Page 57 - Living light - The Psalms

THIS WEEK’S BIBLE INSIGHTS ARE BY:
Toby Hole and are based on Psalm 1 (NIV)
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO READ MORE ON THIS WEEK’S MAJOR THEME:
Deuteronomy 30:11-20, Matthew 7:13-14, Romans 2:12-16
1 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither - whatever they do prospers.
4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
Sunday August 4 - Two ways
Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked... not so the wicked! Psalm 1:1,4
I have a number of poetry anthologies on my bookshelf – favourite poems collected by people and (usually) arranged in a particular order. They may be arranged by date of composition, by theme or even by alphabetical order. They are rarely just thrown together in a random assortment. Sometimes it takes a little time, though, before you spot just how they have been sorted.
The book of Psalms is a well-constructed anthology of Israel’s praises. It is arranged into five books (just like Israel’s law) and is a collection of the prayers and praises of God’s faithful people. At first glance they may look as though they are not in any order, and there is no certainty as to exactly how they have been arranged. But carefully arranged they certainly have been!
The first psalm, which we will look at this week, sets out a key theme of the whole collection. There are two ways that you can travel: towards God’s love and blessing, or away from God’s love to destruction. How you live your life, and the choices that you make, matters. All of us face a decision. Will we turn to God, or away from him? This psalm tells us the consequences of our choice: they are blessing or destruction, life or death.
Almighty Father, creator of heaven and earth, please give me the wisdom to make the right choices in my path of life, and to lead others to do the same. Amen.
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PRAYER FOR TODAY