In
this past Sunday’s sermon, You Know You
Are Blessed When…, Pastor Sam shared a few Scripture passages that help us
to see when and how God imparts His blessing on people. Today, let’s read each
of the chapters that were referred to during the sermon.
Psalm 1
Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.
Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For the Lord watches
over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
Psalm 32
Blessed is the one
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the one
whose sin the Lord does not count against
them
and in whose spirit is no deceit.
When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
For day and night
your hand was heavy on me;
my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer.
Then I acknowledged my
sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess
my transgressions to the Lord.”
And you forgave
the guilt of my sin.
Therefore let all the
faithful pray to you
while you may be found;
surely the rising of the mighty waters
will not reach them.
You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
I will instruct you
and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
Do not be like the horse
or the mule,
which have no understanding
but must be controlled by bit and bridle
or they will not come to you.
Many are the woes of the wicked,
but the Lord’s unfailing love
surrounds the one who trusts in him.
Rejoice in the Lord and
be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!
Matthew 25
“At that time the
kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and
went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were
wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with
them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The
bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell
asleep.
“At midnight the cry
rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all the virgins
woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give
us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
“‘No,’ they replied,
‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil
and buy some for yourselves.’ But while they were on their way to buy the oil,
the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the
wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
“Later the others also
came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ But he replied, ‘Truly I
tell you, I don’t know you.’ Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the
day or the hour.
“Again, it will be like
a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth
to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to
another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his
journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put
his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two
bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went
off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
“After a long time the
master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man
who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said,
‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’ His
master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful
with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share
your master’s happiness!’
“The man with two bags
of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold;
see, I have gained two more.’ His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful
servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of
many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
“Then the man who had
received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard
man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not
scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the
ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
“His master replied,
‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and
gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my
money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have
received it back with interest.
“‘So take the bag of
gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has
will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have,
even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless
servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of
teeth.’
“When the Son of Man
comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his
glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will
separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep
from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his
left.
“Then the King will say
to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your
inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For
I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me
something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed
clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was
in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will
answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give
you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in,
or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison
and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did
for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
“Then he will say to
those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal
fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you
gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I
was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not
clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
“They also will answer,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes
or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you,
whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ Then
they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Scripture
references are from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright
© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica,
Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
