Do we believe the Bible is God’s word; I mean all of the Bible? I think most Christians I know don’t believe this psalm. If a preacher gave a sermon on this psalm on Sunday morning, most people would think he had gone to the “Name It and Claim It” theology. God is not our “spoil the children” God, but He does give us promises that we need to accept and praise Him for.
What are the blessings God has promised us? First, He says, “How joyful are those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying His commands. Their children will be successful everywhere; an entire generation of godly people will be blessed.” (verses 1-2). It should be our desire as parents to see our children blessed and successful in whatever path God has chosen them to follow. A godly preacher used to say, “For the Christian there is no difference between the secular and the sacred; all ground is holy ground and every bush is a burning bush.”
Second, verses 3-5, deals with financial blessing. God’s people will be wealthy for the benefit of others. They will be “generous, compassionate, and righteous.” How will they do this? “Good comes to those who lend money generously and conduct their business fairly.”
Third, they “will not be overcome by evil. . .they do not fear bad news. . .they share freely and give generously to those in need.” Why will they do this? Because “they confidently trust the Lord to take care of them.” We will face hard times occasionally like everyone else. Remember Job? He trusted in the Lord not even knowing that it was Satan who stole everything from him. And because he was faithful to God even though he questioned why God had let those things happen, God rewarded him with twice as much as he had before and he lived a long life.
There is a condition to receiving these blessings. “Praise the Lord! How joyful are those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying His commands.” (Verse 1).