Psalm 37 Part II with a Christian Philosophy of Life and Living It you look up “love” in a large concordance like YOUNGS, the first thing you notice is that more of them are in the book of Psalms than any other of the 66 books of the Bible, and then while scrutinizing Psalms on love you will notice statements often of what God loves, naturally revelations in the Bible about the nature and character of God. We like to know what God is like, realizing that in His self-revelation of Himself in the Bible, that is, how “every word proceeds out of the mouth of God”, we can have great confidence of what GOD REALLY LOVES. 1. Psalm 11:7-”For the LORD {LORD with capitals always refers in the Bible to God the Father and Lord to the Lord Jesus Christ, His son} is righteousness {any ‘is” about God is about His character}, He loves righteousness; His countenance beholds the upright.” NOTE: This implies that God Himself being righteous, and always looking down on the earth for righteousness--like a radar with a beacon return--focuses on the “upright”. And the category of people God Himself calls the UPRIGHT is something preparatory to the distinguishing in Psalm 37 between the wicked and the good man. 2. Psalm 33:4,5-”For the word of the LORD is right, and all his work is done in truth. He loves righteousness and judgment; the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.” NOTE: More people have their eyes honed to see the bad things in the world, overlooking the good with the mercy and grace of God. But in all the character and will of God, both permissive and directed, His love of righteousness and true justice and judgment dominates. And as about the LORD God the Father, so it is about God the Son--loving righteousness and hating wickedness as below in Psalm 45:6,7. 3. Psalm 45:6,7-”Your throne O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You love righteousness and hate wickedness, There God, Your God {the God the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, God is talking about Jesus}, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.” NOTE 1: Oh ye of doubts and the sceptics that doubt God the Father is talking about God the Son must according to the ASPI allow the Apostle Paul in Hebrews 1:8,9 to properly interpret and explain it for you. The slow of heart to believe, might say how could the Lord Jesus Christ be spoken of here in the Old Testament of Psalm way back to BC, when He was not born until the first of AD? Well before we look at the Son in Hebrews 1:8,9, we should remember John 1 where the “Word was in the beginning with God, and was God, and how all things were made through the Son; and that Word became flesh in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, and John and the other Apostles stated, “dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace an truth.” (John 1:14} NOTE 2: Now you are ready for the Apostle Paul’s quoting and only proper interpretation of Psalm 45:6,7 above; and hopefully this can settle for you how both the Father and the Son are at work in the book of Psalms. “BUT TO THE SON He {God the Father} says: Your throne, O God is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.” (Hebrews 1:8,9) 2-1: Love and righteousness along with justice is what you want to remember about God and Jesus as we come to the second part of Psalm 37, starting with verse 23, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the LORD upholds him with His hand.” {Psalm 37:23-40} 1. Is “good man” in Psalm 37 enough to make it the title of the second half? a. Well, in the first half, while the “good man” per say in those words is not mentioned, it is the same as in the words of “the righteous man”; so that in the in the second half if you read carefully 3;23-25, you will note that the good man is the same in the sight of God as the righteous man. b. In the second half “good man” is mentioned only once; however as noted above is made synonymous with righteousness and the righteous man and mentioned often. NOTE: In Romans 3:10-13 where there is not one single human being on the face of the earth that is good or righteous, that is before the righteousness of God, declared and given internally, through faith. By nature and by continuing human spirit, called in the Bible “the flesh”, man sins to the extent of no absolute goodness like God. Yet with the right attitude and faith in God, God will look at Him as a good man instead of a wicked man. (1). “the righteous are not forsaken” (37:25) (2). “the righteous inherit the {forever} land” (37:29), of the forever kingdom. (3). his “mouth speaks wisdom.and talks of justice” (37:30) (4). “the law of God is in his heart” (37:31) NOTE: This is where the internal righteousness comes in. Please see “Righteousness of God and Man” as one of the top 12 topics of the Bible on the SunGrist_Bible web site of www.biblecombibleman.com . (5). “none of his steps shall slide” to the extent of slipping right down into eternal damnation and hell (37:31). 2. Even as the first part of this Psalm started in verse 1-3 with admonitions not to fret about what “evildoers” are doing , and not to in turn also envy or covet the “workers of iniquity”, because at the end of time they will be cut down to size, and their life is very short; even so the second half begins with the blessings more of a “good man”: (1) his steps are ordered by the LORD; (2) the God of righteousness and justice “delights in His” lifestyle; (3) constant stabilization from the LORD and by His large hand as he stumbles without being utterly cast down; (4) such righteous, good men are not forsaken by the LORD, and (5) His descendants do not beg for bread, with the implication of both they are hard workers but also they receive the mercy and grace of God for enough to live on. 3. This all is what God thinks of the good or righteous man and the way he will indeed live; but what is going to happen between the righteous men and the majority of wicked men. This continues in verse 32 with the fretting about then and coveting after them started in verse 1. {isn’t it strange that it is the wicked that have always had so much that they easily encourage coveting after, while the righteous have less}. “The wicked watches {like a hawk} the righteous and seeks to slay him.” (37:32) 2-2: Worthy of special note are the 3 characteristics of the good man or righteous man of 37:26: (1) He is every merciful; (2) He lends; and (3) His descendants are blessed. While this mercy {better known as unmerited and unearned favor} and lending focus on his descendants, others are not to be considered as outside the province of life habits of a good man. You would have to consider this verse in the Old Testament, the equivalent of the “cup of water” in the Name of Christ in the New Testament. It is so hard for us to understand and do as a habit of life, but Jesus was serious as He taught, “And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.” (Matthew 1):42) This is where you can separate those of the world practicing good PR, and seemingly good for a reward, from the good. You can note the wicked of the world as they will not lend without usury {this is making interest, a sign of the wicked of the world}, and unless they think somebody is worthy of their help they give nothing. Hard standards from God; yes, in a way. 2-3: What is the outcome of this battle between the majority wicked and the minority righteous? “The LORD will not leave him {the righteous as identified previously in the verse before, 37:32} in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.” (Psalm 37:33) 2-4: With this assurance of being in the hand of God and of the help of God, therefore (1) WAIT ON THE LORD and (2) don’t let His way and ways slip out of your life; and wait for the forever, eternal land! (Psalm 37:34-40). they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles. they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint. 2-5. A Bible-based Christian Philosophy of Life and Living based on the “Pride of Life” of I John 2:15-17, and the right kind of “Love of life” of I Peter 3:10-12. The Christian life is complex and a challenge between pride and the right love of life: (1) I John 2:15-17; (2) I Peter 3:10-12; and (3) the death to “self” of Jesus and Paul. Granted that it is not easy for any preacher, even the pastor of the FBC of Dallas, to identify the difference between the righteous and the wicked in terms of who is a Christian or not. In last weeks radio program, he rightly stated that statistically there are no differences between the church member or otherwise, between the Christian or otherwise; then enumerating some of the stats where they are the same like on divorce, addiction, etc are not different. To rescue us, we must turn to the New Testament as always for the complete answer; after all why have 66 books of revelations from God, every word out of the mouth of God and not use them, and the revelation of God is progressive, getting complete only in Jesus and the words from and about Jesus in His efforts for God at salvation. Of course, if you have been tuned in you know that there is afoot from SunGrist_Bible on www.biblecombibleman.com an emphasis and movement on ALL SCRIPTURE! Nobody every said it was easy to tell the difference, or that it was easy to even be a Christian. The Word says, “all that will lived godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” (II Timothy 3:12} You see, first of all there is the vast majority of claims to be Christians “in Christ Jesus”; and then those that distinguish themselves from the ordinary by suffering some differing measures of persecution, even if it is in the form of being ignored by the majority of Christians {that is a compliment in these days of the Falling Away, even as popularity for any preacher is a seriously bad sign}. Those Bible Baptists that quote II Timothy 3:12, fail to go all the way on dedication, by distinguishing the distinction between “IN THE WORLD” and “OF THE WORLD” of the Apostles Paul and John. You don’t hear these Bible Baptists at the top any more using these common words in the Bible to distinguish between “the world” and Christians; primarily because they and their primary supporters are so much a part of the status of the world. At the highest peak of the New Testament, and very possible the last 3 books of the NT to be written, the little epistles, we have the no-holds barred distinguish between the world and real Christians that “will live godly in Christ Jesus”. You see, in order to get satisfied in our own mind and from the Bible about what God Himself thinks is the difference between wicked and righteous, we must get above our own personalized and self-centered concepts of justice, good, and righteousness. {Even as “God’s ways are higher than our ways and God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts”, it is hard to get above our selves and our society in order to define these differences; that is without the ASPI version of the Bible.} 1. Do Not Love the World {I John 2:15-17} ‘Do not love the world or the things in the world. {The Bible reader, ordinarily would become very curious about what is “in the world” according to these words out of the mouth of God, and in most cases seek to eliminate them from their own lives in their imaginations, and ahead of time; but this is so serious for any assumed relationship with God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, something like the Apostle John had, that there is the challenge first between love of God and love of world.} If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. {Serious enough to really get earnest about what is IN the world and what is OF the world!} “For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--is not of the Father but is of the world.” NOTES: 1. Everything “in the world” is “of the world”, and not of the Father. 2. Lest any Christians or real Christians have any doubt as to specifically what is “in” and “of” the world that makes the world so non-Christian for godly living in Christ Jesus, the three specifics of (1). lust of the flesh, (2) lust of the eyes, and (3) pride of life. As serious are first two challenged of non-worldliness of lusts in the Christians pilgrims warfare between flesh and spirit, the one often neglected and rationalized as the at-the-top Bible Baptist do in their strains to re-define and polish success, is the “pride of life.” What I hear in their contemporary messages on success is be like me, and I am at the top as are my most ardent deacons and other wealthy supporters. Since they struggle with the “Pride of Life” as most do, let us make some efforts to define what it really is. Surely you would have to admit that it comes closest to what is meant when family and admirers say either: (1) “we are proud of you”; and/or (2) “you are making something out of yourself”, or you “make something out of yourself”--sort of like “be somebody”. These, though common traditions and customs among church members and others--and we note that the Bible Baptists at the top generally like to sound like they are countermanding bad customs and traditions while they are really helping to st rent hen the bad ones that are unique to Bible Baptists, and the world--are worldly concepts, worldly habit, and worldly philosophies. If you don’t think so, ask any real southern baptist leader before the Bible baptist takeover the SBC. These verses of I John 2:15-17 have the same goal of Psalm 37 in that they both encourage the good and righteous and discourage the wicked by an emphasis on the long look of eternal life. “The world passes away and the lusts thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abides forever.” (I John 2:17) NOTE: Granted that this world has many temporal pleasures included the pride of life and the fulfillment of the other lusts; and even as Christians it is still as Pastor James wrote for the first Christians of the first century, “The spirit within us lusteth to envy, or covet” (James execs); and with the obvious contrast and challenge above in I John 2:17 of a habit of constant seeking and knowing “the will of God” over the lusts of the world that almost as constantly raises up its ugly head since even with the birth of the inward spirit of the Holy Spirit, there is still present always that ugly lusts of the flesh that continues to envy or covet. We just do not get rid of this ugly until Christ comes again, and we “shall be like Him for we shall see Him as He is”; however the extent to which we habitual triumph with the will of God over these lusts, including Pride, is a good measure of how successful we are in our practical Philosophy of life and living. Surely these top Bible Baptists of the SBC should include I John 2:15-17 in (1) their efforts at the ALL SCRIPTURE approach and (2) in any definition of wellness, the best God wants for your life, and success, in order to avoid any confusion with the world, in the world, and of the world. Any philosophy of life like Elton Truebood, C.C. Lewis, or Wayne Oates would advice would have to include the big difference between world concepts and philosophies and those of the godly in Christ Jesus. 2. You will be glad to know that a killing of the Pride of Life in your own life does that eliminate the “love of life” and the seeing of “good {and long} days” of I Peter 3:10-12. NOTE: As we momentarily just before the conclusion with a teaching of Christ about a philosophy of life, cast our mental tents on these 3 verses of I Peter 3: 10-12, first of all from I Peter we note that these words are a direct quote from Psalm 34:12-16, so that the Apostle Peter in speaking on the “love of life” and “good days”--high in quality and even longer in the potential for many, many, many good days on the other side of eternity. The same “forever” of Psalm 37. So with a quote from Psalm 34, we are right back to Psalms where we started, and very close to Psalm 37. One might even call Psalm 37 an application or implication of Psalm 34. a. Blessed Inheritance of the Meek. The inherited blessing of a good life and long days that is a challenge in front of any Christian. From the bottom line of I Peter 2:9 that Peter states in order to lead into the quote of Psalm 34:12-16, for Peter know that the quote to follow about the long life and good days is the same as the promided “inherit a blessing” of Psalms, of Jesus, and of the beautitudes of Matthew 5. We only have time to list the challenge to any Christian as to what they must do in order to receive this blessing of the meek. The Apostle Peter interprets “blessings of the meek” properly in the first words of the quote from Psalms, “He who would love life and see good days” {I Peter 2:10 and Psalm 34:12) (NOTE: From a quote of Psalm 34:12-16, but one with foundation all the way back to the first part of Pslam 37, 37:11 where we are notified that it is the “meek” that are going to inherit the earth and know that to be the new earth; for there is no way today or in history that you have seen the meek inheriting the earth. It is also repeated in the beautitude of Matthew 5 which are just the opposite of the way the world thinks. Everybody know that “it the agressive and competive that are going to win or inherit this old earth”, especially in business where they are driven by greed, the gospel of wealth, and the corollary of success. b. What has to be done to inherit the blessing of the meek, the same blessing of loving life and seeing good long days? This is the righteous meek rather than the competitive, self-centered, and agressive wicked of Psalm 37, and elsewhere in the Bible. The list is long and we only now have time to enumerate them, but will be followed up in the June newsletter of “The Christian Philosophy of Life”. (1). Control his tongue from speaking evil or deceit; (2). Turn away from evil and do good; (3). Seek peace, and seek it doubly, running after it. NOTE: And the last words of that quote reminds us that the whole subject of Psalm 34 and 37 is to distinguish between the way God treats these righteous meek and the way he treats the aggressive wicked. “For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayers; but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil.” (I Peter 3:12 and Psalm 34:16) c. You see the introduction of Peter to the quote from Psalm 34, that of I Peter 3:8,9 is also about how to inherit the blessings of the meek on earth and on the new earth. “Finally all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous, not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.” (I Peter 3:8,9) 3. Die to self in order to really live as God meant you to live and a long, long , long time--quantity with quality. Yes, this sounds like a paradox in seeking a Christian philosophy of life, a paradox between the forbidden “Pride of life” and the recommended “love of life”; but a paradox is the very essential nature of the Christian life, that we “DIE TO SELF, IN ORDER TO LIVE CHRIST.” a. From Jesus: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world, will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me, and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.” (John 12:24-26) b. From the Apostle Paul: “For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” (Romans 8:13) |
May Newsletter: Psalm 37 Part II with Introduction to a Christian Philosophy of Life and Living |
This Great Chapter of the Bible-_download in PDF. |