Pen Pulpit

PRAISING GOD - DO YOU QUALIFY?
Psalm 1
February 13th, 2000


In Psalm 150:6 we read “let everything that has breath praise the Lord.” However, this statement must be qualified as “the fool has said in his heart there is no God” (Psalm 14:1) and therefore, is certainly is not qualified to praise Him. It is God’s desire that all men qualify to praise God.

Psalm 1, the introductory Psalm, presents sharp contrast to two extremes - the truly righteous way of life and the basically wicked way. This Psalm expands the ramifications of the pursuit of these two ways - the truly right way of joy and blessing and the basically wicked way with misery and hopelessness (Matthew 7:13-14, 24-27).

1. The blessed man is qualified to praise God (Psalm 1:1-3)

• He avoids walking in the counsel of the ungodly which leads to standing, and then sitting - a subtle erosion of his principles. Ungodly counsel in terms of ethics and moral judgments and the philosophy of life is so destructive to the Christian and is not conducive to praise.

• He avoids participating in the practices of the sinner as thinking leads to action. The blessed man does not think like the world.

• He avoids joining with those who openly mock God (v. 1c). Thinking like the world leads to practicing the world’s philosophy which could eventually result in open ridicule of the ways of God. Notice the process of erosion.

• In contrast he pursues what is right as “his delight is in the law of the Lord and in His law he meditates day and night” (v 2).

• Consequently he is strong in his faith and able to resist temptation (v 3). See also Jer. 17:8, Psalm 92:12-14, Hosea 14:4,5 and Acts 20:32.

2. The blasted man is unqualified to Praise God.

• His present life is empty and without meaning.
(Psalm 1:4, Jude 11-13, James 1:6 and Ephesians 4:17-19)

• His future is bleak and hopeless. (Psalm 1:5, Eph. 2:12, I Thes. 4:13)

In Revelation 5 we see the final praise service of the righteous - what a congregation and how exciting to know the blessed man will be a part.

In contrast we see the final gathering of the ungodly in Revelation 20:11-15.

Beloved, are you qualified to praise God?


Love to you all.

--Pastor Charles Covington 1933-2006