1). What’s a scoffer? A scoffer is someone who makes fun of what brings honor and glory to God. And if we find ourselves sitting with them, we’re on the path of the wicked.
So – whether it’s in our mind, actions, or identity – the more we feed on sin, the more we get an appetite for it. And the sad thing is, the more you hunger after this, the more you’ll be unsatisfied with it.
In contrast, the person on the path of the righteous
- delights “in the law of the Lord” (v. 2). The deepest satisfaction in life comes through feeding on God’s Word;
- always meditates on God’s law (v. 2). God’s Word is right there, and it bubbles out in every situation and decision.
The more you experience God and experience Him through His Word, the more you hunger for Him. And the more you hunger for Him, the more you find true satisfaction; the more you find what you were created for.
Character
The second difference lies in the character between those on the path of life and those on the path of the wicked. People on the path of the wicked are characterized by shallowness, devoid of godly purpose and lacking true meaning. They “are like chaff that the wind drives away” (v. 4). Chaff is the shell of a piece of grain that blows away in the process of harvesting. Chaff is useless, hopeless, driven away easily, undesirable – this is the character of the person on the path of the wicked.
The one in the path of the righteous “is like a tree planted by streams of water” (v. 3). He is connected to a constant source of nutrients to sustain him. And that constant source is God Himself. This person is steadfastly planted, and “yields its fruit in its season.” His “leaf does not wither” – he has steadfast health no matter what is going on.
“In all that he does, he prospers” (v. 3). This isn’t the kind of prosperity that preachers on TV sometimes offer. What we’re doing is all for the glory of God, so the prosperity first comes in bringing glory to Him. We don’t do good things because we want good stuff, we do it so that God will be glorified. And when we live for Him, He pours all kinds of blessings back on us.
Life & Death
Finally, the two paths are different in their destiny. The last part of verse six pretty much sums it up for those on the path of the wicked: “the way of the wicked will perish.” They “will not stand in the judgment” (v. 5). When they come to the end of the road, they won’t have a leg to stand on. They won’t be “in the congregation of the righteous” the way they are right now, pretending to be on the path of the righteous but really on the way to death.
In contrast, “the Lord knows the way of the righteous” (v. 6). Of course God knows the righteous way because that’s His way. He is the way (John 14:6). There is nothing you can do to get on the path of the righteous. There is only way to that path, and that’s through Jesus Christ.
The road down each path of life is paved with the 35,000 decisions we make every day. May we follow the Lord on His pathway through every one of those decisions – whether big or small.
Discussion Starters (based on Psalm 1)
- What are the three major differences between the two paths?
- In your own life, have you seen an increased appetite for the things of God or the things opposed to Him?
- What do we often fill our minds with?
- Where do you go for advice?
- How does it affect your spiritual walk?
- Do your actions reflect what you believe about God?
- What is a scoffer?
- What does it mean to sit in the seat of a scoffer?
- What does it mean to delight in God’s Word and meditate on it?
- How do we experience God through His Word?
- How is the one on the path of the wicked like chaff?
- How is the one on the path of the righteous like a tree planted by water?
- What does it mean that it “yields its fruit in its season”?
- In what ways do the righteous prosper?
- What does it mean that the Lord “knows the way of the righteous”?
- How should we live, as individuals and as a church, in light of all this?
