The Company We Keep

Let us take a minute to think about the company that we keep. Who do we hang around with? What kind of influence is in our daily lives? Psalms 1 has some interesting things to say on the subject. Let’s take a look…

Psalms 1:1-6 KJVR

(1) Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

(2) But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

(3) And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

(4) The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

(5) Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

(6) For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Verse one says “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly.” We have to be careful who we choose to spend our time with. I think this goes further than who we call friends. I believe that this includes all the people that we are around, friends, co-workers, acquaintances, anyone who has the opportunity to influence us.

I think we all need to keep an eye on this. We can be influenced without our knowledge by those around us. I know that it is impossible to only be around Christians. If we were never around unsaved people, we never have the opportunity to witness to them. We cannot cut off all contact with non-christians, but we must ensure that we are not influenced by them.

Verse 2 tells us to meditate on the law of God day and night. The law of God is His Word. We need to spend time in the Word every day. If we spend time in the Bible, God will speak to us.

Verse three says that like a tree planted by the river, we will bear fruit in our season and our leaves won’t wither. It also says that all that we do will prosper. This is refreshing for me personally. It is good to hear that we will prosper in what we do when God is in it.

Down in verse six, it tells us that God knows the way of the righteous and the way of the wicked will perish. Being on God’s path will keep us safe in His hands. Being off God’s path leads only to death.

It is my prayer that we all take these words to heart. We all can be influenced by this world if we are not careful. We have here all the instruction that we need to both avoid unwanted influence and prosper.

Let us put our roots deep into the rivers of living water of Christ Jesus and bear the fruit that He has in store for us.