Date - Feb. 16/61

Contributor - Karl VanderSchaaf

Title - Our Response To God

Topic - Youth

BIBLE REFERENCE: Psalm 1, Romans 12

Psalm I is introductory to the other psalms. The general theme is that the righteous prosper and the wicked suffer which in turn classifies that men consists of two types or classes, the godly and the ungodly. The behaviour of any man must therefore follow one of two directions. Their difference in form and value is expressed in the pictures of the tree and the chaff Their difference of character and destiny is stated in terms of ceaseless edification or complete ruin. But what really is their difference, and what separates those two classes? Let us therefore take them one at the time.

The way of the righteous

When we read this psalm, we noticed the order and climax in the descriptive words used. There are three degrees of habit; walking - merely passing by where the ungodly are; standing - passing for some kind of fellowship; and sitting - stopping and becoming one of the wicked group. And there are three degrees of openness in evil doings as we see in verse 1. Counsel refers to hidden things, the way to public life, and the seat to an assembly.

But the life of the righteous has a positive side as well as a negative one. The man who is blessed delights in the way of the Lord, and is not urged on by a sense of duty to keep the commandments of God but by a joyous willingness to do His will. The righteous man is pictured by one of the lovely sights of Palestine - its waterways. Along the waterways the leaves of the trees, and luscious fruit hung from the branches; away from the waterways the grass was parched and the ground sterile. The hot sandy, treeless background made the streams more lovely. Like a tree growing along one of the waterways is a righteous man. In honesty and integrity of character he stands forth among his fellow men.

The way of the wicked shall perish

In contrast to the lovely, fruitful tree the wicked are like chaff. The chaff which is mentioned in verse 4 refers to the Eastern method of winnowing grain. A threshing floor was usually built on a hill so that the wind could be used from any direction. After having separated the grain from the husks, the grain was then tossed in the air with forks and the wind blew the chaff from the grain. The chaff was worthless for any useful purpose and would be entirely blown away. This picture of the wicked - worthless to society as well as fruitless - is unforgettable. Such a person cannot be acquitted in the day of judgment and does not have a place in the group of those who are truly obedient to the will of God.

Romans 12

Paul in this passage from Romans appeals for the righteous life on the basis of God's mercy. The only answer that we can give to God's sacrificial love for us is the sacrifice of ourselves - not a dead sacrifice as in the old days, but a sacrifice of our living selves. We are not to follow the worldly customs around us, but to let our ways be changed by the Holy Spirit. Then we shall seek God's will and love to do it. When in this manner we are obedient to His will, we place ourselves among the righteous in Psalm 1 and shall truly be like the tree planted by the streams of water.

Our response to God

What is our response? Is it merely accepting the things that were taught to us, or is there within our hearts the sense of thankfulness, the heart going out toward God in holy affection, the deep within us crying to the deep within God.

But even this kind of response is not complete. How can one love God and not also love his brother? How can one say he loves God and then not feed the hungry and clothe the naked and minister to the sick? How can one say, "I am on the Lord's side" and then not be found there where the Lord is? That man or woman who claims to be on the Lord's side will want to delight in God's laws and in the doing of them. His or her heart will flow over with joy, for it is truly something that we cannot hide within ourselves. All the worldly temptations will be found immaterial and unnecessary to our daily life. Our life will be complete in Christ. He has done so much for us, the least we can do is to serve Him wholeheartedly and to dedicate our lives to His service.

It is not easy to let our love of people always be genuine! Nor to hate that which is evil while living in a world where so much evil is taking place; nor to be always aglow with the spirit, making us Christians, living cheerful and happy and useful; nor to keep our zeal always at top level in a world where to be called a boy scout or a do-gooder is about the worst thing a person can be called. Don't let the world squeeze you into its mold. The Christian life is our response to God for all of His mercies to us in Christ. It should be a whole-hearted response, alive with the vitality of those whose life is hid in Christ.

Let us not pat ourselves on the back, when we think we are doing pretty good, and acting like fine Christians; remember, it was God's mercy through His Son Jesus Christ that He gave us salvation, and only by constant prayer and constant love toward our God may we enter into the Heavenly Kingdom.