Heart Cries: Doubt – When Faith and Life Clash
Psalm 73
Most Christians, sometime or other, have serious questions about their faith. A few of my Christian friends tell me that isn’t true for them – and I suppose that I believe them when they tell me that. But, I think that most people, including strong and long-time Jesus-followers have times of doubt – even about things as important as whether God is real and whether God is good.
There are certainly a lot of things that happen in our world that might lead to us having doubts. When I think of things like the growing violence in our nation; the hundreds of thousands of displaced refugees in our world and the many homeless children among them; and add to that personal things like terminal cancer and congenital handicaps; plus natural disasters and wars and miseries and sufferings of a thousand kinds in this world – I find each one asks the same question for an honest Christian: How could God allow it?
And that brings us to our heart cry of this weekend, i.e., the heart cry that comes when we are having doubts about our faith. I know, of course, that some people think that having doubt means that you no longer have faith. But, that’s not true. Contrary to popular opinion, doubt is not the opposite of faith. To think that is to confuse doubt with unbelief. But those are two quite different things. When you think about it, doubt is really only something that a believer can experience. You can only doubt what you believe. Atheists have doubts – but their doubts are about whether God might really be real after all. That’s their doubt.
For a Christian, I’ve found that doubt only becomes a problem when we try to run away from it. Christians who have the courage to engage with doubt honestly find that, far from being weakened by the battle, our faith often grows stronger as a result of those struggles. And, that’s what I want to show you today as we come to Psalm 73. Psalm 73 is a poem written by a man of genuine faith who is wrestling with genuine doubt. In v. 2, he tells us he came close to abandoning his faith altogether. In fact, in v. 2, we find a moving description of what doubt feels like: My feet had almost slipped;I had nearly lost my foothold.
When God is at the center of our lives, he is the one who provides a foothold for the difficult times. For the real believer, when God is the one we begin to doubt, then, we feel like we have nothing to stand on. It’s like stepping onto black ice in the middle of the night. We feel there is nothing we can do but slip and fall.
That’s how Asaph felt as he began his Psalm. But, at the end of the Psalm, his testimony is that he felt closer to God than ever before. See V.28. In the verses in between v. 2 and v. 28, Asaph tells us the story of a remarkable pilgrimage -- of how he progressed from doubt to a deeper relationship with God. I pray that this might happen for some who have come to church today.
Today, we’ll look at the two halves of Asaph’s salm. Part 1: Asaph describes the problems we have when we doubt (73:1-14), and then in Part 2, he gives us the solution he discovered (73:15-28).
Part 1: The Problem (73:1-14) The clash between what we believe and what we observe.
Asaph tells us what he believed in v. 1: Surely God is good to his people, to those who are pure in heart. Asaph probably said or sang verse 1 every week in worship. It’s a comforting thought, isn’t it? It declares that God can be relied upon to be good to those who are good. There are many churchgoers who are convinced if you live right and believe right, then you should expect God to reward you with good things for that.
But, as Asaph looked around, he noticed that reality didn't square up with his belief. If anything, the opposite seemed to be true. Read 73:3-11 and you’ll see that Asaph saw the prosperity, not of the pure in heart, but of the wicked. In those verses, Asaph said something like this: "Come on, church people! Open your eyes! Whatever the preacher says in church, really it’s the corrupt people in this world who have no problems. They're proud, they're loud-mouthed and arrogant -- but nothing ever seems to happen to them! -- except that they become popular. People want to become as successful as they are and praise them in spite of their evil.”
Read v.12. This is the problem that confronts Asaph and leads to his doubts. Asaph’s question: How can God let this happen? It’s a problem we can all relate to, isn't it? Look at all the people who have misused people and conned unsuspecting investors and then live lives of luxury while those conned are left only with debts.
When I was in 1st grade, all the little kids were being bullied by a couple of big kids. I complained once to the teacher. Do you know what she said to me? "It's a cruel world, Greg." And I thought, "Yeah, but why don't you do something about it!" That's why this was such a problem for Asaph. He saw people being bullied and couldn't figure out why a good God wasn't doing anything about it.
But, here’s the big question: Why did this suddenly – on one particular day -- become such a problem for Asaph? He didn't wake up and realize these injustices for the 1st time one morning. Those realities surely had been there long before the day he wrote this poem. Why did it suddenly turn into such a crisis of faith?
The answer is found in vv.13-14. Notice all the times in those verses that he talks abut “I” and “my”. It shouldn't be so. However, the truth is that the problem of the innocent suffering doesn't really become a problem for us until we personally become the suffering innocent. Then it becomes a huge problem. In v.1, he had said God is good to those who are pure in heart. Now he says, “I have kept my heart pure and I’m not getting any good benefits out of it.”
At least, the Psalmist is honest enough to admit his self-absorption. He could have complained about social injustice or “the principle of the thing” but he was frank enough to say that the problem was, "Why me, Lord?" "I envied the arrogant," he confessed (v.3). He wanted what they had. And that's the way it always is. We read of children dying of malnourishment, of homes lost to floods or fires --but it often doesn’t become a crisis of faith until it happens to me! Then, we cry out, “Why do I have to lose my job?” “Why do I have to be so sick?”
But whether it’s self-centered or not, the problem Asaph raises is a real one. What answer would you give if someone asked you the questions Asaph asked? How are we to respond when we come across people who are being assaulted with these kinds of doubts? Maybe you understand exactly what he's saying because something is happening that you just don't think you deserve! Maybe doubts are filling your mind right now.
Part 2: The Solution
A. Where He Discovered It
Notice where he was when he discovered the solution. Read vv.15-17. Notice the turning point in his heart when he said, "Till I entered the sanctuary of God, life was oppressive to me." The first step in dealing with doubt is to take a look over the shadows to catch a glimpse of God Himself. That is what is at the heart of worship. We take time to put God in his rightful place in our life. We fix our eyes on him.
That's what happened to Asaph. Thoughts were going through his mind, which, if he had expressed them, would have been utterly blasphemous. But in the midst of all this, he found his way to the house of God. Maybe he couldn't avoid it that day. Maybe he was in the choir, or had nursery duty. Maybe he even had to preach. But it was there in church that at last his mind began to clear. I pray that might happen to some today.
What should you discover in worship that can change doubt into a deeper relationship with God?
B. What He Discovered
1. A new perspective on human destiny. V.17b-18 -- You place them on slippery ground…
When you worship, you put God at the center of your vision. That begins to help you gain a God-centered perspective on what is happening. And that's important because its only when you begin to see things as God sees them that you see things as they really are. Without God’s perspective, Asaph was bothered because wicked people seemed to be doing rather well. When he began to worship, he began to realize that he seeing things from the perspective of a limited, time-bound observer.
Once he saw these wicked men from God’s perspective, their situation didn’t look so great. Read vv.17b-18a. God has said that people will not get away with evil forever. He will judge evil. All those successes that evil people were enjoying were not going to last – but, Asaph had forgotten that fact. We can only get to that perspective when we come to God and see things as He sees them. When we are preoccupied with the present moment, then eternal things get blurred out of our minds.
From God's eternal perspective, the material prosperity of the wicked is as substantial as a dream. V.20.
Imagine this: Have you ever had one of those nightmares in which you wake up sweating because of anxiety or fear? Maybe, you dream you're in the department store with every person you admire being there. Then you realize you forgot to get dressed before going shopping. You jump up out of your sleep, startled, and you look around you. Then you start laughing at your foolishness. It was only a dream! It all seemed so real. But it wasn't. You feel so silly to get so excited about something so ephemeral.
That's how God views it when evil people prosper. The prosperity of the wicked in God's sight is as unreal as a dream because it’s not eternal. It’s not going to last — just like tribulations for God's people are not going to last. And that's exactly what Asaph saw when he worshipped and put God at the center of the stage. He then saw how fleeting this prosperity of the wicked was that he was envying so much.
Let me tell you this: That is always the first step to finding your way through doubt -- worshiping God and getting His perspective on things. That's just one of many reasons why its so crucial for you to gather in God’s house on a regular basis -- not to be entertained, not just to meet your friends, not even simply to be taught -- but to worship. To acknowledge God is, he is here and he is in control of the present and the future.
When you know that, and you remember that God is a God who loves you so much that He gave His Son for You – then you can declare, "I know that God works all things together for good to those who love Him."
2. A new perspective on himself. 73:21-24 – I am always with you…
Asaph took time to look into himself, into what he believed. This kind of introspection is important. But, it can be problematic too if we get stuck focusing on ourselves. Part of the trouble of introspection is that once we get into the habit of looking at all our failures and problems, we can quickly fall into a vicious downward spiral. We might not feel like worshiping God. We would rather wallow in self-pity. When we do, we often become obsessed with our troubles and our darkness grows deeper and deeper. That often happens in times of doubt.
So, believe me – it’s a good thing to develop a habit of going to church every week — because if you do not learn to force yourself to regularly put God at the center of your life, then when doubts come, you will not have the help of this eternal perspective that worship give you. When you are in the place of worship, gladly or not, you are exposed to the presence of God. Here’s what I have experienced: When I worship God, I see myself as I really am. I see things about myself that I’d rather not see. And, when I confess them to God, I discover over and over that he steps in with forgiveness and renewing grace.
Notice what Asaph saw: "I envied the arrogant”! Hee became aware of how silly that is. Asaph kicked himself for such foolishness. Vv.21-22. That's the way we often feel when God is left out of the picture. But then when we enter into God's presence, we suddenly discover something else about ourselves. Asaph discovered that in spite of all his doubts and foolish talk, he nevertheless was a child of God.
Vv.23-24. When you stay away from God’s house, you might wonder whether you truly belong to God. The devil might tell you, "You're not a real Christian. With all your doubts and bad thoughts -- and your deeds aren't so great either! How can you think you're a Christian?"
When you worship, you realize that it's not only your doubts you have to come to terms with; it's also your faith. Your faith, your relationship to God, is just as much a real part of your life as any doubts that might trouble you. Matters will arise in this world that cause questions about what you believe about God, but no amount of questions can ever annihilate a real experience with Him.
One of the reasons we come into worship each week is to re-discover this fundamental truth about ourselves: That God is always with us. That He holds us with His right hand. That He guides us with His counsel. That He will take us to glory. To surrender to your doubts would be just as false to your true self as pretending that the doubts didn't exist.
It's such an important thing to grasp hold of this. Faith is not some delicate little thing like a plant that has to be kept in a green house because you fear that it’s going to be knocked down by the wind and the rain. Faith in Jesus is like a healthy perennial. It brings you into a real relationship with God that springs up even when everything in this world seems determined to extinguish it. Have you ever experienced that?
If you don't think that what I’m saying is true, then just try the sort of experiment that the Asaph tried. Say to yourself, "I'm fed up with this Christian faith. I have far too many intellectual problems to remain a Christian any longer. I'm going to give it up." Try to imagine yourself in that situation. Here’s what I’ve found: The one who truly knows God will find that the moment you try to deny God, you finds he cannot.
You can't give up a real relationship by saying it isn’t real. As hard as you try to deny it, faith keeps re-asserting itself like a cork pushed down under the surface of the water. You lift up your hand and it bobs right up to the top again. Why? Because, for the person who truly has placed faith in Jesus, God is real. I tell you: I cannot run from God’s presence any more than Asaph could. I hear God say, "Greg, I am always with you."
And Asaph discovered that about himself in the temple. While he stayed out of contact with God, he could think he wasn't a believer. But as soon as he was brought face to face with God in worship, this illusion dissolved. "What a fool I have been," he said. He knew that even in life's bitterest moments, God was always with him.
3. A new perspective on what is important (73:25-26) – It is good to be near God…
Have you ever talked with someone who answers every question with: "Well, it all depends on what you mean by..." It's an effective ploy to stall people when you don't know the answer. Try it in school sometime.
So, lets’ go back to v.1. It’s the big question underlying the whole Psalm: Is God good to his people – to those who are good?" “Hmm,” you might say, “well, it all depends on what you mean by good." If you mean, "Does God make all people of faith rich?" Then, it's not true. If you mean, "Does God make all people of faith healthy?" That's not true. If you mean, "Does God make all people of faith popular?" That certainly isn't true.
So if having riches and health and popularity is all that you mean by “good”, then, no - God is not good to the those who are his. But those benefits, as wonderful as are, are not what real goodness consists of, are they? One of the greatest mistakes we make in our world is allowing the pursuit of temporary "good" things to rob us of the best things.
V. 25: "Whom have I in heaven but You and being with you I desire nothing on earth." This makes me think of so many weddings I’ve done. Many of us in our youth and passionate enthusiasm said to someone once, "I take you for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, for better for worse." What we meant, or should have meant, when we said those words is that having that person in our lives is more precious than any other good thing we can think of. We are saying that the very ability to enjoy riches or health or good things depends upon our ability to share it with that person. Being with that person, we really require nothing else.
If human love can be so precious -- if human love can make us so indifferent to materialistic, physical welfare, then where on earth should the love of God figure in our scale of values? Hear Asaph’s testimony: 73:26 – “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Consider this: One of these days you may pay off your mortgage. But your house will still fall down -- one of these days. One of these days you may get that car you've been longing for that's so much better than any car you can imagine. But that car will still break down--one of these days. Do you really believe that those are the kinds of things that make life good? If you do, I pity you. Through surrender to Jesus Christ, you discover the pearl of great price for which a person could sell all he has and still know he’s made a great deal.
Asaph learned of the beauty of this real pearl when he came into God's house to worship. In the light of the beauty of knowing God, he saw how foolish it was to doubt God because of things that really matter. He got his life back into perspective. He began with doubt – but he ends with a deeper relationship to God than ever.
So, here you too are in God’s house today. And Asaph speaks to you through his Psalm. He tells you that God is good to His people. But listen to what he means by good. "As for me, it is good to be near God." That's what it means to be good. "Being with Him, I require nothing else on earth."