Advent 2023: November 9 - Psalm

Thursday, November 9th: Psalm

Read Psalm 1

Blessed is the man.  That is how the whole book of Psalms begins.  But who is this blessed man?  Psalm 1 is not speaking of mankind generically.  It is not saying, “blessed is the type of person who does this.”  That is not right.  The way the Hebrew says it has in mind a specific person.
 
So, who is “The man?”  Maybe the words of Pilate in John 19:5 can help us out.  “So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe.  Pilate said to them, ‘Behold the man!’

Jesus is the man.  Jesus in Luke 24 teaches us that everything written in the Psalms is about him.
 
Who is Psalm 1 about?  Jesus.  In fact, it helps to reread that Psalm again seeing that the man being discussed is our Savior.

So, who is Jesus?  He does not walk with the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers.
 
Rather Jesus delights in God’s Word.  When Psalm 1 says “law” in verse 2, the word there is actually Torah.  Jesus delights in the Torah of God.

Jesus is solid.  He is like a tree, or to use his own words in John 15, he is the vine, and we are the branches.  Psalm 1 assures us that we are secure with this blessed man Jesus Christ.  Jesus will do right by us because his ways are steadfast love.
 
And of those who believe in Jesus, the blessed man, out of them shall flow streams of living water (see Psalm 1:3 and John 7:38).

Jesus yields his fruit in season, meaning those who are tethered to him will grow and mature and become ripe for when the harvest is ready.
 
But the wicked, those who are not tethered to the blessed man are not so.  They are like the husks of corn that are blown away when the corn is harvested and peeled.  So they won’t be around to stand in the judgment, but will perish.  But because we are secure in Jesus, who is the righteous one, we shall stand before him clothed and made clean.

To do this for us, Jesus placed himself in the council of the wicked who condemned him.  He stood in the place of sinners who charged him with death.  And he sat on the seat of the cross and was scoffed at.
 
The Father has made the cross of the Lord Jesus the tree that is planted secure by streams of water just as the water and blood poured out from Jesus.  And the fruit of that cross of our Lord bears for us eternal life. 
The Blessed One is Jesus Christ.