God is Good all the Time

Psalm 73:1, 22-28 

Psalm 73:1 “A Psalm of Asaph. Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart.”

What a wonderful start to a Psalm, right? He says, God is good to Israel and, in fact, He is good to all the righteous. One can almost believe the author is about to ask the reader for a response. Today there is a phrase that elicits this type of responsive participation. It begins with one person saying, “God is good” and those hearing this universal truth respond with, “All the time.” And it’s commonly repeated at least one more time. Unfortunately, our author was not in quite so happy a mood. If you take the time to read verses 2-21 it becomes clear that he was ranting against the wicked and especially the wealthy wicked. He was frustrated that it seemed as though they had it made in this world. They seemed to get away with all forms of ungodliness and then were also able to live in the lap of luxury without a care in this world.

Today, we say God is good. But do we really believe it? Or, are we in lockstep with the Psalmist allowing doubts to arise in our hearts? Wickedness prevails in this world today. It seems to be worse today than it has ever been in any other time in history. Do you ever find yourself asking, “Where is God?” Or even thinking about the ungodly wealthy as the psalmist did, “They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.” That seems to be precisely what Asaph, the author of this psalm, has done.

At some point his heart catches up with his intellect. It is then that this passage takes a very radical turn. I am wondering how many of us need to have one more look around. How many need to re-evaluate what they believe they are seeing? Listen now as the Psalmist reconsiders his own statements.

Psa 73:22 “So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. (v.23) Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. (v.24) Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. (v.25) Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. (v.26) My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. (v.27) For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee. (v.28) But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.”

Now he truly hears his own complaints and in verse 22 is honestly remorseful, (I paraphrase) “How could I have been so foolish and ignorant: I was acting no wiser than a common animal.” It is with this very revelation of his own foolishness that he unfolds before us some precious truths. In verse 23, he says that we are always with God. We have never been without the presence of God. We do not know the awfulness of His absence. And He is holding us in His kind and loving right hand. He guides us (v.24) with His holy and righteous counsel and when all else fails and this life finally ends, our end will be with God in His eternal glory. Verse 25 declares the all sufficiency of His Divine nature. Of all who are in Heaven now there is only one who will have the attention of this Psalmist. And on earth there is only one who now commands his undivided attention. In heaven or in earth the presence of God is his reality. In verse 26 his focus shifts to the temporal nature of these bodies. He is fully aware that this flesh is going to decay. But now, in God he recognizes that everything he is, and all he will ever need, is His Heavenly Father. And in verse 27 he briefly reflects again on the wealthy wicked. But this time reality permeates his thoughts. The truth of their condition is unsettling, the wicked will perish but it is even worse than that. All of those who were unsaved and putting others or other things in the place of God in their lives will be destroyed. They will face the final Judgment of a Holy and righteous God.

In our final verse, verse 28, he makes a marvelous discovery; he is divinely illuminated. After such a tirade against the ungodly of this world, and after considering God’s hand in his own life Asaph has a personal revelation. He finally understands that his focus should not have been on the evil of this world. Instead, he needed to stop and look at everything God has already done for him, and to begin seeing what God does for us every day that we are alive.

Once he was able to shift his view from the ‘successful sinners’ of this world and refocus on the daily goodness of God in our lives his entire outlook changed. And with this new outlook he was able to give to each of us this single rule for life: “But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.”

Draw near to God, trust Him and share Him with others. God is good…all the time.

What about the Rocks

 

What About the Rocks

Stop! Stop! Wait a minute. Slow down and think. Forget about life for a minute. And try to explain rocks or even water. The non-living part of the universe far out numbers that which is alive. You are wanting me to believe that the rocks created themselves?

You say the world just broke off from some big cluster of matter and started spinning senselessly into this giant void? Have you looked at the earth? It’s round. Why isn’t it an awkward chunk? Oh, it has a few lumpy bumps here and there, but essentially it is round. And it is filled with all kinds of matter; all of the “matter” which is useful to you and me. I wonder why all of that is there? And the deeper parts that you may want to say make it not round, are filled with water. Water! the only other thing we need as desperately as we need the air and it covers most of the land we live on, completing its ‘round’ nature. And since there are more than two forms of life here, we have both fresh water AND salt water. And so, everything essential to life is growing or can grow right here. All of the life forms that live here also have their food supplies here and can live in the salt water; or live on the land and drink fresh water. Isn’t that handy!! And not one thing you look, a rock or a living thing, is simple. EVERYTHING is complex.

What is a rock??? A rock is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals. That sounds simple enough. And so, what are minerals? Here are some examples of minerals and their chemical formulas: Apatite [Ca₅(PO₄)₃(OH, Cl, F)] Calcite (CaCO₃) Copper (Cu) Corundum (Al₂O₃) Diamond (C) Fluorite (CaF₂) Gold (Au) Graphite (C) Olivine [(Mg, Fe)₂SiO₄] Orthoclase feldspar (KAlSi₃O₈) Quartz (SiO₂) Silicon (S) Sulfur (S) Topaz [Al₂SiO₄(OH, F)₂]. This is not a complete list. It is just enough to make the point; minerals are not simple or rare, either. Where did all of these come from?

Using the big-bang, they always existed. Being unable to explain origins, this theory sidestepped the problem and said everything known to man always existed. The reasoning? Since the universe is expanding it must have been all together in one big ball at some time in the past. And so, that ‘ball’ must have contained all we now have. However, just because something is currently moving does not mean it has always moved. It only suggests that at some time earlier it began to move.

When God created this mass of rocks, everything was placed perfectly where God intended it to be. And at that time, it was not expanding. When sin entered so did death and the destruction of this universe and the expanse we now see. It was not a giant ball; it was a perfect universe. All of the lifeless ‘rocks’ we know see in the universe were once perfectly positioned to create the magnificent universe God intended. And there was life throughout the universe on multitudes of rocks just like the “rock” we live on. Maybe not human, but all kinds of animals and plants we could never imagine. God placed so much detail and complexity in everything He created so that there could be no question as to its origin. Men “choose” to deny God even though His signature is clear throughout the universe, even in the rocks.

Romans 1:20 or the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse….

Psalm 14:1 The fool hath said in his heart, there is no God.