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Seeking Happiness
Man seeks after happiness, fulfilment, contentment in so many different ways. Many seek it through the insatiable desire for wealth and riches in abundance. Others see it as just getting to the end of a week to escape from the rat-race of life. Some equate happiness with learning and with the accumulation of knowledge. Still more identify their dream with power and influence over other people. Many and varied are the ways that man seeks after his dream in this world, but Scripture gives its own definitions of happiness, contentment – blessedness.
Godly Happiness
Christ calls the meek, the merciful, and those that seek after Him as ‘blessed’. The book of Psalms commences with a mighty proclamation of the blessed man: blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly.” What a lovely benediction to open this book – so beloved by so many. Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly. Blessed is the man that not stand in the way of sinners. Blessed is the man that does not sit in the seat of the scornful.
Right Focus
This description is one that is not influenced by the words and wisdom of the ungodly. This illustrates the person that walks in the world but does not hearken to its folly. This details the individual whose footsteps are ordered of God – not by deceitful man. This blessed man has a right focus – away from the world, centred on the Lord, for His delight is in the Lord, his God – Psalm 1.2 His pleasure is in righteousness and truth.
Downward Spiral
Yet the downward spiral of those that follow in the path of Demas is outlined here:- Demas loved the world and forsook the path of a disciple. This man is one that stopped waking God’s way to listen to Mr. Worldlywiseman.. loitering in the arena of sinners and finally sitting down happily in their company, and how we recognise this tendency in worldly Lot compared with faithful Abraham.
A Blessed Man
The blessed one is the man that delights in the Word of God. The wise man is the one that meditates upon God’s truth. It is this man who contemplated the beauty of the Lord. When decisions are to be made, he seeks God in his dilemma. When he rests or rises, he carries God’s word in his heart all day. Blessed is the man that delights in His word. Blessed is the man that meditates upon Him day and night.
Blessings of God
The blessed one is the one that faithfully remains in the place where God has placed him, “for he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water.” Jeremiah 17:7 That man shall be a fruitful vine; a strong cedar; a blessed man indeed, for blessings of God are not the sort of baubles sought after by the world – fame and fortune; power and prestige; wealth and worldly wisdom.
Rivers of Blessing
God’s rivers of blessing contain all that man needs.. rivers of pardon and promises; streams of love and grace; cascades of His fellowship. The blessed man has rivers of living water streaming forth from him to others. God is the never-ending ocean of supply for the one that keeps Him as his focus. The rivers of blessing that flow from the Lord are eternal in their provision. The rivers by which this blessed one is planted are never-failing for the one of faith.
Eternal Gifts
This is the one that is so blessed and has further blessings to come. Blessings that are not of this world but eternal gifts from God. This man “brings forth his fruit in his season.” Psalm 1:3 Only the one that remains by the rivers of supply will be satisfied. Only the one that abides in Christ, the true vine will bring forth fruit.. more fruit… much fruit, to the glory of the Father.
Abundant Fruit
Prolific fruit, high-yielding fruit – abundant fruit in its own season. All that this man turns his hand to do shall prosper – what a promise. Though the tree may only appear to have leaves, buds, blossoms.. in time – in God’s time, that tree will bring forth 20-fold, 50-fold, 100-fold: “if you remain in Me and I in you” John 15:7
Spiritual Fruit
This is the man that brings for the fruit of God’s Holy Spirit; Love in times of Hostility; Joy in times of Pain; Peace in times of Trouble; Long-suffering in times of Frustration; Gentleness in times of Oppression; Goodness in times of Evil; Faith in times of Testing; Meekness in times of Irritations; Temperance in times of Temptation.
God Knows
God knows the way you take – God is the only one that looks on the heart and His eyes are travelling throughout the world to find a man after His own heart: And blessed is such man…
BLESSED is the man….
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
Therefore, the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
For the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish
Bible References
1 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.
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 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.
7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
3 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.
9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
13 And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
14 And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
20 And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.
21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
22 And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
23 Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
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