“Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.” – Psalms 112:1, 6, 7
With Father’s Day fresh in our minds, I thought I would share some thoughts from this Psalm that teaches characteristics of a man who fears the Lord. The one overarching trait that defines this man who fears the Lord and delights in His commandments is stability. He is unmovable, unshakable, he is trustworthy and predictable.
Too many men today are fickle, doing what is politically expedient and bending with the wind. Biblical manhood in general is defined as fortitude. A man should have strength, courage and resilience, not vacillating, weak-kneed and fainthearted, but a steady endurance.
Another trait of Biblical manhood is responsibility. First Timothy 5:8 gives this very serious charge to men in regards to their responsibility to their family: “If any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”
So, let’s look at two qualities of a stable man from Psalms 112. First, he is a man of conviction. This is a man who stands on his principles. Where does he get his principles — from God’s Word, the Bible. It is our convictions that anchor us in firmness.
The 1981 movie Chariots of Fire was based on a British Olympic athlete named Eric Liddell. Liddell was a devout Scottish Christian, who had a conviction that Sunday was the Lord’s day. When his race was scheduled for a Sunday during the 1924 Olympics, he refused to run but rather went to church.
Living by our convictions is not easy and we are often criticized, but when we stand on Biblical convictions we will have a clean conscience and the blessing of God.
The second thing I see in this Psalm is that he is a man of compassion. Verse five says, “A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth.” And in verse nine we read, “He hath given to the poor.” A God-fearing man recognizes that he is not a self-made man, but actually he is a blessed man. He is the recipient of God’s favor and blessing and as one who has received blessings, he is willing to share them with others.
There are others found in Psalm 112 but you’ll have to go and read them on your own, because my time and space is up for this article, but I’ll talk with you again soon. Until then God bless.
Tom Kline is the pastor of Castlegar Baptist Church.
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