Hope through the Pain

Psalm 73 Testimony

As I was growing up,  I did love to read the Bible but the Psalms really never stood out to me. I don’t even remember trying to read through them.  I think my belief was, “Well, I sing them in church every week, so do I really need to look at them anymore?” However, later I began to realize that I didn’t even know what I was singing.  I sang the words of the Psalms, but those words didn’t actually process in my head. Even after I came to this realization, I still didn’t desire to read the Psalms or try to study them.

 Then last year something happened that really changed my view on the Psalms...a very dear friend of mine died suddenly from an unknown heart defect he had had since birth.  I was truly devastated. In my grieving many people came beside me and comforted me, giving me many verses from God’s Word. I began to notice a reccurring theme: the majority of these verses came from the Psalms. Then a friend who knew I was hurting asked to do a study of the Psalms with me. Through this study I came to understand how truly beautiful and comforting the Psalms are.   I hope that through this blog you to can come to the same conclusion.

Psalm 73 was one of the first Psalms that I really began to study. I feel like this Psalm shows the deep pain that many people go through, and the questioning that comes with that pain. Some of you probably know what pain I’m talking about; whether it’s experiencing the death of a family member or friend, sickness, or divorce. It’s the pain that makes you want to hit something over and over again. It’s the pain that makes you not want to get out of bed every morning. It’s the pain that makes you question God’s goodness. “God if you really love me then why did my friend die?” Or “God, if you really love me then why did my parents get divorced?” We ask, “If God is all-powerful then why is my brother sick?” “Why did my sister walk away from the faith?” Asaph is asking similar questions. 

However, In the second half of this Psalm Asaph shows his understanding of how God works. He understands how utterly foolish he was for questioning the almighty God. He realizes how deeply God loves him. We all need to remember how deep God’s love is for us and how faithful God is even though we are so ignorant. Pain hurts. Pain seems unfair. But remembering how loving and faithful God is; then looking to the future where Christ will make everything known to us; where we will be perfected, and where everything will be glorious should give us hope. A hope that is above the pain.

Asaph chose God through the pain. I am choosing God through my pain. Will you choose God through your pain?

Below I am sharing different verses that show God’s promises and comfort  through our suffering. Don’t just read it, but really meditate on what it’s saying and how you can apply it to your life.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Psalm 23:4

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.  Isaiah 55:8

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 1^st Peter 4:12-13

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea. Psalm 46:1-2

A Light at the End of the Tunnel -Psalm 73-

A Light at the End of the Tunnel

Psalm 73 verses 15-28

¹⁵ If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
I would have betrayed your children.

Here Asaph is sharing his feelings with God.  Since he was a leader, he didn't make his feelings known to the people so that their faith would stay firm with God. Many young adults can relate to this. Whether it comes through being an older sibling or by being a leader in youth group or in a group of friends, leadership can be a hard job. However, Asaph is saying that he will stay strong so that others won't fall.
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.

I think this shows the power of coming together for worship, where God says He will be with us. When we try to figure out things on our own, everything is confusing and we can't understand, but being in the presence of God clears our minds and helps us to trust more in Him. Because Asaph went into worship, his thoughts about the wicked prospering weren’t heavy on his mind. God made them clear to him. Most of us have grown up in Christian families and have been going to church our whole life. It’s easy for us to forget how important Sunday worship and fellowship is to our lives.
What Asaph was understanding was how the story ends for the wicked:

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.

These verses are similar to the verses in Psalm 1 that say the righteous will be like a tree planted by the waterside, but the wicked will be like chaff in the wind. Even though it doesn't always feel like the righteous will prosper and the wicked will receive what is just, the promise in Psalm 1 helps us to have hope. Here Asaph is remembering God's promises, and his hope is renewed. He is looking into the future and the things to come. In verse 20 it says that all the stuff the wicked have now is like a dream. It will be gone. As young Christian adults it’s easy for us to envy others who seem to have it all- money, lots of friends, beauty, and many other things. We need to remember that these things don’t matter, and we need to be storing up treasures in heaven.

²¹ When my heart was grieved
and my spirit embittered,
²²  I was senseless and ignorant;
I was a brute beast before you.

Asaph understands that because of his anger and because of his hatred towards the wicked, he had lost hope in God's promises. Because his mind was so focused on the wicked's short time of prospering now, he forgot about the future and that in the end, God will destroy them. He is aware that it was blind of him to doubt God.

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. -

After Asaph recognize his senselessness and ignorance, he remembers God's goodness and the loyalty He shows towards His people. ‘You hold me by my right hand’ shows that God was Asaph’s guide and reminds us that God is our guide also!  We need to trust Him and let Him lead the way. Asaph, being a leader, also needs God to be his guide so that he may guide others. He is asking God to guide him through life’s journeys, and then later he will be taken into eternal glory. This is a beautiful promise that God gives to all believers:  that he will always be with us, guiding us through our earthly lives and then afterwards taking us to eternal glory.

²⁵ Whom have I in heaven but you?^(A)
    And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

Asaph realizes his desire for God, and that nothing can quench his desire besides Christ.  ”...earth has nothing I desire besides you.” Most of us cannot truthfully make this statement.  Desiring God, wanting God more than all the earthly things that look so pleasurable, is definitely a hard thing.

²⁶ My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.

 We hate weakness. We hate the feeling of being weak and we tend to look down on those whom we would consider to be weak. But in 2 Corinthians Paul says “For when I am weak, then I am strong.”  This verse reminds us that God is our strength, and that no matter how hard we try, we can’t be strong enough on our own.

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.

The last two verses of this psalm really show Asaph’s change of heart.  He has entered into God's house, he has cleared his mind and is now able to understand that God will indeed destroy the wicked. Because Asaph has stayed faithful to God, he has a refuge, and will always be safe. Because of all the God has done for him, he wants to tell others how great God is. This should definitely be the attitude of all believers because of what God has done for us.

Applying this psalm to your life- We tend to forget God’s promises for the future. We see the pain and hardships that we are going through now and assume that God doesn’t really care about us. Asaph was able to understand hardships better when he worshiped God. Through the unity we have with Christ in worship and personal devotions, we, too, can understand things that we wrestle with. James 4:8 says “Come near to God, and He will come near to you.”

Applying this psalm to Jesus’ life- It’s easy to see in the gospels that Jesus spent lots of time talking to God. When He was just hours before His awful death and separation, all He wanted was to talk and be with God. Jesus was able to look ahead at the future promises, even through His sufferings, and see the coming joy.

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. -2 Corinthians 4:8-9

Cross references:

1. Psalm 73:16 : Ecc 8:17
2. Psalm 73:17 : Ex 15:17; Ps 15:1
3. Psalm 73:17 : S Job 8:13; Php 3:19
4. Psalm 73:18 : S Dt 32:35; Ps 35:6
5. Psalm 73:18 : S Ps 17:13
6. Psalm 73:19 : Dt 28:20; Pr 24:22; Isa 47:11
7. Psalm 73:19 : S Ge 19:15
8. Psalm 73:20 : S Job 20:8
9. Psalm 73:20 : Ps 78:65; Isa 29:8
10. Psalm 73:20 : Pr 12:11; 28:19
11. Psalm 73:22 : Ps 49:10; 92:6; 94:8
12. Psalm 73:22 : Ps 49:12, 20; Ecc 3:18; 9:12
13. Psalm 73:23 : S Ge 48:13
14. Psalm 73:24 : S Ps 48:14
15. Psalm 73:24 : S 1Ki 22:5
16. Psalm 73:25 : Ps 16:2
17. Psalm 73:25 : Php 3:8
18. Psalm 73:26 : Ps 84:2
19. Psalm 73:26 : S Ps 31:10; 40:12
20. Psalm 73:26 : Ps 18:1
21. Psalm 73:26 : S Dt 32:9
22. Psalm 73:27 : S Ps 34:21
23. Psalm 73:27 : S Lev 6:2; Jer 5:11; Hos 4:12; 9:1
24. Psalm 73:28 : Zep 3:2; Heb 10:22; Jas 4:8
25. Psalm 73:28 : Ps 9:9
26. Psalm 73:28 : Ps 26:7; 40:5

When Bad Things Happen to Good People -Psalm 73

Psalm 73-  This Psalm shows a question that many Christians ask: “Why do the wicked prosper?” When the Psalm starts, it talks about God’s goodness.  However, as the Psalm continues, it is easy to see that this belief didn’t come easy for Asaph. The first 14 verses of this Psalm describe how prosperous the wicked are, how God could strike them down but chooses not to, and how the righteous suffer and still God does nothing. The next verses, 15-28, show Asaph coming to an understanding of these things. He realizes that God’s people will suffer but, as 1st Peter 4:12-16 says, we will face suffering in this world but we need to remember our future glory.

Asaph- Asaph wrote Psalm 73. He also wrote Psalms 50 and 74-83. Asaph was one of the 3 leaders of David’s three Levitical choirs along with Heman and Jeduthun/Ethan; these three were representatives of the families and descendents of the three sons of Levi.

Make sure that as you read through this you apply it to your own life.
 I’m going to address this explanation in two parts. The first part will be verses 1-14.

¹Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. We can tell here that this psalm was composed after Asaph had resolved his problem that had hurt his relationship with God. He had been unable to understand God’s goodness.

 “Pure in heart” - in biblical language the word “heart” meant the center of the human spirit where emotions, actions, thoughts, motivations, and courage come from. Matthew 5:8 Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God”

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. Asaph is describing his doubt in God’s goodness. He almost fell off the straight path because of skepticism toward God. Asaph doubted God because it was obvious to see that the wicked were prospering. He may have been looking back at Deuteronomy 28 where God states the blessings for obedience and the curses for disobedience. Had God forgotten His promises? When we face hardships we tend to ask similar questions. We ask questions like "Has God forgotten about me?" "Does He really love me?"

⁴ They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. Although Asaph was overstating the problem (obviously not every wicked person had no struggles), he is seeing a wicked person prosper and a righteous friend sick. He feels that God is permitting awful injustices.  

 ⁵ They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills. ⁶ Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. “Pride is their necklace” this phrase contrasts Proverbs 3:3 “Let love and faithfulness never leave you;  bind them around your neck,” and other verses in Proverbs. Asaph is also showing in these verses that the wicked prospering lead to other sins such as pride and violence. Being envious of the wicked is a hard thing not to do.

⁷ From their callous hearts comes iniquity; their evil imaginations have no limits. ⁸ They scoff, and speak with malice; with 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 would God know?  Does the Most High know anything?”  In these verses Asaph is in a way showing God what’s happening. First they say they possess everything YOU made. Then they turn YOUR people away from you, and,  if this isn’t bad enough, they mock YOU!  Asaph is having a hard time understanding why God would let these things happen, why God would let his holy named be mocked when he has the power to stop it. What makes things worse is that the wicked don’t deny that there is a God.  They are just too happy and comfortable in their lives to care.

 ¹² This is what the wicked are like— always free of care, they go on amassing wealth. Here Asaph summarizes the last 7 verses; basically he’s saying the wicked are careless and filthy rich.

 ¹³ Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence. ¹⁴ All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments.   Asaph was previously talking about other people’s suffering, but here he talks about his OWN suffering.  He’s questioning why he has faith. He’s asking “Is it worth it?” Also we can see here that Asaph describes belonging to God as to having a pure heart and washed hands.
"Is it worth it?" We all have hardships in our lives and sometimes they seem unbearable. We want to give up. A question that runs through our mind is, "If life is gonna be this hard then is it really worth it?"

Applying this Psalm to our lives- When hard things happen in our lives, I think many of us tend to say to God. “Okay. So I’m following you. I’m doing the right thing here, and this is what I get? Is this all really worth it?”  I think something we need to understand  (and what Asaph grew to understand)  is in Isaiah 55:8 which says “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,”declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Applying this Psalm to Jesus’ life- During Jesus’ ministry He definitely saw and experienced the wicked prospering. He had no earthly home and no money, and He was criticized and mocked because of the truth He spoke unlike the Pharisees, who seemed to have it all. But Jesus did not care about earthly possessions. He understood and had hope in the greater treasure awaiting Him in heaven.

  

“We were promised sufferings. They were part of the program. We were even told, ''Blessed are they that mourn.''”-C.S. Lewis-