Laziness Who put the screws to you? Psalm 25:2 E-Mail Challenge. 3. What caused Asaph to almost lose his faith, and what brought him out of it and how can this help those of us today, who might have some questions like he did? (John 3:16 sermon), "The Message of the Cross" (I Cor. He says, God showed me that what I am seeing around me NOW, is NOT how this story is going to end: He says in :18-20 Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction. "I nearly lost my grip on what I believe. When he had all those questions that were nagging him, he didnt run away from the house of God, he went TO the sanctuary of God. Anger/Bitterness (Tie) Because he was blinded by envy, he admits emphatically that he did not recognize that, in spite of his brutish behavior, he was always with God (vs. 23a), an admission that represents the flipside of Gods promise to the patriarchs, I will be with you always. And, more importantly, in the temple he discovers that Gods right hand has a tight grip on him (vs. 23b). May Gods word continue to bless your life! It was a truly encouraging sermon about how our perspectives on the world can become skeweduntil we enter the sanctuary of the Lord and see from his perspective, all the way to the very end. It IS going to end better it will probably end better even in this life, and it will certainly end better for her heaven. Instead, the wicked, now defined as those who live far from God in their actions and speech (vs. 11), will perish.52 By itself this crucial discovery in verse 26a seems to be based on wisdoms conduct and consequence principle that was already introduced in Psalm 1:6b: the way of the wicked self-destructs. Unlike Psalm 1:6b, however, the speaker attributes the destruction of the wicked directly to God in the parallel clause: you destroy (or silence) all who commit adultery (vs. 27b).53 This reappraisal assumes that the Lord is the Judge of the earth (Ps 94:1) and that it is God who will repay them for their injustice and that God, his stronghold and refuge (Ps 94:22), will destroy them (Ps 94:23). That spoke to a need in my life, or a question on my heart. And I am grateful that God speaks to us through His word! While CHICKEN LITTLE was hit in the head by a piece soul satisfying. Listen to his confession in v. ", Envy is the tendency to compare yourself with someone else in a way that leaves you feeling deprived. Who did something unfair to you at work? The author of Psalm 73, Asaph, was almost like Elie Wiesel. How could I say to Him: Blessed art Thou, Eternal, Master of the Universe, Who chose us from among the races to be tortured day and night, to see our fathers, our mothers, our brothers, end in the crematory? (Night, 64-65). Most of us can probably think of a time we were glad we DIDNT say or do something I remember one time I wrote a comment on Facebook that really tore into someone but I just hit the delete key instead and wiped the whole thing out. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Arrogant refers to people who make sure people notice them and what they have. This raises a crucial question for the preacher: does the psalmist expect to live with God after death in verse 24b? To ensure you receive the best experience on Lifeway.com, we use cookies to process information about your visit. How to Live with God as Your Portion By Kristine Brown . Why should I be honest? The prayers in the Psalms use words of waiting, watching, listening, tasting and seeing, meditating, and resting. Because they live at ease, therefore, according to verse 6, they are proud21 and violent. Study Psalm 73 using Charles H. Spurgeon's Treasury of David to better understand Scripture with full outline and verse meaning. You examples are superb. (1 John 2:17) God completely controls their destiny, not them. Self-centeredness How is that right? And earth has nothing I desire besides You. There is a lesson we know as YOUNG CHICKEN LITTLE I have read how YOUNG CHICKEN LITTLE throws his whole small town into a great panic CHICKEN LITTLE CLAIMED THE SKY WAS FALLING IN This must be the end of the world. In the opening verse (vs. 1), the meaning of the predicate adjective good is ambiguous. And then, in worship, he renews his relationship in praise: Yet I am always with you; You hold me by my right hand. In the end, it is these nailed hands that will receive us into glory, according to his promise: Oh the happiness of the pure in heart; they will see God (Mt 5:8). His faith was tested and he almost fell away. He took his doubts and confusion to God in prayer. 1 Chronicles 25:1 and 2 Chronicles 29:30 add that Asaph was a prophet in his musical compositions. But before he relates his personal experience (vv. In :11 he says they say: How does God know? They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threate Moreover, the shift in addressee in verses 15-28 indicates that Psalm 73 may be divided into two equal halves of 14 verses each: verses 1-14 and 15-28.9Furthermore, the repetition of key words marks the important segments of the poem as well as its flow. Clarke's Commentary. Commentaries, Sermons, Illustrations, Devotionals. (LogOut/ But the man was a sexual predator. You didn't see that coming. Yet over the years they bring steadfastness . Asaph takes his raw deal to the right place and finds out that he didn't have it bad after all. For example, the Hebrew word ak, translated as surely in the NIV, begins the poem in verse 1 and is repeated at significant turning points, namely, verses 13 and 18.10 Similarly, the fourfold repetition of the emphatic Hebrew phrase weani (And [or: but] I) in verses 2, 22, 23 and 28 marks important phases in the resolution of the poets haunting problem. The Argument of Psalm 1. But it wasnt just that he came to God; God actually SHOWED him something specific that helped him: he says in :17, Then I perceived their end. He says God showed me not just what the present state of these wicked people is, but what their END is going to be. Don't keep those emotions cooped up inside you, building layers of resentment and hardship between you and God. Moreover, Psalm 73:28 also repeats the important theme of Gods nearness (Ps 34:18) and the key refuge metaphor (Ps 34:8, 22). Why do dictators, child molesters, and corporate raiders get off easy? Is it really worth it to serve God? But as for me, it is good to be near God. Intro: One day, six blind men decided to go to the zoo.They hired a guide to tell them about all the exotic animals they couldn't see. They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills. Envy The psalmists realization of Gods presence in verses 22-24 leads to a reflective spin-off in verses 25-26,44 in which he articulates a supreme confession of trust.45 In verse 25 he confesses that the antidote to his previous envy (vs. 3) is his hold-guide-receive experience of Gods persistent presence (vv. Asaph is struggling with the World and the people in it. ( Psalm 73:1-3) The contradiction between the goodness of God and the prosperity of the wicked. Thank you for the inspiration you provide. And they show us that we can be HONEST with God; we dont have to hide in some kind of fake spirituality and hold any of our questions back from Him. Unless otherwise specified, content on this website is licensed as Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0. As such, it has proved to be an enduring source of comfort amidst suffering. But from the perspective of eternity, from the point of view in worship, there is a quick ride to the bottom. One of the best known memoirs of the Holocaust is Night by Elie Wiesel. He was a faithful follower of God. I hadnt felt good all day. And that lead him to the fourth word we need to see in v. 3: envy. Asaph said as I looked around in the world, there were some things that bothered me. This little song is worth several sermons so don't feel bad if we emphasize some parts tonight and not others. Those who are far from You will perish; You destroy all who are unfaithful to You. As a result, "Psalm 32 serves as an important check against any tendency . I don't know how it started. He discovers that faith depends not on his fragile, often vulnerable grasp of God, but on Gods grasp of him.39 That hand has not and will not let him go.40 In addition, in sharp contrast to the wicked, who claim that the Most High knows nothing, the psalmist admits that, not the counsel of the wicked (Ps 1:1), but Gods counsel personally guides41 him in the way that he should go (vs. 24a).42 Indeed, in the end God will receive him into glory (vs. 24b; NIV). We're sorry, an error occurred. . Look at v. 3: "For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked." Video for Psalm 73: The title of this psalm ( A Psalm of Asaph) tells us that it was written by the great singer and musician of David and Solomon's era ( 1 Chronicles 15:17-19, 16:5-7, 25:6 ). You're going about your business, and a whale explodes. According to the twice repeated expression "Happy are those," in verses 1-2, divine forgiveness of sins is the gateway to happiness. Why did the close friend, in whom I trusted, who ate bread with me, lift up his heel against me? In the Psalm Asaph recounts a time of wavering faith and growing doubts. According to verse 18, God will place the wicked on the slippery slope that the psalmist almost experienced (vs. 2). I try to be faithful and do right, and I have to fight for every inch. According to Psalm 1:6b, the way of the wicked self-destructs. The speakers extensive description of the wicked in verses 4-12 suggests that he was a careful observer and that he has been intensely occupied with the problem.19 His detailed description consists of two parts, verses 4-6 and 7-11. Blessed be the Lord for evermore. To have faith; to know that what we can see right now, is not the end of the story. God is the Christian's inheritance as the refuge of his conscience. Fire devours everything in his way, and a great storm rages around . In either case, questioning and doubts are not virtues, as some have suggested.60 Ultimately, the truth is that continuous questioning and doubt destroys human relationships. (Lee Eclov, Vernon Hills, Illinois; source: "Thar She Blows!" As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. Listen to his words in v. 16-17: "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." Why? As a result, their speech is arrogant and they threaten oppression (vs. 8). Psalm 26 Communicating Integrity. You can sense this music director's relief when he comes to worship. Reorientation with Respect to Gods Presence (vv. That is where we meet Asaph in Psalm 73. In light of the prosperity of the wicked, the poet concludes that his attempt to lead a moral life has been absolutely in vain: Surely, in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence. Back to Chuck Smith's Bio & Resources "THE PLACE OF UNDERSTANDING" Intro: I know a dear dedicated couple, tithe faithfully, serving God as active laymen in church, their first baby was born horribly deformed. Scripture: Psalm 73. Sometimes it changes suddenly during our lives here on earth like it did for Harvey Weinstein. 5. Psalm 73 begins with a unique affirmation of faith in verse 1 that functions as its basic premise, which is tested in verses 2-27 and marvelously reaffirmed in verse 28: Surely God is good to Israel,15 to those who are pure in heart. As men despise their dreams when they awake from them, so, when God "stirs up himself and awakes to judgment" ( Psalms 35:23 ), he will despise such mere semblances of humanity ( Psalms 39:6) as the wicked are. As he frankly admits in verse 3, his doubt was caused by his envy of the prosperity (shalom) of the boasting wicked. Let's look at Psalm 1 together for a few minutes. ", Building Your Life On The Rock (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon), "This Is My Story: The Woman At The Well" (John 4:1-42 sermon), "The Greatest Verse in the Bible?" Because He had had thousands of children burned in His pits? Asaphs Faltering Faith (A Man-Oriented Perspective) (73:1-3), They speak with arrogance and gain a following (vs. 8-10), Summary: The lives of the wicked are easy and prosperous (vs. 12), Asaphs Restored Faith (A God-Oriented Perspective) (73:18-28), 2023 Southern Hills Baptist Church - Round Rock, Texas, Southern Hills is a family of believers who exist to glorify God by helping people experience life change through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Psalm 73: Remembering the Truth in Times of Doubt. He is a graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dec 4, 1988. Harvey Weinstein was for many years one of the top producers in Hollywood. As we start in verse one, he's going to tell us about his experience looking around the world and also his beliefs. 1 The LORD, the Mighty One, is God, and he has spoken; he has summoned all humanity from where the sun rises to where it sets. Psalm 25:8 Bubbles On The Border. Pride This Psalm is his very personal testimony. *Indicated Required Field See ourPrivacy Policy. The opening statement that God is good to Israel, for example, recalls Psalm 34:8. He found God again. The negative moral evaluation and economic critique of verse 6 is intensified in the second part (vv. A person may say, well I just dont feel like being there today but that may be the day that God is going to speak to you. He opens it with a truth: "Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.". Betcha no one got up that morning thinking they would have whale guts on them by noon! 7-11). He was angry and disillusioned. 1, 28) form an inclusio and frame within which the painful experience of the poet is unfolded. In this strategic location the poem examines one of the most complex and perplexing problems for believers: the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering of the righteous.6 In this struggle Psalm 73 summarizes, according to McCann, the basic lesson that readers should have learned in their meditating on Psalms 1-72, namely, that happiness or goodness has less to do with material prosperity than with the assurance of Gods sustaining presence amidst suffering.7. Sometimes things change very quickly, even here on earth, dont they? 4-12; vv. As the truck crawled through that downtown region, with crowds looking on, the whale exploded. In addition, the Hebrew word lebab, heart, occurs six times in the poem.11As Martin Buber has underscored, ultimately the resolution of the poets struggle depends on the disposition of the heart.12 Finally, two Hebrew terms, ml (burden) and ng (plague) are repeated in reverse order in verses 5, 14 and 16 to contrast the comfort of the wicked and the poets experience of constant affliction. He starts out saying, "God is indeed good to Israel, to the pure at heart. Thats a good word for some of us. 13-14), the poet first embarks on an extensive and vivid description of the actions and words of the wicked in verses 4-12.18. A prophet in his way, and resting on, the way of the wicked. is licensed as Commons! That what we can see right now, is not the end of the.! Earth, dont they out saying, & quot ; Psalm 32 serves an. Arrogant refers to people who make sure people notice them and what they have World and people! 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