day no. 17,267: an idiot's paradise

Then the idiot who praises,

with enthusiastic tone

All centuries but this, 

and every country but his own;

— Gilbert and Sullivan's "I've Got a Little List"

The idiot would be happy to live in any place but here at any other time. He lauds cultures of peoples he does not know and the times and places of lands he has never visited. But that is for fools. God has made each man for his own time.

Acts 17:26

God made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place.

God has called us to honor our fathers and mothers and the lands from which they came and He has called us to bless our sons and daughters by making it easy for them to honor us.

“People who take no pride in the noble achievements of remote ancestors will never achieve anything worthy to be remembered with pride by remote descendants.” — Thomas Babington Macaulay

The idiot ignores his present duties not only when he ignores his ancestors, but also when he obsesses over them. In the first instance, hes refuses to honor his fathers and mothers and in the second instance, he refuses to be where God has determined him to be. In his arrogance, he thinks there is another time or place that would have been better for him. He will not bloom where He has been planted.

"Men cannot give a meaning to history that they themselves lack, nor can they honor a past which indicts them for their present failures." — R.J. Rushdoony, The Biblical Philosophy of History

The idiot forsakes the present while praising the past. It is not that the past is not praiseworthy, but that he demonstrates his ignorance of their virtue by refusing to do what they did. They did not live in the past, they lived in their present and they did noble things worthy of being remembered and lauded. They did not sit around despising their circumstances. They got to work and did something worth remembering. The idiot remembers only the good that they did, but he forgets that they blessed him, their descendant, by honoring their own ancestors in working hard in their own time.

The present is always an idiot's paradise, not because there is anything particularly wrong about the present, but because the idiot thinks he can enjoy today by forsaking the past and ignoring the future.

day no. 17,266: stupid is as stupid doesn't

"This kind of thinking is not just stupid, it is wickedly stupid. It is a sin to be this stupid. You can’t be this stupid without it being at least partly your fault." — Douglas Wilson, Marriage, Miscegenation & More

Stupid is not being ignorant, stupid is knowing better and choosing poorly.

Proverbs 12:1 (ESV)

Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, 

but he who hates reproof is stupid.

The stupid person is not the one who has no idea what to do, it is the person who is told what to do, but refuses to listen. 

“Now the trouble about trying to make yourself stupider than you really are is that you very often succeed.” — C.S. Lewis, The Magician’s Nephew (The Chronicles of Narnia, #6)

In other words, there is culpability for stupidity. You are not at fault for what you do not know per se even if you may be responsible for not knowing it. Ignorance is not an excuse, but it is a different problem than arrogance. Stupidity is arrogance. It is thinking you know better or at least refusing to think well of the wisdom of others.

Stupid is as stupid doesn't. Stupid doesn't do what it was told to do. Ignorance doesn't know what to do, arrogance refuses to do what it knows. Being stupid is being arrogant.

day no. 17,265: good doctrine and good, hard work

"What is the apostolic tradition? Work hard. Show up on time. Don’t call in sick when you aren’t. Don’t be a malingerer. In short, the apostolic tradition is not esoteric at all. Change your oil every three thousand miles. Rotate your tires.” — Douglas Wilson, Mines of Difficulty

There are few things more practical than orthodoxy. Orthopraxy is secondary to orthodoxy necessarily and in that order. Good works must follow good doctrine. They must come second as a matter of priority, but they must come after as a matter of sincerity. True faith produces real works. And what could be more practical than getting up in the morning and getting to work?

2 Thessalonians 3:6-8

Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us. For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you; Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you:

The apostles brought the word of truth and reasoned with people regarding proper doctrine, but they did this while the behaved themselves well and conducted themselves as proper me who knew how to be value adders. They lived in such a way as to carry their own load so as to complement their message. They qualified themselves as men believed a doctrine of Christ carrying our yoke by being men who were able to help others with theirs.

day no. 17,264: church discipline is good medicine

“A church that does not practice church discipline is a church with an immune system collapse.” — Douglas Wilson, Mines of Difficulty

Sin is a given. You must budget for it. The way it ought to be dealt with it Biblically and quickly so that accounts are kept short and up to date. 

Romans 13:8

Owe no man any thing, but to love one another:

for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

Keeping the law by loving one another is the best way to stay healthy. No one should owe anyone anything except to love one another. That means no apologies should be outstanding and no forgiveness should be withheld. 

Proverbs 3:27

Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, 

when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.

Everyone is giving and receiving what they owe one another. This will keep the sniffles away.

Church discipline is good medicine. If you get sick, it's not the end of the world if you address it. If you tolerate viruses, you could die. If you eliminate them, you can live to fight another day.

Song of Solomon 2:15

Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.

Good fences make good neighbors. Do your best to keep the foxes out of the garden. If they get in, chase them out. Little things can ruin everything. Do not sleep on small sins. Set up good guard rails and keep the good well protected inside and the bad well defended against.

A fruitful vineyard is an attractive target for sly foxes, so the better the fruit, the more attacks you can expect, but the better the defense, the safer the garden. Do as Adam ought to have done and protect the garden. Do not allow snakes to slither about and do not force your people to face them alone or allow them to think that they aren't as dangerous as they really are. 

day no. 17,263: deceived about deception

“Damnation is a function of loving a lie, preeminently the lies you tell yourself. Self-deception is the prince of all deceptions. The wrath of God is seen in this, when God gives people over to what they have loved all along.” — Douglas Wilson, Mines of Difficulty

Do not be deceived, you can deceive yourself. If you think that you can't, then you are deceived about the nature of yourself and the nature of deception.

Jeremiah 17:9

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? 

You are not the expert on you, your Creator is. And He has told you that your heart is deceitful. You think and feel things that are not true. You believe things that wrong. You call some good things "evil" and you call some evil things "good." But how would you know if you were doing that?

James 1:22-25

Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

Do you believe things that you are not doing? Do your actions betray your "beliefs." When they do, is it because your actions misrepresent you or because your beliefs are not what you think they are?

Deuteronomy 11:16

Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived.

The first step is realizing that you could be deceived. The next step is finding a standard of truth and purity against which to measure yourself.

James 1:25

Whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

The Word of God is a perfect mirror. It will tell you who you really are. In its reflection, will see an accurate picture. So, read the Word of God and know the truth and it will set you free.

day no. 17,262: hidden sins create cowards

“It’s amazing how much panic one honest man can spread among a multitude of hypocrites.” — Thomas Sowell

Liars don't like the light. Like cockroaches, they run from it. The truth is a dangerous thing to those who rely on the night to hide them. One bold man with his finger on the light switch can create a riot. 

Proverbs 28:1

The wicked flee when no man pursueth: 

but the righteous are bold as a lion.

Liars run from the rumor of the light switch and riot at the report of someone threatening to flip it on.

The righteous, however, love the truth. They have confessed their sins and drug them out into the light. The truth is not a danger to be avoided, it is a comfort to be sought. Forgiven men are bold men. Hidden sin creates cowards.

day no. 17,261: mission creeps

“You don’t want to be the gardener who gets so focused on pulling weeds that he forgets he is doing so in order to grow something else. It is supposed to be a flower garden, not a no-weeds dirt patch.” — Douglas Wilson, Mines of Difficulty

Mission creep can happen to anyone. You need to bail water in order to keep the boat afloat and so the bureau for bailing water is created. They are essential, don't you know, to the preservation of the ship. But the reason the ship left port in the first place was not merely stay afloat. If that was the goal, staying in the harbor would have better served that end. No, the ship left the safety of the harbor for a reason. There was a destination in mind or some fish to catch or an enemy to engage. Staying afloat is, of course, crucial to completing the mission, whatever it was, but it is not the mission itself. The mission is landing at that place, returning with those fish, or sinking that enemy. When we make side quests the top priority, we are off mission. 

The point of a garden is to grow things. Weeds interfere with that goal. So, weeds must be pulled, but not because pulling weeds is important, but because growing things is. So, sins must be dealt with, but not because dealing with sin is the chief end of man, but because glorying God and enjoying Him forever is, and sins get in the way of that.

"We may have a duty to rescue a drowning man and, perhaps, if we live on a dangerous coast, to learn lifesaving so as to be ready for any drowning man when he turns up. It may be our duty to lose our own lives in saving him. But if anyone devoted himself to lifesaving in the sense of giving it his total attention—so that he thought and spoke of nothing else and demanded the cessation of all other human activities until everyone had learned to swim—he would be a monomaniac. The rescue of drowning men is, then, a duty worth dying for, but not worth living for. It seems to me that all political duties (among which I include military duties) are of this kind. A man may have to die for our country, but no man must, in any exclusive sense, live for his country. He who surrenders himself without reservation to the temporal claims of a nation, or a party, or a class is rendering to Caesar that which, of all things, most emphatically belongs to God: himself.”

― C.S. Lewis, Learning in Wartime (The Weight of Glory)

Keeping your house from burning down is a noble goal, but living to keep your house fireproof is a lame way to spend your life. Saving a drowning victim is a noble venture and worth losing your life over if you should fail, but living your life looking for drowning victims is a waste of a life and not worth the cost of burying your talents in the sand as you watch and wait. Do not allow yourself to become a lopsided monster. Do not be a mission creep.

day no. 17,260: the only difference between Caesar salad and garbage is timing

"Caesar is as much under authority as we are. He has no authority to touch certain things because he is God’s deacon. This means that Jesus is Lord and Caesar isn’t. Caesar is Caesar, but Caesar too is created in the image of God. That means that he must render to God the things that are God’s." — Douglas Wilson, Paul, The Faithful Roman

We are commanded to give to Caesar the things that are Caesar's (Matthew 22:21), but presupposed in that command is the fact that all things do not belong to Caesar. So, if Caesar begins to act as though all things are his, it is our duty to remind him of his error and oppose him if he is unwilling to hear.

Caesar is a created being. As such, he is under authority. He is not just in charge, he is under a charge. He is the kind of boss who has a boss. No earthly authority is absolute. Civil magistrates, husbands, fathers, mothers, and masters all have a representative head. They are given the privilege of occupying a lower office because there is a higher office. There is a Maker, Creator, Sustainer, Husband, Father, and Master. And He has deputized some to stand in His stead and act under His authority. 

But if and when they step outside their assigned jurisdiction, they are breaking the law. If they attempt to make a law that goes beyond their authority, it is the duty of those under them to disobey. They are not required to join them in their rebellion against their Lord and Master. If your leaders attempt a mutiny against their leader, you are not a traitor if you refuse to join them, you are a traitor if you do. You are not obligated to participate in someone else's treason, and if you do, you are as guilty as they are. You will not be exonerated by saying, "I was merely following orders." There is a kind of following orders that is disobedience. Obedience is not inherently blessed. It all depends on who is asking and what they are asking you to do. If you do whatever anyone tells you, it is not a feather in your cap, it is a flaw in your character.

"The rescue of drowning men is, then, a duty worth dying for, but not worth living for. It seems to me that all political duties (among which I include military duties) are of this kind. A man may have to die for our country, but no man must, in any exclusive sense, live for his country. He who surrenders himself without reservation to the temporal claims of a nation, or a party, or a class is rendering to Caesar that which, of all things, most emphatically belongs to God: himself.” ― C.S. Lewis, Learning in Wartime (The Weight of Glory)

The only difference between a Caesar salad and garbage is timing, and the difference between obeying Caesar and disobeying him is jurisdiction. Caesar salads can and do go bad, but they are not bad at the right time and in the right place. So, if something smells fishy, it is either because you don't like anchovies, which is a you problem (addressed by developing your palate) or the anchovies have turned, which is also a you problem, but handled very differently (e.g. tossing it out).

day no. 17,259: a distinguished gentlemen

3 John 12

Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself. We also add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true. 

Most people want to distinguish themselves as being the one that everyone else is talking about, but that just makes you like everyone else. if you really want to distinguish yourself, be the kind of person who promotes others. Spend your time and energy drawing attention to the good deeds and good character of others. That will set you apart. Who does that? That will shock the world. 

A husband who works hard to ensure his wife has a great reputation with others? 

Who is this guy? 

A wife who cannot sleep unless she has increased her husband’s honor in the eyes of others? 

Where is this lady?

day no. 17,258: the danger of love and the danger of lust

“Fighting for a thing without loving it is not even fighting; it can only be called a kind of horse-play that is occasionally fatal." — G.K. Chesterton

Love is the desire to put oneself between the beloved and the danger.

Lust is the danger of putting one's desires before the other.

James 4:1-2

From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

We fight for things we love.

We fight with things we lust after.

Most modern warfare is not about loving what is behind us but hating what is in front of us. It involve a lot of horsing around online and most of the time people merely get their feelings hurt, but sometimes it escalates out onto the streets of Minneapolis where someone dies.

day no. 17,257: fermentation and regeneration

"'Wine,' says the Scripture, 'maketh glad the heart of man,' but only of the man who has a heart. The thing called high spirits is possible only to the spiritual." — G.K. Chesterton, Heretics

Only the spiritual can be in high spirits. But not all spirits are high born.

1 John 4:1

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

Wine can only make glad the heart of a man who has a new heart. The man whose heart is hardened cannot take the edge of with alcohol, it only sharpens the edge. Only a man whose heart is true can truly be glad.

Jeremiah 17:9

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

So, Chesterton's observation holds up. Sour hearts will not taste God's sweetness and evil spirits cannot be in high spirits. Low born vices cannot rise up to the level of celestial virtues, they can only sink down to deeper degradations.

Ephesians 5:18 

Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.

So, be intoxicated with the Spirit of God, not the wine of the vine. You cannot appreciate fermented beverages with a sour attitude. Do not rely on artificial spirits to raise yours. Turn to Christ and receive a new spirit and then, and only then, will you enjoy spirits of all kinds and in proper proportion.

day no. 17,256: our on the way to church liturgy

We have officially added to our standard “get in the van and going to church” liturgy based on a sermon we all sat under at our home church, Christ Church Leavenworth.

For many years, we have been in the habit of saying:

Q: where are we going?

A: to church! (Ps 122:1)

Q: and why do we go to church?

A: to worship our God with our people (Ps 95:7)

Now, in addition to that, we are adding the following:

Q: and where are we going when we get there?

A: to Heaven! (Eph 2:6)

Q: and what are we gonna do when we get there?

A: storm the gates of Hell! (Matt 16:18, Rom. 16:20)

Psalm 122:1

I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.

Psalm 95:7

For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.

Ephesians 2:6

He hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 16:!8

I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Romans 16:20

And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

day no. 17,255: the truth will set you free, but not before it kills you

“There are only two ways of telling the complete truth – anonymously and posthumously.” — Thomas Sowell

If you tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, someone will want to kill you. People may get mad at you if you lie to them, but they will try to murder you if you tell them the truth. Unless they are more committed to the truth than they are to themselves.

Galatians 4:16

Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?

If you are at war with the way the world is and the way you are, you will have enmity for anyone who has the gall to point that out. Because of the way God made the world, there will be enmity. Truth and lies are inescapably against each other. Truth incarnate is at war with the Father of lies. The Way, the Truth, and the Life fights against the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.

John 18:37

To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

Truth became flesh and dwelt among us. He was summoned to appear and He took the witness stand when He was nailed to the cross. There, He testified to the truth and bore witness. When He rose on the third day, it was a public witness to His innocence. The Truth was justified and vindicated before its accusers.

Ecclesiasticus 4:28.

Strive for the truth unto death, and the Lord shall fight for thee.

And so, a man can tell the truth, but only if he is prepared to die. If he dies to himself, he is born again and made new. If he lies, he might save is skin for now, but eventually it will rot and he will choke on death forever. The truth will require an execution, but the Truth provides a resurrection for those who take their stand with it.

John 8:31-32

If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

The truth will set you free, but not before it kills you. If you agree with God and die, you will live. If you hide from God, the truth will find you out, and you will die.

day no. 17,254: bound for glory

“This is God’s world, not Satan’s. Christians are the lawful heirs, not non-Christians.” — Gary North

Satan may have thought it would be better to reign in Hell than to serve in Heaven, but he failed to realize that he could not find anywhere that God does not rule. This world does not belong to the devil. Hell doesn't even belong to the devil. Hell is his jail cell where he has been bound by Jesus.

Mark 3:27

No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.

That is exactly what Jesus did. He bound the strong man and began the process of plundering his goods.

Luke 10:18

And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.

The disciples got a foretaste of this during the time with Jesus. They began the ransacking and it has only escalated since Jesus rose from the dead.

Colossians 2:15

He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Him.

Whatever power the prince of the power of the air had, it was removed on Calvary. It has no power here anymore.

Luke 11:21-22

When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are safe; 22 but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil. 

Satan's grip on the earth was undone by the resurrection of Jesus. He broke into Satan's playground and pinned the bully to the ground and extricated His elect prisoners on His way out.

Let the playground rejoice, the bully has been bound.

day no. 17,253: appearing and standing for the truth (exhortation outline)

Christ Church Leavenworth

WLC 144: Appearing and Standing for the Truth 

January 25, 2026

Appearing and Standing for the Truth

THE TEXT

The text for this morning’s exhortation is from 2 Timothy 4:16, these are the words of God. “At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them!”

INTRODUCTION

This morning we are continuing our study of the ten commandments in the WLC and we are still in Q144 which asks, “What are the duties required in the ninth commandment?” One of the duties the Westminster divines cite in their lengthy response to that question is the duty to “appear and stand for the truth.”

When the apostle Paul was summoned to defend himself, none of his friends showed up. No one appeared on his behalf and no one stood with him. And yet, in relaying this devastating news to Timothy, Paul included a request for God to have mercy on them. He prayed that their failure to appear would not be charged against them. This indicates that more than just a breach of friendship was involved. If it was merely a sin against Paul or a debt owed to him, he could forgive it and consider it paid in full. And inasmuch as they did sin against him, he did. But that did not resolve the matter. Paul’s companions did not just refuse to stand with him, they refused to stand for the truth. That is the sin that Paul prays will not be held against them. That part is not Paul’s to forgive, that part was against God alone and only He can forgive it. Paul’s friends acted cowardly; and so, he asks God to spare them from the fate of a coward. Revelation 21:8, “As for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

Paul was not on trial for some moral failure like theft or murder, he was on trial for preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So, it wasn’t a matter of his friends approving him, but not approving of his behavior. They were Christians. He was on trail for something they could just as easily have been on trial for. If you do not stand with your friend in their time of trouble, that makes you a lousy friend, but if your friend is in trouble for being a Christian and you fail to appear on his behalf, you are not just a lousy friend, you are a lousy Christian. Consider the Word of the Lord from Leviticus 5:1. “If anyone hears a public adjuration to testify, and though he is a witness, whether he has seen or come to know the matter, yet does not speak, he shall bear his iniquity.”

If you will not take the trouble to stand up for the truth, you will be in trouble when you face the Truth. Proverbs 29:25, “The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.” So, the only way to save your life is to sacrifice it to the Lord. If God calls you to the witness stand, it is safer to tell the truth in a hostile environment than it is to bear false witness against God by failing to appear or by showing up, but refusing to stand up. Matthew 16:25 “Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” 

Christians are called to testify to the truth just as Jesus did before Pilate in John 18:37. This is what He said, “For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” If you do not bear witness to the truth, you are bearing false witness against God. You are saying it is safer to lie than it is to tell the truth. You are saying that the wrath of man is to be feared more than the wrath of God. You are saying that cowardice is better than courage when the stakes are high because saving your skin is better than dying to sin.

Those who are of the truth hear the voice of Jesus and respond by appearing when called and standing up for the truth when needed. You don’t have to go out looking for opportunities to speak per se, but you do have to be ready for them if and when they come looking for you. Consider 1 Peter 3:15-16 “In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.”

Ignoring a call to witness to the truth and failing to appear or stand for the truth is  a violation of the ninth commandment. It is bearing false witness and it is a slander against the Son of God. In keeping quiet, you are saying that the most important thing about the truth is simply knowing the right answers, not doing the right things. But that is a lie. As Jesus said in John 8:31–32 “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Abiding in the truth is not just sitting around doing nothing. Abiding means keeping up with the truth wherever it goes. Truth is an active thing and if you want to abide with it, you’re going to have to get up and walk with it wherever it goes. And if you do, you will be set free. Staying out of trouble will not set you free. Only the truth can do that. In fact, testifying to the truth will more often than not get you into more trouble. But it is better to be slandered by liars than it is to be condemned by the truth.

We should be more zealous to stand up for the truth than we are to stand up for ourselves and our own interests… but we aren’t. Standing for the truth means refusing to lay down with lies. We must oppose falsehood. So, no more stretching the truth, massaging the truth, avoiding the truth, or denying the truth. In order to avoid bearing false witness, we must appear when the truth is on trial and we must take the stand and testify to the way, the truth, and the life.

CALL TO CONFESSION

Well, since we sometimes hide behind lies instead of behind Christ and because we are sometimes scared to go where the Spirit leads or stand up when the Truth is on trial, we are reminded of our need to regularly confess our sins, whether they be related to this duty or others. So, if you are able, please kneel with me and confess your sins, first privately and then corporately using the prayer found in your bulletin.

CORPORATE CONFESSION

Most holy and merciful Father, we acknowledge before You our sinful nature and our many offenses. We are prone to do evil and slow to do good. You alone know how often we have sinned in wandering from Your way, in wasting Your gifts, in forgetting Your love. Lord, we are ashamed and sorry for all the ways that we have displeased You. Father, teach us to hate our rebellious acts, cleanse us from our secret faults, and forgive our sins for the sake of Your Son. Help us to love You with all our heart and mind and strength. And give us the power of Your Holy Spirit so that we may walk in Your ways and serve You all of our days.

DECLARATION OF PARDON

Arise and hear the Good News! The assurance of pardon today comes from…

Romans 5:1, 8-9 “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ… for God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God.”

While we were still bearing false witness, Christ appeared. While we were still lying, Christ testified to the truth. While we were still hiding likes cowards, Christ played the man and died for us. For our sake God made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. So, bear witness to that and be glad. Jesus lived for your righteousness, died for your sins, and rose for your justification. And because He did, it is my privilege to pronounce to you that in Him, your sins really are forgiven… THANKS BE TO GOD!

Now let us ascend to the presence of God in all worship and praise.

day no. 17,252: there is no other stream (sermon outline)

Christ Church Leavenworth

The First Decade of Psalms: Psalm 1

January 18, 2026

…

OT READING: Jeremiah 17:5-10

NT READING: Luke 6:43-49

There Is No Other Stream

READING OF THE TEXT

Our text this morning is Psalm 1, these are the words of God:

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, 

and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

Therefore the wicked will 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 wicked will perish.

The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever.

PRAYER

Our Father and our God, we come before You this morning through Jesus Christ, our Lord, and in the Holy Spirit. You are the Fountain from which flows the river that makes glad the city of God. Help us to drink deeply and pour ourselves out generously for Jesus’ sake, in Whose Name we pray, Amen.

INTRODUCTION

Good morning! Today we are continuing our study of the first decade of Psalms, which are Psalms 1-10. Last week, Dr. Bray provided us with an introduction to the book of Psalms in general and this morning we will be taking a look at the first psalm in particular.

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Our text begins with the word, “Blest,” or “bless-ed” if you’re feeling fancy or happen to need a second syllable to match the meter of a song or poem. Blessings exist because the covenant exists. We live in a world that is saturated in covenant from top to bottom, front to back, and side to side. You cannot go anywhere or do anything that is outside a covenantal reality. Every day, you breathe in covenantal air as you walk over covenantal ground to perform your covenantal work. This is a feature, not a bug. We presbyterians appreciate this particular reality perhaps more than most and demonstrate said appreciation by bringing it up as often as we can find any excuse to do so. (like I’m doing right now, e.g.) We presbies make our PB&Js with covenantal peanut butter and covenantal jelly. But if the covenant is everywhere, why aren’t blessings everywhere? Because a covenant has conditions and blessings are merely one part of it. Curses are the other part. So, let’s define our term: what is a covenant? A covenant is a solemn bond, sovereignly administered, between two or more persons, with attendant blessings and curses. (repeat) It is on the basis of this reality that the Psalmist introduces the theme, not only of this song, but of the entire songbook: there will be blessings and there will be curses, so make sure you end up on the blessed side of history. As Hebrews 11:6 reminds us, “Whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him.” If you want to worship God, you have to believe that there is a God and that He is who He says He is, which in this case means believing that He gives good things to those who come to Him. Now this last part might strike some of you as odd or even a little bit problematic. You might be thinking, “We shouldn’t serve God simply so that we can get things.” And you’d be right. Yes and amen. You should not use God as a means to your ends. You were created “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever,” and so His glory must take precedent over your joy. But note that putting God first does not exclude your joy. In fact, it guarantees it. Putting God first not only makes joy possible, it makes it inevitable. Your joy must come second, but if you put God first, your joy will come. “He rewards those who seek Him.” Those are His Words. Not mine.

Consider this observation by C.S. Lewis from The Weight of Glory, “The New Testament has lots to say about self-denial, but not about self-denial as an end in itself. We are told to deny ourselves and to take up our crosses in order that we may follow Christ; and nearly every description of what we shall ultimately find if we do so contains an appeal to desire. If there lurks in most modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it is a bad thing, I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

We are too easily bribed by petty pleasures and too dismissive of the pleasures offered to us by God. And that is where Psalm 1 begins. It begins by pointing out that the blessed man, the happy man, the satisfied and joy-filled man, he has not settled for cheap trinkets. He is not playing with mud pies. So, instead of the carrot, Psalm 1 begins with the stick and a frank discussion of what not to do.

WHAT NOT TO DO

:1 “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;” Note the progression. A man goes from casually walking with the wicked to occasionally taking a stand with them to intentionally sitting down to eat off of the same menu. In our day this often looks like this: you scroll their content and like a post here and there; then you share one of their posts with one of your close friends; next you subscribe to them and begin following their content and catching up on old post; lastly, you start reposting their material for everyone to see and openly identify with them.

In John Bunyan’s classic Pilgrim’s Progress, he noted a similar process: “(1) First, they draw off their thoughts from the remembrance of God, their death, and the judgment to come. (2) Next, they cast off by degrees private duties, such as private prayer, curbing their lusts, keeping watch, and feeling sorrow for sin. (3) Then they begin to shun the company of lively and warm Christians. (4) After that, they grow cold to public duty, such as gathering with the saints to hear the Word of God read and proclaimed. (5) They then begin to pick holes in the beliefs of the godly in order to have an excuse to throw off the old religion. (6) Then they begin to adhere to, and associate themselves with, carnal, loose, and wanton men. (7) They then give way to carnal discourses in secret and are glad when they see such things in anyone else who calls themself a Christian, so that they may all the more boldly do it through their example. (8) After this they begin to play with little sins openly. (9) And lastly, being hardened, they show themselves openly to be what they have become and unless a miracle of grace prevent it, they everlastingly perish in their own deceivings.”

What began with neglecting the Word ends with openly identifying with those who oppose it. Where this most commonly manifests itself is who they party with and what the cause of the celebration is. A companion is someone you regularly share meals with. The word companion comes to us from the Latin com (meaning “with”) and panis (meaning “bread”). So, a companion is literally someone you have bread with. The Scriptures warn us in many places and in many ways to avoid feasting with fools. What’s on the table is not often as important as who is around the table and what conversations and convictions are shared by those who are sharing the meal. 

Consider Proverbs 13:20 “Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.” If you walk with the wise, guess what? You end up wise. Where else would the wise be going? But if you spend your time with fools, guess what? You end up in Foolsville. So, be careful who you share meals with because it often ends in sharing ideas. You eat breakfast with those you spent the night with, you eat lunch with those you work with, and you eat dinner with those you live with. Do not spend the night with fools, do not spend your day on foolish work, and do not spend your evening building relationships with those who are not built on the foundation of Christ.

1 Corinthians 5:11 “I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.” You cannot share a meal without sharing other things. That is not to say that apostates have cooties or that atheism is contagious, but it is to say that you need to be careful with whom you make a habit of eating. If it is missionary work, you must remain on mission. If you don’t, you will become the convert of the lowest common denominator. If a group of people want to order an appetizer for the entire table, they have to pick the worst one that they all at least kinda like.

1 Corinthians 10:21 “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.” Meals are covenantal. This is another inescapable reality. As we already discussed, you become the companion of those you break bread with. And that is why regular attendance on the Lord’s Day and weekly observance of the Lord’s Supper are essential ingredients of the Christian faith. There are two cups and there are two tables. There is the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. There is the Lord’s table and there is the table of demons. The Lord’s Supper has a set menu of bread and wine and each is essential. The demon’s table is a buffet of personal preference. You can take as much of whatever you want and nothing of anything you don’t. That may sound appealing until you realize what some people want on the buffet. As Leo Strauss observed, "If all cultures are equal, then cannibalism is just a matter of culinary taste." Some Christians, being in the habit of breaking bread with unbelievers, are sitting down at tables that Christ has called them to flip over. If Jesus rose from the dead, and He did, and if Christ is King, and He is, then you, a citizen of His kingdom, cannot just eat and drink with whoever and toast to whatever they’re excited about.

1 Corinthians 15:32-33 “If the dead are not raised, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’ But do not be deceived: ‘Bad company ruins good morals.’” If there were no resurrection from the dead, you could live it up with whoever you liked and toast to whatever felt right at the moment, because that would be the best it was ever going to get and none of it would have any impact on where you were going once it was all over with. But because there is a resurrection, you cannot just run around with degenerates without it running your morals into the ground. 

Everyone drinks something from somewhere and everybody sits down to eat something with someone. You’re either drinking the Kool-aid or you’re drinking the cup of blessing. You’re either eating the bread of malice or you’re eating the bread from above. So, be careful then how you walk and with whom you walk there. Getting along to go along only gets you where someone else wants to go. Do not assume that just because someone allows you to ride shotgun that they will let you call any of the shots. They still have the wheel.

So, do not walk in the counsel of the wicked. Do not listen to their advice. Do not live by their lies. Do not subscribe to their podcasts. Do not buy their books. Do not drink from their polluted foundation or eat their moldy bread. Do not stand with sinners. Do not defend sin. Do not repeat their shibboleths. God is not mocked and everyone who snacks on sin will end up spoiling their appetite.

DINE ON THE DIVINE

Ok, so that is what NOT to do, but what do we do? That brings us to :2 “his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.” Man does not live on bread alone after all, but by every Word that comes from the mouth of God. When you delight in the Law of the Lord, you dine on the divine. We are called to nourish our children with the discipline and instruction of the Lord. We cannot do that if we are malnourished. So, how often do you eat? Do you read the Word? Do you meditate on it? Do you chew on it? Do you apply it daily? You have to eat. If you don’t, you will die. Your soul is the same. If you do not feast on the Word of God, you will feast on something else from somewhere else. 

C.S. Lewis said it this way, “Where men are forbidden to honour a king they honour millionaires, athletes, or film-stars instead: even famous prostitutes or gangsters. For spiritual nature, like bodily nature, will be served; deny it food and it will gobble poison.” Psalm 1 was making the same point: your soul is hungry and if you do not give it good things to eat, it will find bad things to snack on. So, if you want to avoid sitting with the scoffers, you need to sit at the feet of the Scriptures. This cannot be done by knowing a few verses out of context that you apply inconsistently. You must have the Word of God ever before you, on your forehead, in your heart, over your doorway, and superintending your entire life. If you do that, you will be deeply rooted and able to endure every difficulty.

A MIGHTY OAK IN THE ORCHARD OF GOD

:3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

The man who spends his time reading, thinking about, and actively applying God’s Word is like a mature tree. He is deeply rooted and well fed. As a result, he is able to feed others. He is grounded and so he can give life to others. A tree is not only known by its fruit, it is praised according to it as well. A good apple tree is not just one that produces apples, that merely confirms what kind of tree it is, no, a good apple tree produces good apples and a good number of them to boot. The blessed man is not merely blessed because he receives good things from God, he is blessed because he is given the honor and privilege of giving good things to others. But in order to have something to give, you must first receive something. “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” (1 Cor. 4:7) That means that the most gracious givers are first the most humble receivers. And if you want to receive, you must be planted near the living water and have roots that anchor you there. These will help you to draw up fresh grace and new mercy every day. For life is full of troubles. Trees that are not situated by the stream will wither when it is scorching hot. They will bend and crack when the winds of change blow hard. They will creak and groan whenever it storms. They will be stressed out, get sick, and stop producing fruit. They conserve all of their energy and focus on survival, or what you might call the sin of self-care. But the tree planted by the stream has enough water even when it hasn’t rained in a while. It can endure the heat of the day. It does not just survive the storm, it thrives in spite of it. It outlasts the troubles that come upon it like the anvil outlasts the hammers that bang away at it. It survives and it provides for others.

Consider Proverbs 11:25, “Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.” Who is blessed? The one who blesses. Who is watered? The one who waters others. Those who empty themselves will be full. Those who spend themselves will be refueled. The tree planted by the river of God turns that water into fruit for others. Its source never runs dry and its roots run deep. Every time you spend your energy making fruit for others, your roots grow deeper and you gain access to more water. The one who feeds others is well fed. The one who gives much can expect to be given more. The wicked are not like that, however.

:4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

The wicked are like cornhusks. They spend all of their energy trying to protect what they have and they end up being separated from it. If you send your kids outside to shuck corn, they will separate the husks from the cobs. And when they are done, they will not wonder which part to bring back inside. The husks will be left behind. You may even forget about them for a while. The wind might even blow them away while you’re eating that corn with some melted butter and salt. The same wind, however, would not have blown the cobs away. If you had left them out, they would still be right where you left them and if the winds were so violent that they could blow even the cobs away, you would have been sure to have brought them in. You would not have left them out. That is what the righteous are like. God will not leave His children out in the storm. He will not forget them or leave them to be spoiled. Whether you have a harvest of 30, 60, or 100 fold, He will preserve it and make sure it ends up in His storehouse. The chaff will not fare as well. God has made the chaff so light that a breeze can carry it away. So do not fret the husks. Even when it seems like they have you surrounded, keep in mind that in a moment they will be separated out and blown away by the breath of God. 

:5 the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; The wicked will not stand, even If the world stands up for him. The wicked cannot be redeemed by the sympathies of the social Gospel. A church who hangs a pride flag out front or posts one on their socials in order to stand with the marginalized does not gain a standing for them in the courts of God. The only way the wicked can stand before God is if they bow before the Son. And that means turning their back on their wickedness in order to turn to the Lord. Deceit can creep into a congregation, but it cannot live there. The cockroaches scatter when the lights come on. Sinners can try to squat among the saints, but the landlord will evict them by force where He does not save them by grace.

:6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

There is nothing the Lord does not know. The word “knows” here does not refer to knowledge. This is not about information, it’s about relation. The word “know” here carries with it the idea of intimacy like when Adam knew his wife. It also carries with it the idea of bearing fruit. In Adam’s case, the fruit had names like Cain, Abel, and Seth. In our case, the fruit has names like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. 

So, the Lord is committed to the way of the righteous in a way that He is not to the wicked. He sees both of them and He knows what all of them are up to, but He approves of the way of the righteous and He is with them as they do it. Listen to what Jesus said in Matthew 28:18-20, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Jesus was moments away from physically leaving them. He was about to ascend to Heaven and sit down at the right hand of the Father. So, what does “being with you always” mean? It means that when we do what God has put us here on earth to do, that is, making disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them how to observe all that He commanded, when we do that, we can know for sure that He is with us as we do it. He is with us in a special way when we obey Him and teach others to do the same. His presence is not just theoretical. It is tangible. It is the difference between knowing that “God is omnipresent” and knowing that “God is with me.” The first person knows the facts, the second knows the reality. It is one thing to know that the Lord is good and another to know what goodness tastes like.

THE FRUIT OF OUR LABORS

As our OT reading from Jeremiah 17:5-10 showed us, the man who puts his trust in his own strength is like a shrub trying to make a living out in the desert. Whatever strength he has is waning and wearing out. It will not be replaced or refreshed. Once it is spent, it will be done. But the man who trusts in the Lord is like a tree planted by living water. He is not afraid of the heat of the day. He is well watered and never stops producing fruit. But be careful here. Understanding this is not the same thing as being planted near the stream. The heart is deceitful above all things. Your heart wants you to think that understanding this parable is the same thing as applying it. God knows our hearts and minds and He will give to us according to our ways and according to the fruit of our deeds. So, do not deceive yourself. Hearing this and understanding this is not the same as doing this or putting it into practice. People are not fed by your right understanding unless it goes on to produce the right things. Knowing where you should be is not the same as being there. Knowing where the water is is not the same as drinking it.

And that leads us to our NT reading from Luke 6:43-49. A tree is known by its fruit. If an apple tree is not producing apples, it is a bad apple tree. If it says it’s an apple tree, but it’s producing oranges, it’s not an apple tree… even if its preferred pronouns beg to differ. Your heart is a tree and the words that come out of your mouth are its fruit. So what kind of tree do your words say that you are? Your words are not just what you say, they are who you are. So, as Jesus points out in :46, you can say, “Lord, Lord” all you like, but if you don’t “obey, obey” you’re just lying. “Christ is King” is a lot easier to say than, “at Your service.” And if you refuse to say the second, continuing to say the first doesn’t make your treason any better… it makes it worse. So, do what Jesus says. Build your life on the Rock and live next to the Living Water. If you do, you will weather every storm and you will be a blessing to those who come to you for warmth and comfort. But if you will not do what Jesus says, you are like one building a home on a sinkhole and it’s only a matter of time.

THERE IS NO OTHER STREAM

And so, we end where we began. There is a stream that makes glad the city of God. If you plant yourself by its waters, you will be well nourished and you will produce fruit for others. A tree does not eat its own fruit. It makes it for others. The tree is fed from above by streams from below. Our loved ones benefit from our roots and we benefit by watching them enjoy the fruit. So, will you drink from the river of God or will you try to find another stream? This reminds us of The Silver Chair and Aslan’s conversation with Jill.

“Are you not thirsty?" said the Lion. 

"I am dying of thirst," said Jill. 

"Then drink," said the Lion. 

"May I — could I — would you mind going away while I do?" said Jill. 

The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl. 

And as Jill gazed at its motionless bulk, she realized that she might as well have asked the whole mountain to move aside for her convenience. The delicious rippling noise of the stream was driving her nearly frantic. 

"Will you promise not to — do anything to me, if I do come?" said Jill. 

"I make no promise," said the Lion. 

Jill was so thirsty now that, without noticing it, she had come a step nearer. 

"Do you eat girls?" she said. 

"I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms," said the Lion. 

It didn't say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it. 

"I dare not come and drink," said Jill. 

"Then you will die of thirst," said the Lion. 

"Oh dear!" said Jill, coming another step nearer. 

"I suppose I must go and look for another stream then." 

"There is no other stream," said the Lion

Blessed is the man who does not wander off looking for another stream. Hear the Word of the Lord. There is no other stream.

“So, come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to the Lord, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to Him; hear, that your soul may live; and He will make with you an everlasting covenant. Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near; let the wicked man forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion on him. As the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there, but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall the Word of the Lord be that goes out from His mouth; it shall not return to Him empty, but it shall accomplish all that He purposes and shall succeed in the thing for which He sent it. You shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. (Is 55:1-12)

There is no other stream. So, come and welcome to Jesus Christ.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, we have tasted and seen that You are good. We have heard Your Words. We know that they never come back void. Plant our hearts near Your stream and give us good roots that we drink deeply and produce good fruit for Your glory, our neighbor’s good, and our eternal joy. We ask these things in Jesus’ name and we offer up the words of the prayer He taught us to pray singing…