Biblical Teachings - Blissful! - Chapter One

How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! Psalm 1.1  

This psalm may well be the preface to the book of Psalms. By contrasting the life of the godly with that of the ungodly, the Lord exposes the benefits that accompany one who aligns himself with the principles he has shared with his people. This person is called blessed! Blessed refers to the joy that results from being under God's favor. That is why the New Living Translation opts for the phrase: "What joy for those who do not follow the counsel of the wicked, nor walk with sinners, nor meet with scoffers. It is that spirit of celebration that accompanies those who enjoy the most abundant blessings from on high every day.   

The psalmist begins by first describing what they abstain from, and there we can observe something very interesting. The three verbs he uses have a progression: walk, stop, and sit. The person was walking, but then stopped and finally sat down. From a state of movement it becomes a state of immobility. The action of sitting indicates that he has no intention, in the immediate future, of walking again. This progression is not accidental. It communicates very clearly the process by which we fall into sin. The one who walks may be exposed to sin, but his own movement does not allow him to be trapped in it. When he stops, however, he is otherwise exposed to the environment in which he is. And the moment he sits down, it becomes evident that he is already comfortable there.   

It is the same teaching that James offers, when he uses the brilliant analogy of pregnancy to explain how a sinful act is engendered in our lives (James 1:14-15). Sin begins with an idea; if it is not immediately discarded, the mind begins to shape it and eventually engenders an action, which constitutes the consummation of sin. The principle that emerges from this observation is that sin is the fruit of a process. No one suddenly falls into sin. The psalmist says that blessed is the person who is attentive to this process, to avoid its evil consequences. He does not play with fire.   

He knows that certain questions are not convenient for him, because they will drag him towards others from which it will be much more difficult to get out. It is in this first step that the most effective battles against sin are fought. When I choose not to walk with the wicked, I am closing the door to the possibility of conforming to their principles and building my life based on their values.  

 There are certain conversations in which it is better not to participate. There are certain images that I should not click on. There are certain television programs that I don't want to watch. It is not a list of prohibitions, but the wisdom that comes from knowing that certain processes, once initiated, cannot be stopped. The blessed person avoids that which will inevitably lead him to sin.