Satisfaction in God - Matt Vogt
Introduction
The injustice of it all! The nerve! How indignant! How many of us have uttered such things at the response to the people around us? Who do they think they are? Wait until they get their comeuppance! I’m guessing we have all at least thought this from time to time… yes, even people in the church!
Say hello to Asaph!
The temptation to become embittered has been around for centuries. The writer of Psalm 73:3-4 laments, “I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs until death; their bodies are fat and sleek. They are not in trouble as others are; they are not stricken like the rest of mankind” (Psalm 73:3-4). These bitter confessions come from Asaph who was a musician who ministered before the Ark of the Lord (2 Chronicles 16:4-7). He must have observed the good work he was doing and his lot in life, but then he compared it to the evil the people outside of the courts were doing and how they were “succeeding.”
Consumed by Our Own Complaints
We can probably all relate with this man trying to do right by the Lord and struggling seeing people totally in rebellion doing well. I think this would frustrate any of us! Yet, this was Asaph’s experience later in Psalms 73 as he says, “When my soul was embittered, when I was pricking in heart, I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you” (Psalm 73:21-22). Oh no! Here was this minister of the Lord who thought he was getting a rotten deal by the evil around him, but it was his bitterness in this that turned back on him! As he fixated on this it was his relationship with God that got sour! In his cry for retribution and payback to the wickedness around him the punishment came down on the place that hurts the most, his connection with God! That doesn’t sound worth it from where I’m sitting, and yet we often think we are justified. We think God needs to squash them! Why doesn’t He punish them? Can’t He see how they need a timeout? The problem is, like Asaph, we can become consumed by worshipping the god of resentment and retribution. All this happens at the expense of our view and comfort in a good God who always deals justly with all of His creation. Think of the terrible loss for Asaph and in our own lives as well. We are welcome to bring our praise and worship to the throne room of God and can expect Him to meet us there! What greater privilege do we have then that? Sadly, we sacrifice our attentions on the altar of bitterness, resentment and judgment to our detriment.
Gentle Hand of the Father to Bring us back
Fortunately, God is gracious with us and is willing to show us the error of our ways. This was true for Asaph as he testifies later in chapter 73, “Nevertheless, I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory” (Psalm 73:23-24). What changed? Our loving heavenly Father gently turned his gaze from the problem to Himself. He is the who makes all things come into right view. Here the reaction in Asaph as God brings his attention away from the evildoers and back to the Lord. He says, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:25-26). You can almost hear the peace wash over Asaph as he leans into the truth of who God is and the comfort of being known by Him! This is available to each one of God’s children, so by faith in Him we can remain rooted in Him instead of rising of falling with the actions of the world. The ways of the world seem like the attractive amusement park ride; unfortunately, it dumps us off at a stinky, wasp infested trashcan.
One Track Mind
We all know the teenage that is constantly thinking about food. In every situation, they are either eating or planning on eating. It might actually be what the saying of “one-track mind” came from! We need to be like this while keeping our focus on Christ. I would like to submit a couple of suggestions for your consideration, and please note that neither of them depend on anyone else to change for them to be successful:
o NEED HIM- This means keeping your spiritual metabolism firing hot. The reason teens can eat so much is they are growing and maturing so their body’s metabolism is white hot! Feed on the Lord and grow in Him with prayer, worship and reading His Word and you will begin to burn hotter than ever. As you turn your spiritual temperature up you will require more filling by the Spirit than you ever have. You will become utterly dependent on Him, and the distractions of others will look emptier than ever.
o WANT HIM- It isn’t just enough that we NEED Christ but we must WANT Him too! This is the desire, the love, the intimacy shared and the connection that is life to us. Just like the body is made to need food, it wants it too. The Lord in His perfect plan made us people who want the food we need. It has actually caused a huge problem in our world as people are eating far more than their bodies need. This will never be a problem with God. Our want for Him will never outweigh our need for him or cause us any harm. It will however, make us so obsessed with Christ that in our immense satisfaction in Him we can look at the distractions of if God is going to punish the wicked and think, “why would I spend my valuable energy considering this for one second?” When we taste and see the goodness of single-mindedness on Christ, we lose the stomach for the stale rubbish of anything else.
We were made to fix our eyes fully on the magnificence of Christ through the illumination of the Holy Spirit.Anything else is settling for less than we were intended for, and it can actually cause us to feel far apart from the Lord.Allow the distractions to push you further into the Lord’s arms in prayer, and turn the enemy’s feeble attempts on their heads as you grow in keeping your eyes set on Jesus.