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A Right View of God · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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Well, we can turn back to our reading in the book of Psalms and Psalm 73.
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! We're going to look at the whole of this psalm together.
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You can just read the first and last verse at the moment.
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Psalm begins, it's a psalm of Asaph.
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Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.
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And then in verse 28,
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But for me it is good to be near God.
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I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.
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Very positive verses at the beginning and the end of the psalm,
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where Asaph sees in verse 1 that God is good.
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He is a great God who is good to his people, to those who are pure in heart.
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And then at the end of the psalm, he's saying,
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It is good for me to draw near to this God, this God who is good to me.
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In so many ways I have found there my refuge, and I will tell of all his wondrous works.
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You have that at the beginning and the end.
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But what you see throughout the psalm is a little like what David speaks of in Psalm 39.
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In that second half of verse 12,
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There's a lot going on.
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There's a lot of challenges, a lot of struggles that he has.
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And it's a real sense of looking at the Christian's life in so many ways.
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And what you see in the psalms so often is just that, the reality of life.
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One thing you can say about the psalms is that they reflect a real sense of honesty.
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From the author of the psalm, whoever that is, we know a number of different people wrote the psalms.
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David, many of them, but here we have another, a psalm of Asaph.
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And we see that they come across just with that sense of, this is the reality of life.
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It's Asaph who was one who was a worship leader in the temple.
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You read of him in 1 Chronicles chapter 15, where you're seeing an outline of what the community's worship looked like
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and who was involved in it.
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And Asaph is there mentioned as one of the worship leaders.
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And so he was one who led people into that worship in the temple.
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And part of his task was, it was through song.
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It was through music.
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It was through leading them into the praise of God.
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But what you see in this psalm and so many others, it's just not always a cheery chorus.
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It's not always, don't worry, everything's fine.
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And there's very much a sense of the reality of all the different ups and downs.
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And in Psalm 73, Asaph has a lot of these questions of someone who is finding the way difficult,
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of someone who is looking around, seeing all that's going on around him and wondering,
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well, we're saying God is good.
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But yet how in reality is God good when this is what we're seeing around us?
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He's in a host of others you find in Scripture who had questions.
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You think of Job in the Old Testament and his life and all that he went through in his life.
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It would be easy to question the goodness of God, easy to question everything that's going on around him.
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Or many of the prophets, Jeremiah, all the prophets, they all had their own different questions of what was going on.
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What's happening around us?
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How can we see the goodness of God in the midst of this?
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And yet always, always they were able to come to that point where their focus, their attention comes to the reality of God.
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And the reality that yes, God is good.
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God is gracious.
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God is merciful.
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Seeing the fullness of God.
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And that's what Asaph does in this psalm.
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He sees the fullness of God.
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He sees a right view of God and who he is and all that he does, no matter what's happening around.
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And so as we look at this psalm, we see that fullness of God.
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But how do you see God?
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Do you see God as good tonight?
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When you reflect on his word, when you reflect maybe on your own situation,
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when you reflect on things that are going on around,
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are you able to say with confidence,
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God is good.
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God is gracious.
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God, as we sang in Psalm 93,
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his throne is enduring.
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His throne is secure.
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Everything about him is firm.
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He is from eternity.
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He is to eternity.
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He has all things in his hands.
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Or do you have the questions?
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Do you have the niggles?
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Do you have the doubts?
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God is good, but...
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Well, this psalm, and so many of the psalms, as we say, the whole of Scripture,
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helps us to find answers to these challenges,
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helps us to find that confidence that we can have in God.
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When we see the fullness of God,
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not just a part of God,
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but the fullness of God.
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One day there was three blind men who were taken to a zoo.
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They wanted to go and experience the zoo.
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Even though they couldn't see the animals that were there,
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they wanted to experience the occasion.
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They wanted to experience the sounds that they would hear.
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And they had a guide with them,
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taking them around the zoo.
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And they were hearing all these noises,
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and the man was describing the animal that was making the noise,
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their habitat,
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what they were eating,
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what they were doing,
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all of these kinds of things.
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But during their tour of the zoo,
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they came to the place where the elephants were.
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And because they had a little bit of time,
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the zookeeper decided that instead of just describing
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what was in front of them,
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he would allow them to reach out and touch.
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And so one by one,
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the blind men went up.
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And being blind,
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they came to different parts of the animal.
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The first one reached out and grabbed the tail.
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And having experienced other things,
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he said,
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it's like a rope.
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It's not what I expected.
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It's just like a rope.
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Second man came and reached out
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and felt the elephant's leg.
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He said,
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it's not like a rope at all.
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It's much bigger than a rope.
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It was more like a tree trunk.
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And the third one walked up
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to reach out to the animal
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and just walked into it,
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into the side of the elephant.
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And he said,
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no,
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it's just like a huge wall.
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Just a massive wall.
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That's the only way I can describe it.
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It's not like the way you're describing it.
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They were just seeing,
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well,
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they weren't seeing,
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they were just feeling out in part.
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They were describing a huge animal,
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but only in part.
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For one,
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it was just like a small rope.
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Another like a tree.
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Another like a wall.
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They've only got a part description.
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And for ourselves with God,
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that's the way we can be
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depending on our experience
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or what we're going through
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or what we're,
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the challenges that we're facing.
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Maybe we're only just seeing a part of God.
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And we're not seeing the fullness of God.
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And that's what leads to our questions.
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If God is so,
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why doesn't he do this?
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We're not seeing the full picture.
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It's often the question,
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if God is real,
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why does he allow suffering?
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If God could have stopped death,
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why didn't he?
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Why does God allow war?
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Why does God allow evil?
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We're seeing God in just our own little box
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instead of seeing the fullness of God.
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The bigger picture.
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Because when we see the fullness of God,
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we realize we don't deserve any mercy from him
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because we are sinners.
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But he graciously gives us mercy.
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And the mercy that he gives,
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we need to see in finding him
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and seeing the goodness of God
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and coming to him
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and walking closely with him.
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And so that's what Asaph is doing for us
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in this psalm.
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We are often guilty
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of not seeing God for who he is.
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But here we are brought to see,
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here is the fullness of God
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who knows,
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who understands,
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who takes us,
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who leads us,
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and who has great things in store
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for all of his people.
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And so we're going to look at
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the fullness of God
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as we find it in this psalm
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in three different ways,
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taking us on that pilgrim's walk,
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as it were,
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when we see,
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first of all,
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the toiling nature of the psalm.
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And then we see the turning point.
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And then we see the thrusting.
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The toiling,
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the turning,
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and the thrusting.
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So first of all,
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we're going to think of the toiling.
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Asaph,
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he says here in verse 1,
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truly,
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God is good to Israel.
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God is good.
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And yet as you go on,
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you see his struggle.
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You see how he is toiling.
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Straight into there in verse 2,
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but as for me,
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my feet had almost stumbled.
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My steps had nearly slipped.
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But he is,
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we're not,
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he's struggling with what he sees around.
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He's struggling with all that's going on
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as he sees the wicked,
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as it says in verse 3,
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the prosperity of the wicked.
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And his eyes become envious towards them.
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How are they getting on so well?
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Why are things going so right with them?
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Is that not just the way that I should go
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and I should point others to go as well?
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It takes him down a dangerous part.
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But his confession of truly God is good,
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is in light of his own struggles.
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You see in verse 1,
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it's almost like he's standing
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on that solid ground.
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And yet as his steps goes on,
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he's going into the sinking sand.
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He's starting to flounder.
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I was envious of the arrogant
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when I saw their prosperity.
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They have no troubles like others do.
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They are not stricken
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like the rest of mankind.
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And so he goes on.
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He's describing them
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in all these different ways.
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He even says in verse 9,
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they set their mouths against the heavens
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and their tongue struts through the earth.
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Therefore his people turn back to them
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and find no fault in them.
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There's this sense of,
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why bother?
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Why bother trying to live a good life
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in the light of a good God?
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What's the point?
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When we're struggling,
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when we're having it hard,
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when things are going against us,
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and yet these wicked people,
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they're flourishing,
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they're prospering,
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and everything's going right for them.
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Why bother?
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He even goes to the point
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where he says in verse 11,
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and they say,
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how can God know?
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Is there knowledge in the Most High?
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It's like a sense of mocking against God.
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How can God know?
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He's not that good a God.
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He's not that great a God.
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So there's a sense of toiling.
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There's God who is good.
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He is questioning.
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God is good,
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and this is through Jesus himself.
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It testifies to that.
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In Matthew 19, verse 17,
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there is none good,
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that is, but God.
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And so in the goodness of God,
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why do hard things come our way?
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Because God is good,
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there's an expectation
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that good things will follow.
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And you could say,
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well, that's scriptural,
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that the Lord blesses his people.
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And we know that.
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It tells us in Psalm 84,
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for example,
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in verse 11,
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for the Lord God is a sun and shield.
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The Lord bestows favor and honor.
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No good thing does he withhold
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from those who walk uprightly.
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O Lord of hosts,
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blessed is the one who trusts in you.
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So no good thing does he withhold.
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So why is there no blessing?
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Why do people struggle as Christians?
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Well, because we are sinners.
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And you see Asaph's sin here
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in verse 3,
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for I was envious.
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I was envious of the arrogant.
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Envy comes in.
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Greed comes in.
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Jealousy comes in.
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All of these things.
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And what does that mean?
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It means we are not walking uprightly with God,
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as Psalm 84 says,
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where he does not hold good
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from those who walk uprightly.
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So we are at fault so often.
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We cannot blame God,
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that he is not good.
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It is us.
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There are things that come in
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to our hearts,
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that mar our relationship,
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where we end up toiling
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in our struggles with him.
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He had stumbled, it says,
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and he had fallen
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because there was sin in his heart.
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He wanted to enjoy life.
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He wanted to have just as they had
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prosperity and fullness
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and all of these things.
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You can almost get a sense here
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that they were going hungry,
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as his people,
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and yet those who were wicked
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were prospering like verse 7.
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Their eyes swell out through fatness.
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Their heart overflow with follies.
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There's a sense they're getting on well.
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Why am I?
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Why cannot I be blessed
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and enjoy all of these things?
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Why should I have all of these struggles?
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What is the issue here?
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There is envy, jealousy,
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all of these things,
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but the bigger issue,
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he's looking to the people around him
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and measuring the goodness of God by them.
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His focus is not on God,
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but circumstances.
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And that is what so often
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causes us to toil
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and to stumble as well.
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When we take our eyes of God
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and just look to the circumstances around us
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and say,
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where is the goodness of God?
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Why isn't he blessing?
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Why are all these wicked people
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getting on so well?
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Because we take our eyes of God,
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we stumble.
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We see this so often in Scripture
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where a people or individuals
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looking to God,
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trusting him,
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going forward in his strength.
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You think of the children of Israel
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coming out of Egypt
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on the border of the promised land.
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They go in and they have a look around.
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What do they see?
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They see giants.
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We cannot defeat them.
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Their eyes are taken off God.
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Only Joshua and Caleb say,
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but we can.
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They're looking to God.
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They're trusting God.
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David and Goliath.
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Goliath cannot be defeated
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because they're looking at the circumstance,
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not to God,
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but David looks to God.
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You think of Peter
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in the New Testament
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when he was out in the boat
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with other disciples
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and they saw the Lord
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coming towards them
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in Matthew 14, verse 28.
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He said,
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Lord, if it is you,
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command me to come to you on the water.
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And Jesus said,
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Come.
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So Peter got out of the boat
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and walked on water
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and came to Jesus.
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But when he saw the wind,
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he was afraid.
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And beginning to sink,
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he cried out,
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Lord, save me.
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And what happened?
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Jesus reached out his hand,
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took him,
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hold him,
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saying,
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Oh, you of little faith,
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why did you doubt?
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Took his eyes off the Lord
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and look to the circumstances.
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It's what we do so often.
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Are you doing that?
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Are you one tonight
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who is taking your eyes off God
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and just looking at your circumstances
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and saying,
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it's too difficult.
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It's too hard.
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Thinking the goodness of God
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only means blessings
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and not struggles,
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while we are wrong.
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There will be difficulties.
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And that's the reality
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of what Asaph shows us here.
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There are hard times.
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There are times when we see
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what's going on.
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We take our eyes off God
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and we start to sink.
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We start to stumble.
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We start to toil.
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But the second thing we see here
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is there's a turning.
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There's a turning.
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What we see with Asaph
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in this psalm
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is a turning point comes.
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He has all these questions.
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Just like we all do.
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We all want the answers
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to life's big questions.
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But we don't have them.
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And Asaph certainly
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didn't feel that he did either.
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He seemed weary.
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He seemed to be struggling in this.
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Look at verse 16.
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But when I thought
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how to understand this,
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it seemed to me
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a wearisome task.
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It seemed to me
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a wearisome task.
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How?
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How am I going to understand this?
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How can I ever understand
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this world that we live in?
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How can I ever understand
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why the wicked are prospering
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while I am struggling?
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But yet he found a way.
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It seemed to him
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a wearisome task.
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In verse 17,
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until,
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until I went
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into the sanctuary of God,
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then I discerned
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their end.
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It's a great thing
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to be able to draw near
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to God.
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To draw near to God
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and see that God's word
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gives us answers
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to all these important questions.
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We might not
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have a full explanation
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why
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do
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wicked people prosper.
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We don't maybe have
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an answer to that,
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but we have an answer
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to their end.
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And that's what
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Asaph sees here.
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I discerned
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their end.
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And that's seeing things
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in the bigger picture.
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That's seeing the fullness
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of God
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that it's not just
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for the here and now,
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but it's for the whole
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of eternity
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that we're thinking of God.
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I discerned
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their end.
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And then
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verse 18,
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truly,
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you set them
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in slippery places.
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You make them
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fall to ruin.
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So he was close
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to stumbling himself
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until he draws near
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to God
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into God's house.
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Where did he find answers?
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He found them
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when he came
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to look
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to the fullness
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of God
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and discerned
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their end.
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Where are you
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turning
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tonight
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for your answers?
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Where are you
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turning
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in your struggles
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to the wisdom
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of the world,
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to the wisdom
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of others,
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or to the wisdom
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of God?
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To discern
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the bigger picture,
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to discern
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the fullness
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of God,
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that he has a plan,
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he has a purpose
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in all things.
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A slippery
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place
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that would
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lead them
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to ruin.
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Verse 19,
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you see this,
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how they are
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destroyed in a moment,
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swept away utterly
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by terror.
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There's a fearsome
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thing there
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when you think about it.
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It's that end
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for them.
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It's an eternity
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in hell.
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That's what it's
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telling us here,
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destroyed.
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Destruction
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is their end.
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And then you begin
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to see things
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in perspective.
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You begin
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to see things
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in the fullness
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of life
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and the fullness
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of God.
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That God
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is good.
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That God
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is the one
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who has answers
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to all of these
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big issues.
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It may seem
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weedy some,
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but it says,
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until
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I went into
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the sanctuary
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of God,
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until I listened
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to what the word
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of God
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is showing me,
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until I listened
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to what the word
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of God
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is saying,
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everything
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seemed
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wearisome.
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And you see
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here,
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he is turning.
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He is turning
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to God.
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He is seeing
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that, yes,
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we've got our
22:01
struggles,
22:02
but God
22:03
has answers,
22:04
answers beyond
22:05
anything that I
22:06
can understand
22:07
by myself.
22:08
all I see
22:10
is a little
22:11
bit of God,
22:13
until I come
22:13
near to him
22:14
and then I see
22:15
the bigger
22:15
picture.
22:18
Turning it off
22:18
always reminds me
22:20
of the prodigal
22:21
son.
22:22
I mention him
22:22
often,
22:23
but when he
22:24
comes to himself,
22:25
he says,
22:26
in my father's
22:27
house are these
22:28
hired hands
22:29
and they have
22:30
enough to eat,
22:31
but I perish
22:32
here with hunger,
22:33
so I will
22:34
rise and go
22:35
to the father.
22:36
It's the very
22:37
same thing here.
22:38
Until I went
22:39
into the
22:40
sanctuary of
22:41
God,
22:42
until I came
22:42
back to God
22:43
and saw
22:44
within the
22:45
fullness of
22:45
all things,
22:47
the wisdom
22:48
that he has,
22:49
the blessings
22:50
that he is
22:50
able to
22:51
bestow.
22:54
We're so
22:55
often distracted
22:56
in this world.
22:58
You came in
22:58
here tonight,
22:59
you feel
23:00
distracted.
23:01
You feel
23:01
there's so
23:02
many things
23:02
going on
23:03
in your
23:03
mind.
23:05
There's so
23:05
many things
23:06
just clamoring
23:07
for your
23:08
attention,
23:08
but wouldn't
23:09
it be
23:09
great if
23:10
every time
23:11
we came
23:11
to worship
23:12
God was
23:13
a Sunday
23:14
or a
23:14
midweek or
23:15
just in
23:15
our own
23:16
time,
23:17
no distractions,
23:19
nothing to
23:20
take our
23:20
focus away
23:22
from God
23:22
and just
23:24
focus on
23:25
his word.
23:27
But the
23:27
reality is
23:28
that so
23:28
often,
23:29
even this
23:29
evening,
23:30
there's so
23:31
much clutter
23:32
in our
23:33
minds.
23:33
love
23:34
to
23:35
come.
23:37
Isn't it
23:38
good to
23:39
come and
23:39
draw near
23:40
to him,
23:41
to come
23:41
into the
23:42
sanctuary of
23:42
God and
23:43
to hear
23:43
the word
23:44
of God,
23:46
to see
23:47
God and
23:48
the peace
23:49
that he
23:50
can give.
23:51
God and
23:52
God and
23:53
turn to
23:54
God and
23:55
turn to
23:56
himself.
23:57
But remember
23:58
what his
23:58
role was.
24:00
His role was a
24:01
leader in
24:02
worship.
24:04
And so in
24:04
turning himself,
24:05
he is also
24:06
pointing others.
24:07
That's where it
24:08
says at the
24:09
very end of the
24:10
psalm, that I
24:10
may tell of
24:11
all your
24:11
works.
24:12
That's what he's
24:12
doing in this
24:14
psalm, telling
24:14
of all the
24:15
wondrous
24:15
works of
24:17
God.
24:18
So he's
24:19
turning himself,
24:20
he's causing
24:20
others to
24:21
turn.
24:22
So we come
24:22
here this
24:23
night to
24:23
this psalm
24:24
written so
24:25
many years
24:25
ago and
24:26
we are
24:27
seeing our
24:27
need to
24:28
turn to
24:29
God, a
24:30
God who
24:31
is good.
24:33
He's focusing
24:34
our attention
24:35
on the
24:36
fullness of
24:37
God.
24:39
If you've
24:39
ever been on
24:40
the ferry
24:40
coming across
24:41
the mints,
24:42
you're sitting
24:42
in any one
24:44
of the number
24:44
of places you
24:45
can sit and
24:45
there's somebody
24:46
over at the
24:47
window looking
24:47
out.
24:49
All of a
24:49
sudden you
24:50
start to
24:50
hear gasps.
24:53
Oh, they
24:53
start to
24:53
look.
24:55
And all of
24:56
a sudden
24:56
people's
24:57
attention is
24:57
drawn in
24:58
that direction.
24:59
They're
25:00
saying there
25:00
must be
25:01
something of
25:01
interest over
25:02
there.
25:03
Maybe they're
25:03
seeing dolphins
25:04
jumping and
25:05
all of a
25:06
sudden people
25:06
just gathering
25:07
around wanting
25:08
to see.
25:09
How?
25:10
Because someone
25:11
was there to
25:12
see it.
25:13
Someone was
25:14
looking in
25:14
that direction
25:15
and saw what
25:16
was happening
25:17
and starts
25:18
to exclaim
25:19
about what
25:19
is happening.
25:20
Other people
25:21
come to
25:22
see for
25:22
themselves.
25:23
That's what
25:24
Asaph is
25:24
doing here.
25:26
He is
25:26
looking to
25:27
God and
25:28
he's exclaiming,
25:29
here is the
25:30
God who
25:31
is good.
25:32
Will you
25:32
not come
25:33
and look
25:33
for yourselves
25:34
and see
25:35
and know
25:36
of this
25:37
goodness?
25:39
Turning,
25:40
turning to
25:41
him and
25:43
seeing the
25:43
fullness of
25:44
God, the
25:44
beauty of
25:46
God.
25:47
That is
25:48
what we
25:48
need.
25:50
That's
25:50
what he's
25:50
pointing us
25:51
towards.
25:53
Turn,
25:54
come,
25:56
draw near.
25:56
When
25:56
everything
25:57
seems
25:57
wearisome
25:58
as we
25:58
see here,
25:58
there's no
25:59
answers until
26:00
I come
26:02
to God.
26:03
So there's
26:04
a need
26:04
to come.
26:06
The third
26:07
and final
26:08
thing we see
26:08
here is
26:09
where that
26:10
leads us
26:10
to and
26:10
it's a
26:11
sense of
26:11
trusting in
26:15
God.
26:18
You see
26:19
this in
26:19
verse 23.
26:21
It's a
26:21
wonderful
26:22
verse.
26:24
Before that
26:25
you come
26:25
in verse
26:26
21.
26:26
When my
26:26
soul was
26:27
embittered,
26:28
when I was
26:29
pricked in
26:29
the heart,
26:30
I was
26:30
brutish
26:31
and ignorant.
26:33
I was
26:33
like a
26:33
beast
26:34
towards you.
26:35
He's
26:36
recognizing
26:36
himself
26:37
here as
26:37
one who
26:38
had looked
26:39
away from
26:40
God.
26:40
I was
26:41
ignorant.
26:42
I was
26:43
brutish.
26:44
I was
26:44
arrogant.
26:45
I was
26:45
questioning
26:46
all of
26:47
these
26:47
things.
26:49
And that's
26:49
the way
26:50
we can
26:50
end up.
26:52
That's
26:52
the way
26:52
we can
26:53
go
26:53
ourselves.
26:54
When we
26:54
take our
26:54
eyes off
26:55
God,
26:55
we end
26:56
up brutish,
26:57
ignorant,
26:58
arrogant,
26:58
all of
26:59
these
26:59
things.
27:01
So what
27:01
do we
27:01
need to
27:02
do?
27:02
What do
27:02
you need
27:02
to do?
27:04
Well,
27:04
here are
27:05
the words
27:05
of verse
27:06
23,
27:07
where you
27:08
have this
27:08
confidence.
27:10
It's one
27:10
of these
27:10
turning
27:11
points that
27:11
you so
27:11
often find
27:12
in the
27:13
Psalms.
27:14
He's
27:14
seeing a
27:15
sin,
27:16
and yet
27:17
he realizes
27:18
God is
27:19
there.
27:19
Nevertheless,
27:21
I am
27:22
continually
27:23
with you.
27:24
You hold
27:25
my right
27:26
hand.
27:27
You guide
27:28
me with
27:28
your
27:28
counsel,
27:29
and
27:30
afterwards
27:31
you will
27:31
receive me
27:33
to glory.
27:34
What a
27:35
sense of
27:36
trust.
27:37
You see,
27:37
he has
27:38
discerned the
27:39
end of
27:40
the
27:40
wicked,
27:41
their
27:41
destruction.
27:44
But yet
27:44
he looks
27:44
to God,
27:45
he shows
27:46
his trust
27:46
in him.
27:47
I am
27:47
continually
27:48
with you.
27:49
You guide
27:50
me with
27:50
your
27:50
counsel,
27:51
you receive
27:52
me to
27:53
your glory.
27:55
There is
27:56
this confidence,
27:57
this trusting
27:58
in God,
27:59
the goodness
28:00
of God.
28:02
So when
28:03
we draw
28:04
near to
28:04
God,
28:05
we realize
28:05
just how
28:07
good he
28:08
is.
28:10
From
28:10
doubting
28:11
and
28:11
questioning
28:12
in verse
28:14
16,
28:15
things that
28:16
seem too
28:16
hard to
28:17
understand,
28:18
such a
28:18
wearisome
28:19
task.
28:20
Now I
28:20
see,
28:21
now I
28:22
understand,
28:23
because I
28:23
have drawn
28:24
near to
28:24
God.
28:25
I am
28:25
worshiping
28:26
God in
28:27
the fullness
28:27
of him.
28:30
What he
28:30
does is he
28:31
realizes three
28:32
things.
28:34
He realizes
28:35
the future
28:36
of the
28:36
sinner in
28:37
verse 17
28:37
to 20.
28:39
Their end
28:39
is destruction.
28:41
And he
28:42
realizes the
28:42
foolishness of
28:43
self,
28:44
of just
28:44
looking to
28:45
himself.
28:46
When I
28:46
was embittered,
28:47
pricked in the
28:48
heart,
28:48
brutish,
28:49
like a
28:49
beast,
28:50
all of
28:50
these things.
28:51
He realized
28:52
the foolishness
28:53
of that.
28:54
But then he
28:55
realizes in
28:56
verse 23
28:57
to the end,
28:58
the fullness
28:59
of a
29:00
saviour.
29:01
The fullness
29:02
of one who
29:03
is able
29:04
to save.
29:07
I am in
29:08
your right
29:08
hand.
29:09
You are
29:10
guiding me.
29:11
And you
29:11
see all his
29:12
desires,
29:13
his desires
29:13
initially,
29:14
jealousy and
29:15
envy is
29:16
towards those
29:17
who are
29:17
prosperous.
29:18
What does
29:19
he realize
29:19
when he
29:20
sees the
29:20
fullness of
29:21
God?
29:22
In verse
29:22
25,
29:23
whom have
29:24
I in the
29:25
heaven but
29:25
you?
29:26
And there
29:27
is nothing
29:27
on earth
29:28
that I
29:29
desire
29:29
besides
29:30
you.
29:32
There's this
29:33
wonderful
29:33
transformation.
29:35
Envy
29:36
towards the
29:37
wicked is
29:37
now no.
29:39
Nothing
29:39
compares to
29:41
the surpassing
29:42
worth of
29:42
knowing Christ
29:43
Jesus,
29:44
my Lord,
29:45
as Paul
29:46
puts it in
29:46
Philippians.
29:48
Nothing in
29:49
this world
29:50
compares to
29:51
you.
29:52
My flesh
29:53
and my
29:53
heart may
29:54
faint and
29:54
fail,
29:55
but you
29:55
are my
29:56
strength of
29:58
my heart
29:58
and my
29:58
portion
29:59
forever.
30:00
Everything
30:01
here is
30:02
pointing
30:02
towards the
30:03
fullness
30:03
of God.
30:05
Understanding
30:06
that fullness
30:07
of God
30:08
is good.
30:10
And
30:10
therefore he
30:11
says in
30:11
conclusion,
30:12
it is good
30:13
for me to
30:14
draw near
30:14
to you.
30:15
It is
30:16
good for
30:16
me to
30:17
come and
30:18
worship
30:18
you.
30:19
Rather than
30:20
turning away
30:21
when I don't
30:22
have answers,
30:23
I need to
30:23
come.
30:24
To come
30:25
and see
30:26
the end
30:27
of the
30:27
wicked.
30:28
To come
30:28
and see
30:28
the foolishness
30:29
of self
30:30
and to
30:31
come and
30:31
see the
30:31
fullness
30:32
of the
30:33
Savior and
30:33
offer in
30:34
Jesus
30:34
Christ.
30:37
So that
30:37
we might
30:38
understand
30:39
our end,
30:40
turn and
30:41
know the
30:42
life that
30:43
we have
30:43
in him.
30:45
And as
30:46
we turn,
30:47
he is
30:48
able to
30:49
bless.
30:51
Bless us
30:52
with that
30:52
peace,
30:53
bless us
30:53
with that
30:54
knowledge,
30:54
not always
30:55
with prosperity
30:56
and all of
30:57
these things
30:57
that the
30:58
wicked were
30:58
enjoying,
30:59
that he
30:59
was envious
31:00
of,
31:01
but blessed
31:02
with that
31:02
assurance
31:03
that you
31:06
will receive
31:07
me to
31:07
glory,
31:09
that you
31:09
will hold
31:10
me,
31:10
that you
31:11
will guide
31:11
me.
31:12
All of
31:12
these things
31:13
we are
31:14
blessed.
31:16
There was
31:16
a minister
31:17
by the
31:17
name of
31:18
Robert
31:19
Chapman,
31:20
a minister
31:21
in England
31:21
in the
31:22
1800s.
31:24
One
31:25
morning as
31:25
he was
31:25
walking
31:26
along the
31:26
street,
31:27
he was
31:27
asked by
31:27
somebody,
31:28
how are
31:29
you?
31:31
And he
31:31
answered,
31:32
I'm
31:33
burdened
31:33
this
31:34
morning.
31:35
And the
31:36
man who
31:36
asked the
31:36
question
31:37
said,
31:37
but you
31:38
don't
31:39
look
31:39
burdened,
31:40
you look
31:41
as if
31:41
you're
31:41
full of
31:42
the
31:43
joys.
31:45
So how
31:45
are you
31:45
burdened?
31:47
He said,
31:47
well,
31:47
I have a
31:48
wonderful
31:49
burden.
31:50
It's an
31:51
overburden
31:52
of
31:53
blessings.
31:56
And he
31:56
said,
31:57
where do
31:58
you find
31:59
that?
32:01
And he
32:01
said,
32:01
well, I
32:01
find it
32:02
with God.
32:03
And I
32:04
find it
32:04
in the
32:04
words of
32:05
Psalm 68
32:06
verse 19,
32:08
who daily
32:09
with his
32:09
benefits
32:10
as
32:11
plenteously
32:12
doth
32:12
load.
32:14
The
32:14
Lord
32:14
burdens
32:15
!
32:15
But in
32:17
a way
32:18
of his
32:18
daily
32:19
benefits,
32:21
who daily
32:22
with his
32:22
benefits
32:23
as
32:24
plenteously
32:25
doth
32:26
load.
32:27
That there
32:28
are burdens
32:28
beyond
32:29
describing,
32:30
burdens
32:31
beyond
32:31
numbering.
32:32
The
32:32
Lord pours
32:33
out his
32:33
blessings
32:34
on us.
32:36
And to
32:36
know them,
32:37
what are
32:37
we to
32:38
do?
32:39
To
32:39
draw near
32:40
to him,
32:42
to come
32:43
to him
32:44
and see
32:45
and understand
32:46
and discern
32:48
all that
32:49
God
32:49
shows,
32:50
the end
32:51
of the
32:52
wicked,
32:53
but the
32:54
blessings
32:54
that are
32:54
ours
32:55
in
32:56
Christ.
32:57
So he
32:58
goes through
32:58
this
32:58
pilgrimage,
33:00
a time
33:00
of toiling,
33:01
a time
33:01
of questioning,
33:03
but a
33:03
turning
33:04
to the
33:05
Lord.
33:06
And then
33:06
this
33:06
trust,
33:08
nevertheless,
33:10
continually,
33:12
I am
33:12
with you.
33:13
You do
33:13
hold me
33:14
by my
33:15
right hand.
33:16
You guide
33:16
me by
33:17
your
33:17
counsel,
33:18
and
33:18
afterwards,
33:20
you will
33:20
receive me
33:21
to glory.
33:23
He loads
33:24
us with
33:25
his benefits.
33:27
So may
33:27
we find
33:28
in all
33:29
our
33:29
questions,
33:30
in all
33:30
the challenges
33:31
that we
33:31
have,
33:32
the fullness
33:33
of God,
33:34
and look
33:35
to him,
33:36
and see
33:36
that in
33:37
the midst
33:38
of everything
33:38
that goes
33:39
on around
33:40
us,
33:41
he shows
33:41
us the
33:42
end of
33:43
the wicked,
33:44
but the
33:44
end that
33:45
is ours
33:45
who
33:46
trust in
33:48
him.
33:48
Let us
33:49
pray.
33:52
Lord,
33:53
our
33:53
gracious
33:53
God,
33:54
we thank
33:54
you that
33:55
you are
33:55
indeed a
33:55
God who
33:56
loads us
33:57
with your
33:57
benefits on
33:58
a daily
33:58
basis,
33:59
that you
33:59
are one
34:00
who we
34:01
can come
34:01
to with
34:02
all things,
34:03
all our
34:03
cares,
34:04
all our
34:05
questions,
34:06
even the
34:06
questions that
34:07
feel
34:07
wearisome
34:08
to us,
34:09
and we
34:09
can find
34:10
our
34:10
understanding
34:11
when we
34:11
draw near
34:12
to you.
34:13
And may
34:13
you guide
34:14
us,
34:14
Lord,
34:14
by your
34:15
counsel.
34:16
May you
34:16
remind us
34:17
of your
34:17
continual
34:18
presence.
34:19
May you
34:19
hold us
34:20
by your
34:21
right hand,
34:22
and may
34:22
you keep
34:22
us for
34:23
all of
34:24
our days
34:24
and all
34:25
of eternity.
34:26
Lord,
34:26
we look
34:27
to you,
34:27
we seek
34:28
your
34:28
blessing,
34:29
we seek
34:29
your face,
34:30
your peace
34:31
upon us,
34:32
as all we
34:32
ask,
34:33
we ask
34:33
in Jesus'
34:34
name.
34:35
Amen.
34:35
Amen.
34:35
We're
34:40
going to
34:40
conclude
34:41
singing
34:41
some of
34:43
these
34:43
verses
34:43
in
34:43
Psalm 73
34:44
in the
34:45
Scottish
34:45
Psalter,
34:47
page
34:47
316.
34:50
We'll
34:51
sing from
34:51
verse 23
34:52
to verse
34:53
26.
34:56
Psalm 73
34:57
on page
34:58
316.
34:59
Nevertheless,
35:00
continually,
35:00
O Lord,
35:01
I am with
35:02
thee,
35:02
thou dost
35:03
me hold
35:03
by my
35:04
right hand
35:04
and still
35:06
upholdest
35:06
me.
35:07
We'll
35:07
sing
35:07
four stanzas
35:08
to God's
35:09
praise.
35:14
Never
35:15
the
35:17
less
35:18
continually,
35:23
O
35:24
Lord,
35:26
I am
35:28
with
35:29
thee,
35:31
thou
35:32
dost
35:33
me hold
35:36
by my
35:38
right hand
35:40
and still
35:43
upholdest
35:47
me.
35:48
The
35:50
width
35:51
I
35:52
can
35:54
step
35:54
while
35:55
I
35:57
live
35:58
!
35:59
Let
35:59
be
36:00
strong
36:02
!
36:02
God
36:02
can
36:04
guide
36:06
and
36:08
to
36:08
thy
36:10
glory
36:12
afterward
36:15
receive
36:17
me
36:20
to
36:20
abide.
36:22
!
36:24
may
36:25
may
36:25
may
36:26
!
36:52
Besides, to there is none.
36:59
My flesh and heart doth faint and fail,
37:10
but God doth fail me never.
37:17
For of my heart all is the strength and portion forever.
37:36
After the benediction, I'll go to the door to my right.
37:39
We'll close in the benediction.
37:41
Now may grace, mercy, and peace from God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
37:46
rest upon and abide with you all, now and forevermore.
37:50
Amen.
38:16
Amen.
38:17
Thank you.