Looking at the Law

 Psalm 1:1-2. NRSV

Happy are those

    who do not follow the advice of the wicked,

or take the path that sinners tread,

    or sit in the seat of scoffers;

2  but their delight is in the law of the Lord,

    and on his law they meditate day and night.

This seems to me like a reinforcement of yesterday’s verse,  “I want to do your will, my God.”  It tells me that if I truly want to do God’s will then I should spend my time focused on the law, specifically the two commandments Jesus called most important in Matthew 22:, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’  38 This is the greatest and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”   

Anyone who has heard me preach more than once can probably attest to the fact that I mention these two commandments in almost every sermon.  The first four commandments teach us how to love God, the next six tell us how to love our neighbor.   Loving our neighbor, so far as the Ten Commandments tell us, consists primarily of not hurting them - do not steal, do not lie, do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not covet.  This is pretty normal, as far as laws go.  Our own body of laws also focuses primarily on what not to do and the consequences you will suffer if you do what you are not supposed to do.  

When we look at the full expansion of these commandments, we find that in addition to all the possible ways to break the commandments and the punishments for each of those acts, the people of Israel are commanded to do much that is positive in addition.   Jesus expanded on this in Matthew 25, noting that we are expected to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, comfort the sick, visit the prisoner, give drink to the thirsty, and welcome the stranger (another thing that I bring up in most sermons and pastoral prayers).  It seems pretty clear that if I am focusing on doing these things, if I am focused on the Law, I will not be doing what the wicked, the sinners and the scoffers are doing.   

Loving God, I want to do your will, following your teachings always and not the ways of the wicked.  May I always delight in your Word and your Law, so that I might keep walking along the path you have set before me.  Amen.