Psalms for Life: "Finding Your Centre" Scripture Lesson: Psalm 73 For Remembrance Sunday

Psalms for Life: "Finding Your Centre" Scripture Lesson: Psalm 73

- The Psalm we just read this morning was written by a fellow named Asaph. Asaph was a Levitical priest, which means he worked in the Temple. He was also appointed by King David as a worship leader. Asaph lead God's people in prayers and songs of thanksgiving and praise, directing God's people in worship facing the ark of the covenant which contained Moses' staff, copies of the books of the law, and the stone tablets upon which God inscribed the 10 Commandments.

- Asaph makes clear in the first verse that he believes that God is good and that God is good to his people. But Asaph also tells his readers that he has a problem, something that really sticks in his craw; the prosperity of wicked people.

- You see, in Asaph's day the common belief was that good people prospered and wicked people did not. You know, there is a revival in that kind of unwelcome thinking going on today. A group of supposedly Christian teachers are misleading people by telling them that good people will prosper, period. But the Bible warns its readers continually against this kind of thinking.  For example, Job was a good man, but he lost everything.

- Why do good people so often suffer and the wicked so often prosper? Why does God allow evil people to become prosperous? Is God really just?

- As we think about life in this world and as we think about the experience of war on this Sunday before Remembrance Day, we remember that we live in a world that is full of injustice and greed, hostility and violence, hatred and bigotry. We remember not only the ultimate price that many paid, but also that so many still pay because of physical and emotional scars. We remember those whose lives are never again the same, who are filled with doubt and wonder if they will ever be whole again.

- In the first 12 verses of this Psalm, Asaph poetically explores his thoughts and feelings about the prosperity of the wicked. He lays his envy out on the table for God, and for himself, to see. He takes the courageous and honest step of putting his feelings on paper and offering them to God in prayer.

- "God, I am stumbling over what I see. All around me good people suffer and wicked people prosper. And I admit I envy them. Did I keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I cling to innocence for no reason? I get nothing but trouble all day long and every morning brings the pain."

- But then in the 16th & 17th verses, Asaph stumbles across a thought that catches him off guard and sends him in another direction: "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."

- Trying to figure out why the wicked continue to prosper and good people continue to suffer is a question that has been asked down through the ages. Asaph realized that it was a question for which he could not come up with a satisfactory answer. In fact, he admitted that just thinking about that question wore him out.

- What we need to realize is that we cannot fix the problems of the world. We cannot fix anyone's problems. We cannot even fix our own problems. Life is not in our control. What can we do to make the best of it? How can we find our center and begin to refocus our lives?            

- Lately, my wife has been reminding me of something so simple but so important: Do the next right thing. It's that simple. Do the next right thing. That is just what Asaph did.

- In the midst of his doubt and the prosperity he saw in the wicked, how does Asaph center his heart? Asaph remembers and worships the living God.

- Asaph put aside the question that was such a wearisome task to him and he went into the sanctuary of God to lead God's people in worship.  As a Levite, that was his job. He did the next right thing. He put aside his doubt and lead God's people in worship and as he was worshiping he found the answer to what was troubling him.

- Asaph found himself confronted by a glorious and wonderful God. He remembered the early history of God's people: how God brought them out of Egypt and destroyed the Egyptian armies in the Red Sea, Joshua and the fall of Jericho, Gideon and the defeat of the  Midianites, Ruth's eventual marriage to Boaz, the rise of David to the throne, and how God remained faithfully present through it all.

- When confronted by who God is and his actions in the past, Asaph realized how faithful God is. He felt stupid and thought of himself like a beast, stubborn and ignorant.

- While he did the next right thing in the sanctuary, Asaph realized that his envious feelings were not important. He understood that trying to deal with the question of the problem of evil was not so important. What was important was being in the presence of the living God.

- God is the one who will hold your hand. He is the one who will guide you and give you counsel and receive you to glory. Who is like him? Certainly, there is no one in heaven or on earth like him!

- He alone is capable of dealing with the deepest problems and brokenness of the human heart. He alone can help you to find the center of your life and make you whole. After all, He alone is at the center of it all.

- Asaph came to the conclusion that it is good to be near God. Matthew tells us that when Jesus began to preach the thrust of his message was, "repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." In other words, "repent, for God is near." The message of Jesus reflects the message of Asaph in this Psalm.

- To repent essentially means to change your mind which is what Asaph did. He changed his mind about the way he was thinking. Instead of trying to tackle the question of why God allows evil, Asaph allowed God's character and faithfulness to become his focus.

- Jesus told his first listeners the same thing. Change your minds, change your thinking because God is near and God wants to have a relationship with you. God doesn't want your religion, he wants you.

- We live in a broken world that fills us with doubt and that brings much envy to our hearts when we see how the evil in the world prosper. But Asaph reminds us that God didn't put us on this earth to solve the world's problems. No, God put us on this earth so that we would learn to love him and love one another. When we fail, we simply need to remember to do the next right thing. Doing the next right thing is the practical side of repentance.

- Asaph found his center by remembering and worshiping the living God.

- What is the next right thing for us to do on this Remembrance Sunday?

- Remember God; let your heart worship him and you will find your center.