By Caroline Speas
At the beginning of 2020, I began studying what the Bible says about purity and righteous living, starting with some of the Psalms. At first, I honestly thought to myself, “How much would the Psalms have to say about purity and righteous living?” When I think of Psalms, I think of a book that is full of praise and thanksgiving and even cries for help. I never really thought of it as a “how-to” book like Proverbs or the Pauline epistles. Isn’t it a worship book?
But just look at how the Psalms start!
"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." (Psalm 1:1-2 NIV)
True worship can certainly take place when we sing and pray. But true worship can also take place when we live lives that honor Him. True worship can take place when we delight ourselves in His Word and spend time dwelling on it, day and night. True worship can take place when we clear our lives of things that would draw us away from Him. And the result is a healthy, fruitful, and prosperous life. A life of purity and righteous living. A life of worship.
Yes, the Book of Psalms is full of songs of praise, it is full of prayers, and it is full of cries for helps and declarations of dependence on God. But woven throughout it is the important reminder that true worship isn’t just about the songs we sing or the prayers we pray. True worship is also about the lives we live.
If you are following our “Daily Bible-Reading Plan,” today's passages are John 8 & Psalm 1.