Wednesday
Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. From their callous hearts comes iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits. They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression. Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth. Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. They say, “How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?” This is what the wicked are like — always carefree, they increase in wealth. – Psalm 73:12-15
So far this week we have looked into the heart of Asaph (the author of Psalm 73 and a worship leader in ancient Israel). We have seen his struggle with the injustice in the world, his frustration over the wealth and success of ungodly, and his feeling that God has been unfair to him. One of the things that I love most about this Psalm is the raw honesty of the Psalmist. Asaph readily admits his personal jealousy of the prosperity of the wicked, he confesses his crisis of faith over his doubts, and he even admits his total inability to make sense of it all. He has hit a roadblock in his faith because he has come to the end of his own understanding. He cannot think his way out of his doubts (none of us can). Most of us need something, or someone, beyond ourselves to find our way out of our deepest doubts and questions.
When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. – Psalm 73:16-17
These two verses are the turning point of the entire Psalm. Up to this point Asaph has been stumbling along in the dark of his own doubts. He could not find his way out…until he entered the sanctuary of God. In other words, when he humbled himself and began to worship God, his perspective began to change. By going into the sanctuary he means he came before the presence of God. He actually went into the temple, which was the symbol of God’s presence with His people. When he did that, he began to see things from God's point of view. He began to shift from natural thinking to spiritual thinking. Asaph’s real problem was he had been thinking only from a natural, earthly perspective, and not from a spiritual perspective.
The trouble with "natural" thinking is that it is always centered on us. Self is always the center of the natural man and he is forever reacting according to his feelings. Natural thinking is governed by our feelings, our moods, and the way we emotionally react to our circumstances. When that happens to you, your range of vision is narrowed down to only your immediate circumstances, and to how you feel in the moment, you really cannot think beyond this.
This is what worship and prayer are for, to help us see our lives and ourselves accurately, from God’s point of view. When you come to church, or pray, or read the Bible, you are not coming merely to find some inspiration or some words of comfort; you are coming to have your eyes opened, so that you can see things as they really are.
Asaph begins to truly “see” only when he comes into the sanctuary, into the presence of God, because there he begins thinking spiritually. Spiritual thinking is centered on God.
So, how do we enter the sanctuary today? According to the New Testament, we ourselves are the sanctuary. God lives in us. We enter the sanctuary when we study and apply the truth of God’s Word in our lives. We enter the sanctuary when we meet & worship together with other Christians. We enter the sanctuary when we talk and listen to God in prayer. We enter the sanctuary when we serve and give to God and others.
Jeff Frazier
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3 comments:
I heard it said: Only when you see things from a Christ perspective can you turn resentment into rejoicing. Thank you for another reminder of how important it is to keep our life focused above.
"He has hit a roadblock ... because he has come to the end of his own understanding." How often has that been true for me?! More often than I'd probably like to admit! But God is faithful, and when I quit squirming around in frustration, He is always there providing the answer. Praise God for his understanding that is infinitely larger than ours.
This happens so many times to ALL of us, doesn't it?! - I noticed Asaph's problem right away: "They have no struggles... are free from human ills... always carefree". Really?! It's just not the Truth! Time and again, we see "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence", but it's a false perspective - it's a lie of Satan! Who has no human ills?? Who is carefree?? Nobody I know! Even the wicked and the rich and those who scheme their way into an easy life have PROBLEMS! Oh, you don't see them, and they don't show it, but they have them. We get into trouble when we compare ourselves with others, because our NATURAL and sinful inclination is always to think THEY have it better. So, I would submit, that going into God's sanctuary should open our eyes not only to the "end" of people who turn their backs on God, but also to the REALITY of those wealthy & carefree people out there - that Satan is flat out just lying to us! AND, I'm learning from both Job and Jonah these days, that GOD can save those wicked & prosperous people - maybe they WON'T end up in a bad life, or condemned to Hell!! We need to be ready for, and actually DESIRING that to happen! We don't have a corner on the Mercy & Grace market! No spiritual gloating allowed on our part...
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