Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church,
located at 905 Yadkin Street in Kingsport, Tennessee, would
like to invite you to listen to a message of sovereign grace
by their pastor, Gabe Stoniker. And now, Pastor Gabe Stoniker. I invite you to turn with me
this morning to Psalm chapter 1. Psalm chapter 1. Let's begin by reading this chapter. Six verses. Psalm 1 verse 1 says,
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the
scornful, but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in
his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like
a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth
his fruit in his season. His leaf also shall not wither,
and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not
so, but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore
the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in
the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knoweth the way
of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish. The scripture says, in Adam all
die. Who all does that include? When
it says all die, does he mean some? No. In Adam, every man and woman
is separated from God. Spiritual death. Separated from God. Do you know what that makes them?
Ungodly. In Adam, meaning in this flesh,
a soul that is born into this world, every man, woman, boy
and girl, by nature, is ungodly. Everyone. Every single one. The ungodly
are not just those who look like they worship Satan. It's the
church going people too. It's you and it's me. Me. It's any person who has a will
and a nature contrary to God's. Well, verse one says, blessed
is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly. nor standeth in the way of sinners."
Sinners. The scripture says, all have
sinned and come short of the glory of God. Who all do you
think that includes? Some have sinned and come short
of the glory of God? No. All have sinned. Every single soul. Verse 6 right
here in Psalm 1 says, The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous. But the scripture says, There's
none righteous. No, not one. Not one. Verse 1 says, Blessed is the
man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth
in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. That's someone who makes a mockery. That word means a liar. And any
person who says they're not ungodly, and they're not a sinner, is
making a mockery of God. Because he said in Psalm 58,
they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies. Everyone. That makes them a sinner. If you say that you have no sin,
you make God a liar. That's what 1st John 1 says.
Mockery. Verse 2 says, The blessed man,
it says, his delight is in the law of the Lord. He reads it. He learns it. He follows it. He lives it. It's his delight. It's his love. But listen to
what the Lord says the natural man delights in. Listen to Isaiah
66, or if you have your Bibles, turn with me over to Isaiah 66. The last part of verse 3 says,
Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth
in their abominations. I also will choose their delusions,
and will bring their fears upon them, because when I called,
none did answer. When I spake, they did not hear. but they did evil before mine
eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not." That's what
they chose. All men and women naturally delight
in their abominations. And if a man or a woman will
get honest with himself in his heart, think about what their
flesh delights in, they will acknowledge that to be true.
All men and women naturally delight in their abominations. They do
not hear the Lord. They do not answer the Lord.
And they choose that which He delights not in. Our God said,
He looked down from heaven and God saw that the wickedness of
man was great in the earth and that every imagination of the
thoughts of his heart was only evil, continually evil. But Psalm 1 is talking about
a blessed man. This blessed man, not only does
the blessed man delight in the law of the Lord, but the text,
verse 2, it says, in his law doth he meditate day and night. It consumes his thoughts. It
consumes his heart. That's what the scripture says. Now as I read this and as I think
about this, Do you know what I fear? By nature, I'm not a
blessed man. I don't believe I'm a blessed
man, like this scripture is talking about. If I get honest with myself,
by nature, the blessed man walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly.
By nature, the blessed man doesn't stand in the way of sinners.
By nature, the blessed man doesn't sit in the seat of the scornful.
By nature, he does what's good and right, by nature. He's not
forcing himself to do it, he does it by nature. Now let's
examine ourselves. Let's examine ourselves. As we
sit and listen to the Word of God, let's examine ourselves
in our hearts. Which is easier for us to read? Which is easier for us to become
engrossed in to the point where you just can't put it down? The
Holy Word of God or the latest novel at the bookstore? Which
one? The Holy Word of God or the latest
People magazine? The Holy Word of God or the daily
newspaper? Which one holds our attention
span more? 30 minutes of the preaching of
the gospel of Jesus Christ or two hours of the latest Hollywood
movie on the big screen? Or four hours of surfing the
Internet? Dear listener, I'm not condemning
you. I'm condemning us. I'm condemning
myself. If we get completely honest with
ourselves, we're ungodly. The truth hurts, but there's
no denying the truth. There is only one person that
Psalm 1 could be talking about. You know that. There is only
one person Psalm 1 can be talking about. The man. The God-man. The one that hath
clean hands and a pure heart. the one that hath not lifted
up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully, the Lord Jesus
Christ." Verse 1 says, blessed is the man that has never, ever,
not one time, walked in the counsel of the ungodly. Not one time. Listen to Isaiah chapter 40.
Verses 13 and 14 say, "...who hath directed the Spirit of the
Lord, or being his counselor, hath taught him? With whom took
he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path
of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of
understanding?" The Lord says, "...who hath ever counseled me?"
No one! He's never been counseled by
anyone. He asked Job, where were you
when I laid the foundations of the earth? Isaiah 9 says he is
the counselor. All counsel comes from him. And
not once has he ever walked in the counsel of the ungodly. Not once. I can't say that for
myself, but I can say that about Him. Not once has He ever stood
in the way of sinners. When He was baptized and He came
up straightway out of the water, He was justified by the Spirit
of God to prove that He was perfect, acceptable, Sinless. The scripture says, he who knew
no sin, not one single time did he ever have a sinful thought. Can you imagine that? Not one
single time did he ever have a sinful thought. Even when they
were ripping his beard out of his face and pressing thorns
into his head. How is that possible? Not one
single time did he ever say a sinful word. Not one time. Not one single time did he ever
do a sinful deed. Oh, blessed is the man. The man. He never stood in the
way of sinners. Never. He never sat in the seat
of the scornful liars. He never lied. Never. He said,
I am the truth. Truth is not what he did and
what he said. Truth is what he is. He is the
truth. His delight His heart, His love was in the
law of the Lord. He said in Psalm 40 verse eight,
I delight to do thy will, O my God. Yea, thy law is within my
heart. Now, when I see His godliness, The God-man, this man who walked
on the earth, is God. And when I see His godliness,
it proves to me that by nature I am ungodly. That's what it
proves to me. By nature, I am ungodly. When I see His perfection, It
proves to me I am undone. Isaiah said, woe is me. Oh, when he saw the Lord high
and lifted up, he said, woe is me, I'm undone. When I see his
righteousness, his righteousness, his righteousness, it proves
to me that I am a sinner. I'm a sinner. Back over in Psalm
1 verse 1 says, blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel
of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners. nor sitteth
in the seed of the scornful, but his delight is in the law
of the Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And
he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth
forth his fruit in his season. His leaf also shall not wither,
and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." He shall not fail. He shall not fail. Verse 4 says,
the ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind
driveth away. Chaff. Chaff. That's me. I'm just a
dead husk. That's all I am. Just a dead
shell with no substance. Chaff. Turn with me over to Isaiah
29. Isaiah 29 verses 5 and 6 say,
Moreover, the multitude of thy strangers shall be like small
dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff. that passeth away, yea, it shall
be at an instant, suddenly. Thou shalt be visited of the
Lord of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise,
with storm, and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire."
Oh, man! In my flesh, I'm in a bad place. In my flesh, There's no hope
for me. That's what the Word has proven
to me. I'm ungodly. I'm a sinner. I would love to
be able to deny that, but I can't. And the Lord is very clear with
what He's going to do with sinners and the ungodly. He's angry with
the wicked every day. in my flesh, the way I am, not
what I've done, not what I've said, what I am by nature. There's no hope for me. You know
that? Well, Psalm 1, our text, verse
5 says, Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord
knoweth the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall
perish." Perish. The Lord knows the way of righteousness. The Lord will keep the way of
righteousness, but the way of the ungodly, my way, my way,
shall perish. What terrible news. That's terrible
news. How sad. It says, blessed is the man that
walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly. Well, if we want
to be blessed, then we just shouldn't walk in the counsel of the ungodly.
Well, I can't. I am the ungodly. Oh, what terrible
news. How sad. Is that it? Is that it? Is that the end of
it? Is all my hope lost? Is there any good news for me?
Any? Well, dear listener, If you are
an ungodly sinner, and if you know you're an ungodly sinner,
if you need some hope right now, if you need some hope right now,
if you want your ears to hear some good news right now, And
if you want your eyes to see some good news right now, grab
your Word of God and turn with me to Romans chapter 5. You'll
want to see this with your own eyes if you're an ungodly sinner
like me. Romans chapter 5 verse 6 says,
For when we were yet without strength in due time, Christ
died for the ungodly. Is that not the greatest thing
you've ever heard? For scarcely for a righteous man will one
die, yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth His love toward
us." That's you and me, if we're ungodly sinners. God commendeth
His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us. Much more than being now justified
by His blood. We shall be saved from wrath
through him. I'm pretty sure that's the gospel.
That's good news. The gospel means good news. Christ
died for the ungodly. That's me. Christ died for me. Any ungodly sinner whom Christ
died for Any ungodly sinner who has received the blood of Jesus
Christ is a blessed man. Oh, he's a blessed, blessed man. Because if we're in his blood,
we're in him. We're in the only one who is
sinless. We are in the only one who is
perfect. And if we're in Him, then we
have a new nature. We have a godly nature. We have
His nature. And in Him, we live and move
and have our being. As He is, so are we. And now because of Him, the first
three verses of Psalm 1 apply to us. They actually apply to
us. All of the us who have received
spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. In Christ. Because of the Lord
Jesus Christ, Because He has shed His blood and saved us,
because we're secure in Him, we walk in the counsel of Christ. As He walks, we walk. We don't walk in the counsel
of the ungodly. Let's not listen to them. Let's
not listen to their opinions, their statistics. Don't trust
them. Don't believe them. Believe the
Word of God. The counsel of God. The counsel
of man can get us torn all to pieces. That's all it can do
for us. The Lord God is now our counselor. Whatever He says,
hold to it. Cling to it. The Apostle Paul
said, I am determined not to know anything among you save
Jesus Christ and Him crucified. That's it. Outside of that, I
don't need to know about it. Because of the Lord Jesus Christ
and His love to us and our love to Him, thanks be to God, in
Him, we don't stand in the way of sinners. In Christ, we're
standing on the rock. Now even though Christ paid the
debt of our sin, We're not going to be rid of it until the day
we leave this earth. We will sin. We will continue
to sin. Should we just excuse the sin?
Well, you know, I'm just a sinner. I can't do anything about it.
Paul wrote, God forbid. We don't excuse it. We hate it. Oh Lord, we're so sorry. We hate
it. Our sin is the constant reminder
that Christ is our only hope. Our sin is the constant reminder
that Christ is our only hope. The fact that He didn't walk. The fact that He didn't stand.
The fact that He didn't sit. The fact that His delight is
in the law of the Lord. The fact that in His law, He
does meditate day and night. And if I'm in Him, my hope is
that because He is blessed, I am blessed. And all who have this
hope, our text, Psalm 1 verse 3 says, he shall be like a tree
planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth fruit in
his season. His leaf also shall not wither,
and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." Oh, he's going to be
planted by the rivers of water. That's what I want to be. Planted. Planted. He's not going to grow
wild. Remember, the Lord said every
tree that my father did not plant is going to be rooted up. But
all those in Christ, the tree of life, they're going to be
planted. They're going to drink from the
rivers of living water. That's Christ Himself. Verse
3 says that, "...bringeth forth his fruit in his season." If
you plant a tree, you want to see fruit on it, don't you? Well,
so does our love, Lord. What is the fruit of the Spirit?
It's love, joy, Peace. Fruit. Walk in the Spirit, Galatians
5 says. How do we do that? How do we
walk in the Spirit? We walk in the Word. Oh, may
the Lord produce fruit in us. Because of Christ, verse 3 says,
he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth
forth his fruit in his season. His leaf also shall not wither,
and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Now those outside of
Christ, verse 4 says, the ungodly are not so, but are like the
chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall
not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of
the righteous. Oh, what maketh us to differ? After everything
we said at the beginning of this message, what maketh us to differ?
The grace of God. That's it. Verse 6 says, The
Lord knoweth the way of the righteous. That righteous way, His way,
will stand. He'll keep it. In thanks be to
God, verse 6 says, The way of the ungodly. My way. Our way. shall perish." Let's pray that
He would begin conforming us to His image, His way, right
now, for Christ's sake. Until next Sunday morning, may
the Lord bless His Word. You have been listening to a
message by Gabe Stoniker, pastor of Kingsport Sovereign Grace
Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. If you would like a copy of this
message or to hear other messages of Sovereign Grace, you can write
to our physical mailing address at 905 Yadkin Street, Kingsport,
Tennessee 37660 or log on to our website at kingsportsovereigngracechurch.com. If you would like to come and
worship with us, our service times are Sunday morning Bible
study at 10 o'clock a.m., worship at 10.45 a.m., and 6 o'clock
p.m. Wednesday evening at 7.30 p.m. Please tune in next Sunday morning
at 8.30 for another message of God's free and sovereign grace.