Sacrifices: When Making Sacrifices Grows Old
Part I: When the Wicked Prospers
Scripture: Psalm 73
Introduction
This message was birthed in my spirit several months ago as I thought about the many conversations that I have had with people that started off with the words “Why” or “When”. The conversations would generally go like this: “Why does it seem like I am always struggling?” or “When will it ever be my turn?” Some of these conversations I actually had with myself that went on for weeks and weeks. There is nothing like a good “woe is me” party when you believe you’re the only one suffering.
If you have ever asked this question or have had others express this sentiment to you, you will understand this message. This sermon series begs the question that if we are so blessed, why do we struggle? If we are faithful in our giving, where is my 100 fold return? If I am in Church every time the doors are open, why does it seem like the only ones enjoying life are those who do not go to Church at all? If I am a hard worker on my job, why do the promotions go to the ones who barely do anything at all? If I am trying to help someone else get ahead, why do they turn around and step on me as they climb their way up? If God loves me so much and wants me to be prosperous like the TV evangelists says when I send them my money, why am I still struggling to pay my bills when the TV preachers have riches? When will it be my turn to have riches? When will it be my turn to take vacations – and be able to pay for them as we go? When will it be my turn for the milk and honey versus having the vinegar and salt? These are the questions that Christians ask when they look at the world around them and see others prospering (in their minds) while doing little in service of God. As I said before, I have asked these questions myself.
Several weeks ago I was lying in bed one night thinking some of these questions and God spoke to me. I will share with you later where He took me, but it surprised me at some of the things that I read. Many times we feel as if we are carrying the weight of the whole world on our shoulders with no relief. We have responsibilities to family, parents, friends, Church, jobs and the list goes on and on. We receive emails that read “I am too blessed to be stressed” and we think “yeah, right” as we go to the medicine cabinet to take that blood pressure medicine or to get the Aleve for the headache because of our stress load. All of those cute sayings are real and appropriate except when you’re the one going through. When you’re the one going through it is hard to grasp on to those sayings. If anything that I have said hit home to you, then join me as I share with you that we are not and have not been the only ones to feel this way. This morning we will start with Psalm 73, a psalm of Asaph.
Asaph was a composer, singer and chief musician under King David. He is credited with writing twelve of the Psalms. He is first mentioned in 1 Chronicles 15:17. In that chapter David was preparing to move the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. After appointing the priests and those to actually carry the Ark, David asked the chiefs of the Levite to appoint their relatives as singers with instruments of music. Asaph was one of the singer/musicians who were appointed during this event. He was a Levite who was known for his use of cymbals in worship. David appointed him as the chief leader of the choral worship (1 Chronicles 16:4-5). In Psalm 73, we find a song about how even though we follow God, we find ourselves in the midst of trials and tribulations. Meanwhile, the person next to us who laughs at God’s ways grows more powerful and prosperous every day.
I. I Almost Stumbled
As we read through this Psalm, please keep in mind that Asaph was writing as an Israelite, not a Christian. So as we read this, wherever you see a reference to the Children of Israel, you can substitute you and I as Christians. So let’s get started.
Psalms 73 opens with these words: “Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart! But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling, my steps had almost slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked.” Psalm 73:1-3
In these verses we find an acknowledgement of God’s goodness. Before he says anything about his frustrations, he acknowledges that God is a good God, especially to those who had a pure heart. So from the onset he was making it clear that although he may have been frustrated initially, he still had the understanding that this was not God’s fault. So he begins to focus on himself. He says that he almost stumbled; that he almost fell. Why did he almost stumble? He began to doubt God’s goodness. He began to look at the prosperity of the wicked, those who did not serve God, versus his own situation, as someone who did serve God and he was becoming envious of their prosperity. Now in order for us to grasp what he was saying, I want you to think about two of your children. What happens when one begins to think that the other is being treated different or better than themselves? First they get envious at how the other child is being treated and then they get bitter and the bitterness begins to come out in the things they do. Do you remember the story of the prodigal son?
In the book of Luke, the 15th chapter, a story is told about two brothers. In the story both brothers lived with their father and would inherit something when their father died. The younger brother decided that he was tired of waiting for his father to die and asked him to give him his share of his inheritance early. His father did as he was requested and the son took the money and ran. He spent all of his money and ended up eating with the pigs. When he finally swallowed his pride, he returned home and his father welcomed him back – but that was not the end of the story. His father made ready for a large celebration to celebrate his son’s return and the fact that he was alive. The older son who had stayed with his father became angry because his father was throwing a party to celebrate his brother’s return. He refused to attend the party. When his father came to him he basically told his father that he had done right by him and stayed and worked hard for all those years and he had never given him one young goat so that he could celebrate with his friends. What I want you to see is how easily the anger came in and how quickly he judged his father and assumed that he had been mistreated. Had his father not quickly addressed the situation, this son would have grown very bitter.
So let’s go back to what we just read in Psalm 73:1-3. When the writer stated that he almost slipped, this is what he was talking about. He almost became envious of the wicked man’s prosperity and if he had let it continue, he would have become angry and began to doubt and accuse God. When we look at the prosperity of others who do not serve God and we begin to wonder why they are so blessed, the door is open for us to blame God for our mistreatment. If you think of blessings as wealth then it is very easy to blame God if you are poor. When Asaph saw where he was headed, he quickly came back in line with his understanding of God and that God was righteous and good to those with a pure heart. So in these verses we see the initial questions “Why am I not blessed and when will it be my turn?”
After he stated that he caught himself, he began to describe in vivid detail what he saw with the wicked. Let’s continue reading. “For there are no pains in their death, and their body is fat. They are not in trouble as other men, nor are they plagued like mankind.” (Vs. 4-5) In these verses he basically spells out that the prospering wicked man does not like the life of someone poor. They do not suffer like the poor man. They do not suffer troubles like the poor man – their bills are paid and they have plenty of food on the table. They are able to take vacations overseas versus driving down to Branson or going to Worlds of Fun across the state line. This is what Asaph was describing. Those who were wicked and prospering seemed to have it all even to the point that their death was not like the death of a poor man. After he describes this – examine what he said was the result. “Therefore pride is their necklace; the garment of violence covers them. Their eyes bulges from fatness; the imaginations of their heart run riot. They mock and wickedly speak oppression; they speak from on high. They have set their mouth against the heavens and their tongue parades through the earth.” (Vs. 6-9) The writer is describing how the rich man thinks because he has so much. They are very prideful and they are violent. Why? Because with enough money, you can buy your way out of trouble – or pay others to get in trouble for you. He said they are so fat that their eyes bulge basically as they look upon their wealth and gloat. Not only that, but they are so arrogant that they begin to speak against heaven. They do not worry about God or His commandments and eternal life. God is so low on their priority list that He does not even exist. Why do they need God when they have everything money can buy? Asaph witnessed this, the wicked prospering and not even caring about God, and asks the question – if I can paraphrase in today’s language: “What’s up with this? These people are wicked – doesn’t God know this?” This is what he is asking in verse eleven and twelve. Now the comparison starts.
“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure, and washed my hands in innocence; for I have been stricken all day long and chastened every morning.” (Vs.13-14) Have you ever done this? Have you ever wondered if giving your money to the Church is doing you any good? Have you ever wondered if praying is doing you any good – especially if you have not gotten an answer yet? Have you ever wondered why you should try so hard to live right when it is much easier to live wicked and “obviously” more profitable? This is what the writer was saying.
These are the questions we ask when we are always making sacrifices while watching others move ahead who make no sacrifices. Is God fair and does it matter? The spiritual answer is to say it does not matter, but the unspoken answer is that we want to know when is it our turn. This is a part of who we are, but we must remember what Asaph said. When our minds start going in this direction, it becomes a slippery slope, especially when we are comparing ourselves to the prosperity of others. So again we stand and ask, “When will it be my turn?” If you are faithful to God in what you are doing and you witness the prosperity of those who are not faithful to God, the question will run through your mind. Asaph, having come to this point, reaches a point of making a decision. He could continue down this path and really get into blaming God, or he could reflect on who he knows God to be. He chose the latter.
II. Be Careful What You Express Out Loud
When Asaph thinks on the situation and the options he had before him of expressing his frustrations, he realizes what that expression could do. “If I had said, ‘I will speak thus,’ Behold, I would have betrayed the generation of Your children.” (vs. 15) He recognizes that if he had spoken his frustration with the prosperity of the wicked versus those who were righteous, it could have caused more hard than good for those who looked at him as a leader. You see, leaders are not always at liberty to voice their frustrations to those who follow them. Parents are not always at liberty to voice their frustrations in front of their children. There is a level of accountability that comes with leadership and authority. So here we find that he chose to say nothing so as not to put a stumbling block before others.
III. The Answer Found
In the remaining verses we find the transformation happening with the writer and his return to peace. In verse sixteen he says “When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome in my sight.” (Vs. 16) What he was saying was that he had spent time in true meditation trying to understand why the wicked prospered and why the just suffered. As he searched for answers he stated that it was too painful for him. Finding no peace and no answers, he decides to go to the sanctuary of God. There, as he is in God’s presence, he finds his answer. The rest of this chapter focuses on what he comes to understand. He realizes that the prosperity that he sees within them is temporary; it will not last for long. Just because they may be living the high life now does not mean that their end will be the same. He would have recognized that their fall would sometimes come in this life. He would have known the story of Pharaoh. He had great wealth yet his land came to ruin through the plagues of Egypt and his great army was destroyed at the Red Sea. We all know the story of Jezebel and how she was an evil queen who was eaten by dogs. In the New Testament we find Herod Agrippa who allowed himself to be proclaimed as a god and he was eaten by worms. A signal of retribution visits the wicked in hundreds and thousands of instances. If we turn on the TV or read the newspaper we see or read about “famous” people who with all of their money they still end up in trouble. Some commit suicide as learning the hard way that money cannot buy happiness. We have all heard the stories of lottery winners who win millions and within 5 years they are worse off than they were before they won the money. Is this supposed to make us feel better? When we see this do we think “Well they got what they deserve!” When we consider our situation are we happy when others who are more prosperous start having problems? If this is the case, we too are about to stumble. When the writer of this psalm recognized where he was headed, he changed course. He went to God for understanding. He went to God for peace. He went to God because man could not provide the answer he needed. When he received his answer, listen to what he said:
“When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You. You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory. Who have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. 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 will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge that I may tell of all Your works.” (Vs. 21-28)
If you have been like me and have asked God why the wicked prospers and why it seem like the good things goes to those who do not love Him, then understand as I tell you that although it may be a honest question, if we dwell on it too long we will become embittered thinking God is not looking down on us. I have had some terrible days and times when I doubted, but I too found peace in the presence of God. There have been times when my spirit was heavy and I came into His sanctuary, into this Church, and found peace. I cannot tell you why the wicked prospers in worldly gain, but their prosperity does not mean that God has turned His back on us and that we are not under His watchful eye.
I will continue this series in two weeks, but before I close this message, I want you to think about something. Think about how you felt when you saw those around you prospering who gave no consideration to God. Think about the mental images you painted of God and His goodness. Think about what you thought as it pertained to God being fair. Think about what you thought relating to your suffering and you support the Church and others having plenty and they do not give a dime to the Church. Finally, think about what you thought pertaining to the sacrifices you have made and the rewards that do not seem to have manifested themselves. As you remember those thoughts and the emotions that came with them, ask yourself right now if you really believe God is good, just and fair. Until next time – God bless you.
