From doubt to delight

Psalms 73:1-28 ESV

Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs until death; their bodies are fat and sleek. They are not in trouble as others are; they are not stricken like the rest of mankind. Therefore pride is their necklace; violence covers them as a garment. Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies. They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression. They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth. Therefore his people turn back to them, and find no fault in them. And they say, "How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?" Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches. All in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence. For all the day long I have been stricken and rebuked every morning. If I had said, "I will speak thus," I would have betrayed the generation of your children. But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end. Truly you set them in slippery places; you make them fall to ruin. How they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! Like a dream when one awakes, O Lord, when you rouse yourself, you despise them as phantoms. When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart, I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you. Nevertheless, I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you. But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.

Rev. Dwight Yoo

This psalm is credited to Asaph. He is equivalent to the modem day worship leader.

The honesty of Asaph

Asaph speaks of a time of being tempted to walk away from God. He considered leaving the faith behind. He was being honest not just with friends and family, but also being brutally raw and honest to God. There is no pretense here. God calls us to come to Him not in formality. He calls us to meet Him without any pretenses or masks. As we are.

Not only that, but psalms were meant to be publicly shared. So, Asaph was sharing his troubles with everyone. His doubts of God. His struggles with faith.

The struggle of Asaph

Asaph was envious of unbelievers. He saw people who did not follow God. They were corrupt, happy, successful, and cocky. Following God has been painful. It seems in vain. Doubt is not only for the unbelievers, but also for the Christian, even pastors. Where is the justice?

The transformation of Asaph

Asaph goes to the sanctuary of God. And he is changed. So is that it? Just go to church? No, it is not just that. We are to pray together, praise together, take communion together... and somewhere in all that, God comes and meets us. When He does, we are changed. God confronts both Asaph's head and heart. Asaph experiences God and discovers that God is the ultimate treasure.

Acts 14:21-22 ESV

When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.

Suffering is not without reason. For the believer, it is expected. Because we follow Christ and no one is greater than their teacher.