Self-Examination: Are there thoughts throughout A TIME FOR your day that you do not pass through the filter of God’s Word? As a follower of Christ, are you harboring certain REFLECTION thoughts and refusing to relinquish them to the control of the Holy Spirit? What preoccupies you? When God controls our life, purpose and beauty materialize in every conver- sation, every hidden attitude, every thought, every action, every plan—since every aspect is now for His eternal glory. “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). May our lives be pre- occupied with the One whose love has captured our heart. As Frances Ridley Havergal concluded in that beautiful hymn: “Take my will and make it Thine; it shall be no longer mine. Take my heart; it is Thine own. It shall be Thy royal throne. Take my love, my Lord, I pour at Thy feet its treasure-store. Take myself and I will be ever, only all for Thee.” Questions to Consider: Before addressing these questions, take a few minutes to write down your initial thoughts and reactions to this chapter.What stands out to you?What questions come to mind? What does your flesh initially want to resist? 1. What moments of your day do not commonly pass through the filter of God's Word? 2. How would your day be different and your attitude changed if you allowed God’s Word to be the constant filter of your life? 3. What menial tasks have you never looked at through the lens of God’s glory? How might your attitude toward these things be different if influenced by meditation on God’s Word? 4. What thoughts of man are you refusing to let the Spirit of God in you take captive (assuming you have been born again)? 5. How can you remain preoccupied with God and His Word while going through your day? Any practical disciplines? 6. Are there tasks and activities (that take your time and attention) that you’re not doing for the glory of God? Is there a task which you don’t see as a vehicle of God’s glory? With whom might you discuss this area of your life in order to see more clearly what God wants from it? 7. Since sin is “missing the mark, the bullseye,” what areas of preoccupation might you need to confess to God in repentance?
DAY 8 the PLATFORM of the blessed man PSALM 1:1-3 Blessed is the man who BIG IDEA: walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the when we seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates ABSORB day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its as we ought, season, and its leaf does not wither. In all we will be that he does, he prospers. ANCHORED as we should, and we will AFFECT others as we might. In our look at the blessed life in Psalm 1 up until now, our focus has been on the inward applications of the practice, priority, and preoccupation of the blessed man. By inward, I’m referring to God’s work in the heart of the blessed individual. Now the focus shifts from an inward inspection to an outward rec- ognition as we consider the blessed man’s platform. Look once more at Psalm 1:2 —“His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night”— on His law. The law of the Lord is not only the hub of the blessed man’s de- light and meditation, but it is also the platform on which he stands. Platform has two distinct meanings in English: (1) A raised surface on which people or things can stand (2) The declared policy of a party or group Rather than suggest that it's one or the other for this blessed man, let’s go with both. 53
54 PROSPER The use of physical platforms goes back at least to biblical days when Ezra stood on a platform to read the law of the Lord to the people (Nehemiah 8). Sound familiar? This law of the Lord is what the blessed man in Psalm 1 stands on. It is also what he stands up to proclaim. The Word of God is his platform. Consider your life. What is your platform? What do you stand on? What is the basis, or foundation, for the claims you make, the goals you pur- sue, the things you live for? People often say, “I stand for...” this or that. Some stand for a political party, some for their sports team, some for their company. Some stand against a certain in- justice in society. And perhaps the things you stand for are all good and right. But think about this: What we stand for and what we stand on are two different things. The one is something we support; the other supports us. Let’s be realistic. Anything I stand for or support has the poten- tial to collapse, and probably will at some point. But when I stand on a platform, I am not supporting it; it supports me. Be- cause of this, I must be very careful to when I stand on a stand only on those things that are in platform, I am not complete sync with the Word of God, supporting it; the law of the Lord. It is dangerous for it supports me... me to establish my hope or joy or pur- I must be very pose on anything other than God's careful to stand Word. If I do, I am only setting myself only on those up for distress, disappointment, and de- things that are in feat. complete sync with the Consider the end of your life. Are you Word of God. standing on anything other than the
THE PATTERN OF A BLESSED MAN 55 Word of God for your salvation and eternal life? It is the Word of God that tells you that Christ loves you, died for you, con- quered death for you, and freely offers you the gift of eternal life. My dear friend, if you have not been declared righteous by faith in the finished, perfect, redemptive work of Jesus, your foundation—your platform—will crumble. In Psalm 1, we find a solid footing on which to stand, but we also learn of foundations that fail. Did you notice in Psalm 1:1 that the one who is perishing (v. 6) “stands in the way of sinners”? And verse 5 tells us that “the wicked will not stand in the judgment.” In other words, those who live apart from the Word of God will not survive the judgment of God. Why not? We will be judged by the law of the Lord (John 12:48), so the only way that we can stand in the final judgment is to have a foundation established on God’s perfect law: “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11). Will you stand on that final day? I'm speaking positionally: are you in Christ? Is Christ your righteousness? And for those who are believers in Christ Jesus, what about practically? Will the things you stand for Will the things now matter on that day when you stand you stand for now before the Lord Jesus? matter on that day when you On a personal level, allow a few simple stand before the questions. Does your joy fluctuate when Lord Jesus? things in society, like sports, politics, or news events, rock your life? Is your peace eroded when your plans crash or your dreams fail? Is your hope swayed by election results, a friend’s approval, or the outcome of an application? Certainly, there is a place for sadness and mourning, and some-
56 PROSPER times we need time to process a loss. But if our attitude, joy, and testimony are determined by earthly circumstances, it could be an indication that we are standing on the world’s plat- form rather than basing our delight, passion, and hope on the law of the Lord. The primary command given in Scripture to followers of Christ as we engage in spiritual battle is not to carry out great exploits; it is to stand. Ephesians 6:11, 13 and 14 tell us to “stand.” Verse 13 also tells us to “withstand.” The chapter then describes the plat- form on which we can stand firm against the enemy, which is also the platform from which we can declare the gospel and glory of our God. And where do we stand, according to God’s Word? • We stand in the gospel (1 Corinthians 15:1). • We stand in grace (Romans 5:2). • We stand in the faith (1 Corinthians 16:13; 2 Corinthians 1:24). • We stand in freedom from a yoke of slavery to the constraints of the law (Galatians 5:1). • We stand in unity, “one spirit, one mind” in Jesus (Philippians 1:27). • We stand in all the will of God (Colossians 4:12). • We stand in the Lord (Philippians 4:1). A healthy faith will mourn the brokenness which surrounds us, but if our faith is shaken by this ever-changing world, we may have a serious problem. The good news is that we have been of- fered a foundation which never changes—God’s Word: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35). Where are you standing today?
Self-Examination: We have seen the implications of A TIME FOR this platform positionally and practically, but what about publicly? Do your friends hear more from you about your REFLECTION sports team than about your Savior? Is your schedule taken up more with personal pursuits than it is with God's kingdom and glory? Are you more vocal about a social issue (even a major issue that needs to be addressed) than you are about the one thing (the gospel) that will save people from eternal separation from God and bring them into an intimate rela- tionship with their Creator-Redeemer? Do you focus more on learning the platform of your political party, so you can defend it, than you do on learning the law of the Lord, the heart of God, so you can live it? Jesus said,“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden”(Matthew 5:14). May no soul around you or me have any confusion con- cerning the platform on which we stand. “Standing on the promises that cannot fail, when the howling storms of doubt and fear assail, By the living Word of God, I shall prevail, standing on the promises of God.” Questions to Consider: Before addressing these questions, take a few minutes to write down your initial thoughts and reactions to this chapter.What stands out to you?What questions come to mind? What does your flesh initially want to resist? 1.What shakes your confidence and induces anxiety in your life?What is the last thing that really rattled you? What foundation did that reveal? 2. What, if removed, might make you lose desire to carry on or even to live? 3. How do you remind yourself daily of your true foundation and the reason for true peace? 4. Based on the topics of your conversations, what might your friends say you stand for? Would they say you have an equal passion for the soul-saving gospel of Jesus Christ? 5. How might you practically stand more firmly in the things in which God’s Word tells us to stand? 6. Do you declare your platform with love? How so? 7. Do you declare your platform primarily with your lips or with your life, or both? Explain. How can the two work together in a complementary way?
DAY 9 the PRECEPTS of the blessed man PSALM 1:1-3 Blessed is the man who BIG IDEA: walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the when we seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates ABSORB day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its as we ought, season, and its leaf does not wither. In all we will be that he does, he prospers. ANCHORED as we should, and we will AFFECT others as we might. 59
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