Psalm 26 Sermon PART 2 — I Have Not Sat with Vain Persons

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[intro]
[English Puritan Theological Sermon]
[Meeting-house acoustic]
[Single sustained very low note]
[Faint atmosphere]
[Preacher — continuing, theological seriousness with pastoral engagement]

[SECTION THREE — The Active Separation]
[Low note sustained]
[Preacher — measured, theological]

We come now to the verses 
that describe the believer's active engagement 
in the spiritual warfare we have named.

I have not sat with vain persons,
neither will I go in with dissemblers.
I have hated the congregation of evil doers,
and will not sit with the wicked.

Hear what is being said here, beloved.

The believer names specific choices.
He has not sat with vain persons.
He will not go in with dissemblers.
He has hated the congregation of evil doers.
He will not sit with the wicked.

This is active separation.
This is the discipline 
of choosing one's company.

The believer who would walk with God 
must be careful 
about whom he walks with in the world.
The believer who would maintain integrity 
must guard against the company 
that would erode that integrity 
through the slow steady pressure 
of constant exposure.

This is one of the disciplines 
that the modern Christian has largely abandoned.

We have been taught 
that Christian love requires us 
to associate with everyone equally, 
without discrimination, 
without the careful choosing 
of who shall have access to our daily life.

But this is not what the scriptures teach, dear brethren.

The scriptures teach us to love all our neighbors.
But the scriptures also teach us 
to be careful 
about whom we make our intimate companions.
The wicked influence the righteous 
more often than the righteous influence the wicked, 
because evil is more easily caught 
than goodness is taught.

[SECTION FOUR — The World as the Second Enemy]
[Low note steady]
[Preacher — careful, pastoral]

This active separation 
is the believer's primary defense 
against the second of the three enemies 
that we named earlier.

The world.

The world pulls upon the believer 
through the cumulative pressure 
of constant exposure 
to ways of thinking, 
ways of living, 
ways of speaking 
that are at odds with the kingdom.

The believer who immerses himself 
in worldly company without discernment 
will find that his thoughts begin to drift 
toward worldly patterns.
His speech will begin to drift 
toward worldly speech.
His desires will begin to drift 
toward worldly desires.

This drift is slow.
It is not perceived from day to day.
But across years it can move the believer 
a great distance 
from where he began.

The psalm before us 
calls the believer back 
to the discipline of careful association.
Not the hatred of persons.
Not the refusal of all contact.
But the careful guarding 
of who shall have access 
to our daily formation.

[SECTION FIVE — Hated the Congregation]
[Low note steady, theological]
[Preacher — measured, theological]

I must speak carefully about one phrase 
in these verses 
that may trouble the modern hearer.

I have hated the congregation of evil doers.

In our age, dear brethren, 
the word hatred has been so debased 
that we hesitate to apply it 
to anything our scriptures permit.

But the scriptures do permit hatred 
of certain things and certain situations.

Not hatred of persons as such.
The Lord commands us 
to love our enemies 
and to pray for those who persecute us.
This command has not been rescinded.

But hatred of evil itself.
Hatred of the patterns of life 
that destroy souls 
and that work against the kingdom of God.
Hatred of the congregation — 
which is to say the gathered assembly — 
of those whose collective purpose 
is to work mischief.

This kind of hatred is moral clarity.
The believer who has no such hatred 
has not yet learned to love righteousness 
with sufficient seriousness.
The believer who claims to love righteousness 
while feeling no corresponding aversion to evil 
is deceiving himself.

The hatred named in this verse 
is the proper response 
of the regenerate soul 
to the corporate organization of wickedness.

[end]

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[intro] [English Puritan Theological Sermon] [Meeting-house acoustic] [Single sustained very low note] [Faint atmosphere] [Preacher — continuing, theological seriousness with pastoral engagement] [SECTION THREE — The Active Separation] [Low note sustained] [Preacher — measured, theological] We come now to the verses that describe the believer's active engagement in the spiritual warfare we have named. I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers. I have hated the congregation of evil doers, and will not sit with the wicked. Hear what is being said here, beloved. The believer names specific choices. He has not sat with vain persons. He will not go in with dissemblers. He has hated the congregation of evil doers. He will not sit with the wicked. This is active separation. This is the discipline of choosing one's company. The believer who would walk with God must be careful about whom he walks with in the world. The believer who would maintain integrity must guard against the company that would erode that integrity through the slow steady pressure of constant exposure. This is one of the disciplines that the modern Christian has largely abandoned. We have been taught that Christian love requires us to associate with everyone equally, without discrimination, without the careful choosing of who shall have access to our daily life. But this is not what the scriptures teach, dear brethren. The scriptures teach us to love all our neighbors. But the scriptures also teach us to be careful about whom we make our intimate companions. The wicked influence the righteous more often than the righteous influence the wicked, because evil is more easily caught than goodness is taught. [SECTION FOUR — The World as the Second Enemy] [Low note steady] [Preacher — careful, pastoral] This active separation is the believer's primary defense against the second of the three enemies that we named earlier. The world. The world pulls upon the believer through the cumulative pressure of constant exposure to ways of thinking, ways of living, ways of speaking that are at odds with the kingdom. The believer who immerses himself in worldly company without discernment will find that his thoughts begin to drift toward worldly patterns. His speech will begin to drift toward worldly speech. His desires will begin to drift toward worldly desires. This drift is slow. It is not perceived from day to day. But across years it can move the believer a great distance from where he began. The psalm before us calls the believer back to the discipline of careful association. Not the hatred of persons. Not the refusal of all contact. But the careful guarding of who shall have access to our daily formation. [SECTION FIVE — Hated the Congregation] [Low note steady, theological] [Preacher — measured, theological] I must speak carefully about one phrase in these verses that may trouble the modern hearer. I have hated the congregation of evil doers. In our age, dear brethren, the word hatred has been so debased that we hesitate to apply it to anything our scriptures permit. But the scriptures do permit hatred of certain things and certain situations. Not hatred of persons as such. The Lord commands us to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us. This command has not been rescinded. But hatred of evil itself. Hatred of the patterns of life that destroy souls and that work against the kingdom of God. Hatred of the congregation — which is to say the gathered assembly — of those whose collective purpose is to work mischief. This kind of hatred is moral clarity. The believer who has no such hatred has not yet learned to love righteousness with sufficient seriousness. The believer who claims to love righteousness while feeling no corresponding aversion to evil is deceiving himself. The hatred named in this verse is the proper response of the regenerate soul to the corporate organization of wickedness. [end]

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