The Source of My Hope
Psalm 73
I heard on the news this past week that one of the outcomes of what has happened since the September 11th attack on America has been a rush on bookstores around the country. The sale of Bibles is up and that is good news. Alongside of this good news is the report that the sale of books about Islam is up even more than the sale of Bibles. Also, the sale of books dealing with depression is up substantially since the September 11th attack. I don’t have any problem believing this news. I believe people are desperate to find hope when tragedy or crisis visits us. The Bible is the greatest source of hope ever known to humanity so it is only natural that Bibles would be flying off the shelf at places like Barnes and Noble, Mardel’s, and Borders. Most people don’t know much about the religion of those who attacked our country, even though there are 1 billion followers of Islam around the world. Inquiring minds need to know so we buy books explaining Islam to us. It is this last bit of information that really caught my attention - books dealing with depression are flying off the shelves.
That caught my attention more than the other news, not because I was shocked at the news. No, not at all. Actually, the news was a confirmation of the feelings that I have been carrying around all week long. Dealing with the images of devastation that continue to fill the airwaves, hearing personal testimonies of loss and shattered hopes, and being told about potential further attacks is enough for all of us to deal with today. I wish that were all we had to deal with for many months to come, but there is much more for us to deal with isn’t there? There has been heartache upon heartache waiting for many of us since the deaths of over 6,000 of our neighbors to the Northeast.
To put some flesh and bones on this idea and allow you to understand what I am talking about let me share with you the stories of some of my friends that I have heard just this past week. On Monday morning I visited University Hospital with Joe Morgan, Daniel Money, and Ruth Ross. When we arrived, Jo Fischer and David Nave’s family greeted us. They were trying to bring him some comfort. His struggle has been long and grueling. David’s family has watched diabetes ravage his body and slowly take his legs, the use of his hand, and so much more for the past several years now.
On Monday morning he was struggling to find some rest, some relief from the pain that painkillers couldn’t pacify. When I left David’s room we all joined hands and prayed for the Lord to end David’s pain and take him home. That is a reasonable prayer for someone to pray when they are removed from the situation, but for those whose love runs deep, saying the final "good bye" is heartrending even when we want the struggle to end.
Later in the day I went to the County Jail to visit two of my friends. Seeing them paying their debt to society, seeing them caged like animals in an antiquated zoo, was part of the consequences of their breaking the law. I know that, but when they are people you love - it breaks your heart.
I left the County Jail to go back to the hospital to see David’s family once again. We talked, but it was hard to give our full attention to one another with Dave lying there agonizing. We held hands and once again cried out to God for mercy through our tears. I left the room aching for Dave’s family. Then they called about ten minutes later to tell me that the Lord had heard our prayers and David had passed away. I was thrilled that God’s mercy had wrapped Dave’s pain in its grace, but I have to admit that my heart broke knowing that I would not share this life with my friend any longer.
The next day I received a call from a friend telling me about another friend’s 12-year-old daughter who had attempted suicide. She asked if I would call her. I got on the phone and listened, feeling so inadequate as this precious mother who loves her daughter more than her own life, shared her broken heart with me. If her grief were not enough, she met another mother while she was at the hospital visiting her daughter. This mother had been beaten by her son with an extension cord and now he was in the "psychiatric ward" at the hospital. My friend asked the woman if she could pray for her and the agonizing mother said, "I don’t believe in God." What you ought to hear is not necessarily that the woman didn’t "know" that there is a God, but rather that everything she has always held as dear and precious about God was being challenged by what was taking place in her life.
The next day I returned to the office after spending the morning studying for the sermon only to learn that Phil Aday, one of the godliest men I know, was facing triple bypass surgery. I tried to call Phil and Mary so that I could pray with them, but they weren’t home so I left a message and told them that I would see them that night.
Night came and I taught a Bible study here at the church. As we were taking prayer request I asked Marcia how Jerry was doing in his battle with cancer. She said, "I can’t talk about it or I will start crying. We did not get a good report this week." The report had come from the doctor on Monday that the chemotherapy was not doing what they had hoped it would. Our class prayed for our friend after another friend told us about her husband’s mother who had gotten a similar report just hours before they came to our Bible study.
After Bible study I went with a family to his mother’s house to pray for her as she dealt with the news her doctor had given her that he believes she only has 6 months to a year to live. We all joined hands, cried out to the Lord, and wiped away tears of fear as we clung to our faith that God is able.
After praying with the family and talking for a little while I went back to the church to find Phil Aday. We talked about his upcoming surgery and Phil told me that he was a little nervous about it. I said, "Who wouldn’t be Phil. That’s only normal, but we can take our anxiety to the Lord and trust Him for what is to come." Then we held hands and prayed for the Lord to give Phil and his family strength for the challenge ahead.
Some naïve, pious, if not Pollyanna-minded folks might say, "But Mike surely that’s not a typical week. Surely most weeks are full of armloads of new babies, young couples held in the clutches of freshly exchanged vows, and good times." There are plenty of those wonderful experiences, but they always have company my friend. At the same time that tears are shed for the birth of a new baby there are tears being shed for the loss of someone we love so deeply that it feels like our heart has been ripped out of our chest. At the same time that there are tears shed for the newlyweds, there are tears shed for husbands and wives who have decided to sit down with their kids and tell them that they have decided they can’t be a family any longer. There seems to be a constant flow of tears...some joyous tears, but others are tears of sorrow.
How do you respond in times like these? How do you hold up under such pressure? How does an unbelieving world respond to such heartache? How do those who say they trust God, they believe in Jesus, deal with such sorrow? So many ask the question, "If God really loves me, then why am I so filled with sorrow? Why do my tears seem to be my constant companion? Why do I feel so depressed, so desperate?" Those are great questions, real questions that challenge us, and there are a number of ways that we can respond in times like these.
Let me share with you how one priest has chosen to respond to heartache and tragedy. The Rt. Rev. John Shelby Spong, holds a Doctorate in Divinity, that means he has studied "divine things" until he is now cross-eyed. He is the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark. With credentials like that you would think that Dr. Spong is man of great faith. He has written 14 books and is the most published member of the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United States. He is a frequent lecturer at conference centers and on college campuses and will be a guest lecturer at the prestigious Harvard University this spring. He has written an article for the Beliefnet website this past week that saddens me. He says,
Since Sept. 11, the image of airplanes, loaded with both human beings and gasoline crashing into the World Trade Center, has been etched on our consciousness. The willingness on the part of fanatics to die for beliefs deeply held is seen as powerful, but still unbelievable. Chance and the randomness of death are inescapable. We cry out for some purpose, some meaningful explanation, yet nothing makes sense. A desperate need seemed to exist among religious leaders to demonstrate that God was still in charge. One suspects that this claim covers a deep suspicion, seldom spoken by human lips, that no such God exists and that we are alone in this vast, chaotic and frequently painful world. When tragedies occur and no divine protection is forthcoming, human hysteria forces us to struggle to restore our protective, parent God to believability. That is what produced the pious words and religious clichés, which included the assurance that heaven is real and God can still be trusted. Many people pretend that they still believe those things, but deep down they know they only believe in believing them. That statement is as true in the religious world as it is in the secular world--though not as often admitted. We once conceived of God as external to life, supernatural in power, and able to intervene in human history to accomplish miraculous rescue. We know intellectually that such a God is but a phantom of human hope. The image of hijacked planes crashing into buildings killing thousands of people gives us no hiding place for theological pretending. The skies are empty of a protective deity ready to come to our aid. God defined theistically has died. That is the lingering conclusion created by last week’s events. (John Shelby Spong, Beliefnet.com, September 24, 2001)
God has not died, but Bishop Spong’s hope has died. The Bible has not been proven false, but Bishop Spong’s experiences have sullied his studies of God’s Word. I am not being critical; I am merely making an observation. An observation that is not drawn from a distance, but a conclusion that is arrived at amidst a cacophony of cries of despair. In a world of so many tears, how do we find hope for our trials? It is imperative that we resist the urge to join the chorus of the cynics and cling to God’s Word that is filled with the heavy of heart who chose to cling to the sole source of their hope. Won’t you turn to Psalm 73 and read along with me.
1 Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. 2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. 5 They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. 6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. 7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity the evil conceits of their minds know no limits. 8 They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression. 9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth. 10 Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. 11 They say, "How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?" 12 This is what the wicked are like-always carefree, they increase in wealth. 13 Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence. 14 All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning. 15 If I had said, "I will speak thus," I would have betrayed your children. 16 When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me 17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. 18 Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. 19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! 20 As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies. 21 When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, 22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you. 23 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. 24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. 25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. 27 Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. 28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds. (Psalm 73 NIV)
We are not the first people to wrestle with questions about God, questions concerning "why," and what can we believe in times like these. We are not the first folks who have ever gone through tough times and wondered why people who don’t even give God a thought seem to sail through life without a care. We are not the first people who have ever cried, buried our loved ones, watched injustice flourish, or hopes dashed. We are not the first, but we have joined the congregation.
This Psalm was written when God’s people were carried away by godless people, away from their homeland in Israel into the belly of idolatry, Babylon. Their sanctuary in Jerusalem had been destroyed. Family members had been killed or carried away as servants into a strange land. They were mistreated, maligned, and mocked because of their faith. In a strange land they didn’t have adequate food. Their children got sick. Disease was deadly. Is it any wonder that the Psalmist wonders "why?"
The Psalmist looks at those around him who have taken him away from everything familiar and he says in verse 4, 4 "They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong." He sees the struggles of his own family. The pain, the suffering, the hard labor, and he says, 5 "They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills." He sees the humility of the Hebrews and the power of their oppressors and he doesn’t understand why God doesn’t do something. He prays, he prays, and he prays, but all he hears is the boasting of the Babylonians so he writes in verse 8, 8 "They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression." From his state of poverty and sorrow he remembers the home he had in his homeland, the joy he experienced in the company of his friends, the love he shared with his neighbors, and the pain he was now becoming too familiar with and he writes in verse 12, 12 "This is what the wicked are like-always carefree, they increase in wealth." With all of this information that he has gathered he says, 13 "Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence."
Ever felt like that my friend? Ever wondered, "What’s the use?" Ever thought to yourself, "Why do I bother trying to live my life for the Lord when those around me who never give Him a thought are doing much better than me?" Ever wondered why the storm clouds don’t part and the sun doesn’t shine when you bow your knees before His presence? You are not alone.
Finally, after he has gathered his information and tried to understand why God’s people continue to suffer while those who deny God seem to flourish with good health, lots to eat, in possession of power over others, and thinking they’ve done it all themselves - he writes, 16 "When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me..."
Stop right there. "When I tried to understand all of this it was oppressive." Who can understand? It is not rational. What we see going on around us is not logical. Who among us would believe such a thing could happen? Show me the rhyme or the reason. How do devotion and dedication result in suffering and pain and not success and pleasure? When you try to get your mind around it -- it only leads to a heaviness of the heart. That is, unless, or until, you get up from your throne of thinking, your recliner of reason, and follow the footsteps of the Psalmist who concludes all of his ruminations and musings by taking a walk to the sanctuary of the Sovereign God. He writes in verse 17, 17 "till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny." He had stopped by the lodging of the logical, but there was no one home. He had knocked on the door at the residence of reason, but no one answered. He had tried to nestle down in the accommodations of common sense, but just could not find comfort. Finally, he entered the dwelling, the domicile, of the Divine and he felt his burden blighted from his heart.
You need to notice something about this refreshing verse in Psalm 73. We will talk about what he does say in a moment, but first we need to understand what he does not say. He doesn’t say that he understands his suffering any better than he did before he entered the sanctuary. He doesn’t say that he understands the flourishing of the unfaithful, the success of the sinful, or the opulence of the oppressors any more than he did before he entered into the holy habitation of God. He doesn’t say, "Oh, now I understand that 2+2=5, that oil and water do mix, or that good is really evil and evil is really good. He doesn’t say any of that, but he does say that he was heavy, filled with sorrow, grieved, and wrung out when he tried to make sense of it all, until he entered the sanctuary.
When he entered the sanctuary he was given an eternal perspective on things. He learned two important things: First he learned that the story ain’t over till its over. This life is not all there is my friend. He says, "I learned their final destiny." It gave him comfort to know that the struggles of this life should not be compared to those who thumb their noses at God and seem to live a life of leisure. He knew that his final destiny was to be spent in the presence of Almighty God, but that the destiny of those who oppress others, those who thumb their noses at God, those who live for themselves, those who mock those who suffer will realize a far different destiny.
The great lesson in this for us is that we should live life for an audience of One. I am not living so that I can compare my life to yours. I am not living so that I can see how you and I line up, who is getting the better deal. I am living my life for the One who gave me this life, the One who knows my every step, and the One who has the power to accomplish more through my pain that pleasure could ever achieve.
There is another lesson the Psalmist learns that really precedes the first lesson. If you fail to learn this next lesson then the first lesson will never be a possibility for you in everyday life.
He knows all too well his pain. He knows all too well that he isn’t spending his time catching rays at the Babylonian Club Med. He knows all too well that his heart is broken far beyond the kings horses and the king’s men ever having any hope of putting it back together again. He sees others who are heading to the golf course on Sunday morning with a smile while he is heading to church with family...and a broken heart. He sees the wicked mock his faith and taunt him with his troubles. He sees all of that. He saw it before he ever entered the sanctuary and it about drove him crazy. He still saw it when he entered the sanctuary, but it lost its power over his mind and his joy. He no longer was being driven crazy. He says, 23 "Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand."
In the sanctuary he knows who has a hold on his life. In the sanctuary he knows who knows what he is going through. In the sanctuary he knows that the stuff of this life is just stuff, but that eternity is far sweeter. In the sanctuary he knows that this life is not all there is. In the sanctuary his present problems are placed into an eternal perspective. I’m sure the Apostle Paul had to read the Psalmist, and wiped his tears, just before he wrote,
16Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV)
The Psalmist knows in the sanctuary the things that we need to know and hold near to our hearts every place our feet carry us. He says,
24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. 25Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
In the sanctuary, in the presence of Almighty God, we can know that our lives will be led by the Father’s counsel and when this life is over, however it may end for me, I will be taken into His glory. I need to clarify something for you before we go. When the Psalmist says that when he entered the "sanctuary," he did not mean that he was visiting the Temple in Jerusalem. It was no longer there. It had been destroyed. Even if it were still standing in all of its glory it’s powerful presence would not have helped him because he was no longer in Jerusalem. He was a stranger in a strange land where there was no Temple, but God was still present. The Hebrew word used here for "sanctuary" is the word, "vD’q.mi" (mik-dawsh’). The word means, "sacred place, sanctuary, holy place." It is used in speaking about the temple or tabernacle, but it is also used in speaking about YHWH, the One who is present, and the Strong Tower of Refuge for His people. Isaiah says,
11The LORD spoke to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people. He said: 12"Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. 13The LORD Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread, 14and he will be a sanctuary; (Isaiah 8:11-14 NIV)
Oh, it is good for us to come together for worship, study, to lift our voices to the Lord in song, and to pray, but you need to know that if all of the sanctuaries of our society were destroyed - He is your sanctuary wherever you are! He will speak to your heart wherever you may find yourself.
The Psalmist closes where we will close. He says, 28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds. It is good to be near to God. He will be our refuge when hopelessness seeks to invade our hearts. He will open our eyes to life beyond the sorrow and heartache of this life.
We do not have to abandon our faith because of the experiences we are going through my friends. We don’t have to shout "Amen" to Bishop Spong’s sermon of how the God of the Bible has died. He is Sovereign over all and He loves us more than we can imagine.
I received a phone call this past week from a magazine writer asking me how we as a church have been responding to the attack on New York City and Washington D.C. The man who called asked me, "What have you been preaching since this has happened?" I told him that we have been studying the Psalms and learning about the sovereignty of God over all of creation. I told him that we’ve been learning from the Psalms that God is our Refuge and Shelter, that we can’t put our faith in bombs or military might, but that we can trust in the power of Almighty God in the midst of our suffering and anxiety about the future. I said, "I’ve heard many preachers interviewed by the media who have said, ’God had nothing to do with this.’ I happen to disagree. I believe that those planes had to fly through the fingers of God before they ever hit those buildings. I don’t presume to know ’why’ God allowed this, but I know who we can trust to get us through and draw us closer to Himself."
I believe that with all of my heart. If you study God’s Word then you can’t get around that fact. God knows what is going on. That’s not bad news my friend, that is good news. He knows our circumstances and He is calling us into His presence so that He can speak to our hearts about important matters, eternal things. Won’t you enter in?
Mike Hays
Britton Christian Church
922 NW 91st
Oklahoma City, OK. 73114
September 26, 2001
bccpreacherman@aol.com
