Turn to Psalm 73.
So whenever I get the 5.30 a.m. text of like,
Hey, I feel terrible. Can you preach this morning?
It's always an awesome reminder that any good that happens is not ever based on the amount of preparation I have.
It's like God kind of takes that from you.
You just have very little time.
So anything that does happen is just evidence of His grace.
And I was thinking, I don't know where Wes went, but I'm thankful that I've lived long enough to actually see how my hair,
old enough to see my hair actually go.
That's where Wes remains forever young and can't grow facial hair.
So I'm going to trade off.
So girls, you don't know this, but guys can kind of do that to each other and still be like, cool.
So it's all right.
But we're going to turn to Psalm 73 today.
But before we do, let's just join in a word of prayer.
Father,
we submit ourselves to you this morning,
to the work of your Holy Spirit that dwells in us.
that this is not,
this building is not a temple.
This building is not a house of God.
It is your people that you abide with,
the people that you have put your spirit in.
So I pray that He would stir in us today,
open our eyes,
convict us of sin,
and remind us of the possession that we have in you.
And so Lord,
just help me to be able to honor you with my words.
And the rest of this service may be an act of worship towards you in Christ's name.
Amen.
So Psalm 73,
one of my,
one of my favorite Psalms,
but just a little preface for some of this.
But the book of Psalms is probably one that I turn to probably every,
I don't know,
one out of every three times I open the word,
I go to Psalms.
So I,
I think a long time ago in the 1500s,
I think rightfully John Calvin called the Psalms,
he said,
they are the anatomy of the soul,
meaning that the Psalms expose like all that we are in our soul.
It exposes like our,
the heights of joy and happiness,
as well as like the depths of like depression and despair.
And a lot of the times,
like we can just be very dogmatic and very stoic about our faith,
but the Psalms are a very real book that exposes how we feel
and how our emotions play into the Christian life.
And so this is a Psalm very much like that.
So Psalm 73 is not a Psalm of David,
it's a Psalm of Asaph,
who is probably David's chief musician.
So let's read through it together.
We won't have time to unpack every single thing,
but we'll be able to get an overview.
So,
um,
Hmm.
I'm thinking that before we read this,
I'm going to give you an intro.
Sorry.
Um,
I know that the vast majority of the people in here are people who have tasted the goodness of God,
people who have encountered Christ,
people who have embraced salvation in Christ.
Um,
but at the same time,
life can be extremely difficult.
Becoming a follower of Christ doesn't like free us from the trials of this world.
It doesn't.
And often,
even as children of God,
we can find that our dreams,
our hopes,
um,
our aspirations can be like shattered to pieces over and over and over throughout our life.
Even as children of God,
um,
you may have like a job or a career that you were hoping would go well and you didn't get the job or you lost the job.
Uh,
a sickness or a disease could come upon you and totally destroy like a lot of the plans that you had for your life.
A sports team that you didn't make the cut for.
A relationship that you hoped would work out and might lead towards marriage.
Didn't work out.
Um,
so many things you,
uh,
a friend or a family member could die and you're caught off guard.
And in those moments,
you're,
you're asking what,
where are you God?
Like what is happening right now?
And I've experienced most of the things I've just mentioned to you in my own life.
So what are your disappointments?
Like where have you invested your time or your emotion into something in order to see something else happen?
What are them like shattered dreams and hopes that you had good shattered dreams,
good hopes that you had.
So for this answer,
we turn to the ancient writer to get it.
Psalm 73.
Let's read together.
Let's hear God's word.
Truly.
God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
But as for me,
my feet had almost stumbled.
My steps had nearly slipped.
For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
For they have no pains 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.
Therefore,
pride is their necklace.
Violence covers them as a garment.
Their eyes swell out through fatness.
Their hearts overflow with follies.
They scoff and speak with malice.
Loftily,
they threaten oppression.
They set their mouths against the heavens,
and their tongues struts throughout the earth.
Therefore,
his people turn back to them and find no fault in them.
And they say,
how can God know?
Is there any knowledge in the Most High?
Behold,
these are the wicked,
always at ease.
They increase in riches.
All in vain I have kept my heart clean,
and washed my hands in innocence.
For all the day long,
I have been stricken and rebuked every morning.
If I had said,
I will speak thus,
I would have betrayed the generation of your children.
But when I thought how to understand this,
it seemed to me a worrisome task.
Until I went into the sanctuary of God,
then I discerned their end.
Truly,
you set them in slippery places.
You make them fall to ruin.
How they are destroyed in a moment,
swept utterly by terrors.
Like a dream in one that wakes.
Oh Lord,
when you rouse yourself,
you despise them as phantoms.
When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart,
I was brutish and ignorant.
I was like a beast towards you.
Nevertheless,
I am continually with you.
you hold my right hand.
You hold my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel,
and afterwards,
you will receive me to glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on the earth that I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail.
But God is the strength in my heart and my portion forever.
For behold,
those who are far from you shall perish.
You will put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.
But for me,
it is good to be near God.
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
that I may tell of all your works.
Amen.
So,
as I like to do a lot of the time,
we are going to walk through the psalm
just by answering some questions
that will help us draw out the meaning of this
and help us kind of answer what I was speaking of earlier
when you feel like all hope has been lost.
So number one,
the first question,
is what is the theme of the psalm?
What is the theme?
You see this very clearly.
In verse one,
truly God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
So he kind of stops himself and he said,
before I go any further,
let me just tell you that I'm,
the whole point of what I'm about to write
is to tell you that God is good.
He is good.
And why is that so important?
Why is that so important for him to do that?
Because when things aren't going well around you
and everything is falling apart,
we are tempted to doubt the goodness and sovereignty of God.
That's why.
When things are not going your way,
you're tempted to forget that.
That God is good
and that God is in control,
that he is sovereign.
So God doesn't just do good most of the time
or some of the time.
God,
by his very nature,
is the definition of good.
So it's not just that he does good,
it's that he is good
and that his actions overflow from his character.
So God will always,
right,
God will always,
during seasons of our lives,
he will always remain good to us
no matter what you are going through.
Psalm 119 says this,
God,
you are good
and you do good.
And this is the truth.
God is good to those
who have humbled themselves
and have come to Christ
and who have thrown themselves at his mercy,
who have received his salvation.
He is good to them,
those who have been made pure by his blood,
right,
those who are pure in heart.
So God is good.
That is the theme of this psalm.
And that he works all things for the good
of those who love him
and are called according to his purpose.
That's a promise.
So it's not like
sometimes God will be good to you
if you belong to him.
It's that he only will be good to you.
Only will be good to you
if you belong to him.
Yet,
yet though,
even though God has proven himself to us
a million times over,
right,
he has proved that he is good to us.
We still are tempted to doubt.
We are still tempted
to just say,
like,
I think just in this case
you might have made the wrong decision.
I feel that
you can't be trusted in this moment.
So,
all those things,
like Satan,
the world,
and our own sin
and our own lives
blind us from the goodness of God
so often.
So Asaph is saying,
like,
before I tell you why,
I'm going to just begin by telling you
that God is good.
That he is good to those
who are pure in heart,
those who have been washed by
the blood of Christ
in this case.
Yet,
he kind of says,
if you look
at the first verse,
he says,
he states that his feet
had almost stumbled,
his steps had nearly slipped
from this path.
So,
ultimately,
that's the goal
from this psalm
is for us to
treasure God
and to embrace
his goodness.
So,
that's number one.
Number two,
second question.
What caused
the psalmist
to be envious?
So,
what's causing him
to be envious?
What caused the psalmist
to be envious?
You see this in verse 2
and verse 3.
But as for me,
my feet had almost stumbled,
my steps had nearly slipped,
for I was envious
of the arrogant
when I saw
the prosperity
of the wicked.
He's envious.
He confesses
that
as he's looked
around the world
around him
in the fallen world,
he looks at the people
who don't know God,
the people who hate God,
and life just seems
to be going great
for them.
But he,
a follower,
a believer,
things are not going
so well for him.
So,
he's being tempted
to say,
where are you?
Like,
why is this happening?
Why are the people
who hate you,
why are they always
doing good?
And why are the people
who trust you
and love you
always just apparently
things not going good?
He says in verse 4,
for they have no pangs
until death
and their bodies
are fat and sleek.
So,
like,
it seems like
a lot of them
just go through life
carefree,
painfree,
that they're happy
all the time,
they enjoy
just their wealth
and their prosperity.
Fatness,
back in this time,
meant that you were wealthy
because,
like,
chances are
if you were,
if you were a little
obese,
it's because
you were wealthy
and could afford
to eat a lot.
And so,
it was a sign,
a symbol
of being wealthy.
And so,
he's like,
they're,
they're always
that way.
Verse 5,
they are not in trouble
as others are.
They're not stricken
like the rest of mankind.
So,
it seems that they don't
even,
like,
get to experience
fierce trials
in their life.
the opposite of what he thinks
he is going through.
So,
you ever felt that way?
You ever just thought,
man,
I'm a follower of Christ.
I've,
I've given my life to him,
but I look around
and everything around me
seems to be going wrong
all the time.
But then you look around
at people who don't know God
and they seem to be
just doing just fine
with no problems
at all.
So,
so the question
is not an unusual question
in the Bible.
And look,
okay,
here's the deal.
It's not wrong for you
or for me
to ask that question.
I'm going to tell you that.
But the attitude
and the posture
you have towards God
really matters
in this case.
if you're coming to him
being like,
how dare you?
You owe me an explanation.
Like,
this isn't fair.
And you come to him
with more of like a,
a proud attitude.
That's wrong.
But if you genuinely
come to him
broken and humbled
and you just ask,
I'm confused.
Help me understand.
I feel like
something's just not right,
but I know
that you have taught me
that you are good.
So help me understand.
So,
very common question.
Why does the things
always work out
for people
who don't care about God
and why do we
always struggle?
Job asks
the same question.
I have some references
to Job today.
You don't have to turn
there right now,
but in Job 21,
verse 7,
this is what Job says.
Why do the wicked live,
reach old age,
and grow mighty in power?
Their offspring
are established
in their presence
and their descendants
before their eyes.
Their houses
are made safe
from fear
and no rod of God
is upon them.
They spend their days
in prosperity
and in peace
they go down
to Sheol.
So,
to make it worse,
right,
the unbelievers
are even arrogant
about how well
they're doing.
Look at what
my own strength,
look at what
my own,
you know,
money and my own
ability
has got for me.
so they're arrogant
even about
the wealth
that they do possess,
right?
That they got all that
by the strength
of their own labor.
So,
instead of thanking God,
who is the giver
of all good things,
they boast about it.
And not just that,
but they even,
like,
taunt God,
right?
We don't need you.
Look at verse 9.
They set their mouths
against the heavens
and their tongues
strut throughout the earth.
Therefore,
His people will turn
back to them
and find no fault
in them.
And they say,
how can God know?
Is there knowledge
in the Most High?
Verse 10
is kind of an unusual
verse,
but the literal
means,
like,
the waters
of a full cup
have been drained
out completely
by the wicked.
So,
this idea of
they seem
to be satisfied,
and,
so they're taunting God
as if their own hand
has prospered them
in a very arrogant
fashion.
So,
they mock
and they despise God.
So,
hear me,
like,
any success
that you have at all
is not because
you are smart.
It is not because
you have done
everything right.
God can blow on that
and it can fall
to pieces.
So,
if you begin
your life
in arrogance,
kind of saying
that my own hand
my own ability
to do business,
my own ability
to perform,
whatever,
if you boast of that,
then God is
not going to bless you.
It says,
he opposes the proud,
but he gives grace
to the humble.
We have nothing
to boast about.
Like I said
last week,
nothing at all.
So,
so they taunt God
as if they're even
calling him a coward.
Like,
you know,
you're a pushover.
We can do all this
on our own.
We don't need you
to exist.
So,
what happens?
So,
what is Asaph?
He's looking at this
and what is the result
of him looking at
and envying the wicked?
Alright?
Jealousy and envy
never help.
They're serious.
That's why God said
you shall not covet.
So,
what does that reveal
about him?
You see that
in verses 13
through 15?
And you see that
the fruit of this
bitter discontent
is the fruit of envy
will be discontentment
and depression.
If you are envious
of someone,
if you are jealous,
that will be
the result.
You will be
never satisfied.
You will be discontent
and often it can lead
to just very
low depths
of depression.
If you are jealous
of someone,
right,
it never pays off.
So,
look at 15,
or excuse me,
verse 13.
Look at verse 13.
He says,
so he's looking at this
and this is what he says,
all in vain
I have kept my heart clean
and washed my hands
in innocence.
So,
when we envy others,
particularly the life
of unbelievers,
we're tempted to think,
why am I doing all this?
Like,
I've kept myself
pure before God.
I've like,
said no to temptation.
I've lost
for the sake of Christ.
Like,
is all this just worthless?
Like,
what is the point?
All in vain
I've done this.
Look how wicked
they behave
and they have
everything I want.
You ever felt that way?
Is it worth it?
It never pays off.
All I do
is try to honor you,
God,
and right now
I feel like
it's not paying off.
I feel like
I'm getting nothing
and they get everything.
So,
these things
just don't ever
go away from us.
We pay a price
for following God.
So,
have you ever thought that?
Why have I fought
so hard for this
when everybody around me
just seems to get it
without any problem at all?
All in vain
I've kept myself clean.
Spurgeon says this
about this verse.
He says,
he questions
the value
of holiness
when its wages
are not paid.
He says,
the pure
may have seen
to have cleansed
themselves altogether
in vain,
but
we must not judge
after the sight
of the eyes.
Like,
it may feel that way,
but he's saying
don't just believe
what you see.
Alright?
That's important.
Don't just believe
what you see.
Which leads
to the next question.
Number three.
what caused
the psalmist's
attitude to shift?
So,
that's what he was thinking.
He was being,
he was feeling envious,
he was feeling jealous.
What caused him
to shift?
You see this
in
verses 15
through 19.
He says,
he stops himself,
and he says,
if I had said,
I will speak thus,
I would have betrayed
the generation
of your children.
But when I thought
of how to understand this,
it seemed to me
a wearisome task.
So,
it wore him out.
Like,
trying to process
all this,
just like,
exhausted him.
It seemed to me
a wearisome task
until
I went
to the sanctuary
of God,
and then
I discerned
therein.
Truly,
you set them
in slippery places.
You make them
fall to ruin.
How they are
destroyed in a moment,
swept away
utterly by terrors.
Like a dream
when one awakes,
O Lord,
you rouse yourself.
You despise them
as phantoms.
So,
the point here
is be slow
to judge God.
Right?
Be very slow.
He says,
it's not always
wise
for you
to just start
speaking about
how you feel.
Hear that?
It's not always
wise
for you
just to start
talking about
how you feel.
And the reason
why is
because
you're an heir
and like,
if you're wrong,
you're in danger
of risking
the faith of others.
That's what he says.
So,
example,
like,
younger believers,
people who are new
in the faith,
or even children,
how you respond
to trials,
if you respond
to that
with like,
anger,
discontentment,
bitterness,
when something
happens like that
in their life,
they're gonna,
it's very likely
they will respond
to God
the same way.
And he's saying,
like,
I'm glad
I didn't say that
because
if I had,
I would have
betrayed a whole
generation.
Right?
I'm glad
that I didn't,
I'm glad
that I waited
upon the Lord
to reveal
this to me.
So,
when God
puts you
through trials,
it's not always
just for your
sake,
it's for the
sake of others
too.
This is something
Job said,
again,
Job 40,
verse 6,
he says,
then the Lord
answered Job
out of the whirlwind.
So,
sorry,
let me back up.
So,
Job
has been suffering,
going through
so many trials,
losing everything,
but the whole time
he's maintaining
a trust
in God.
very little
though.
He's barely
hanging on,
it feels like,
and he's asking
God,
why?
Why is this
happening to me?
Why?
And then eventually,
and later on
in the book of Job,
God shows up
and he answers Job.
This is why.
So,
verse,
chapter 40,
verse 6,
the Lord answered Job
out of a whirlwind
and said,
dress for action
like a man.
I will question you
and you will make
it known to me.
Will you even
put me in the wrong?
Will you condemn me
that you may be right?
Have you an arm
like God?
And can you thunder
with a voice
like this?
Adorn yourself
with majesty
and dignity
and clothe yourself
with glory
and splendor?
So,
basically,
he kind of pops out
and is like,
you've been questioning me,
now I'm going to question you.
Prepare yourself.
Basically,
who are you,
you little man,
you sinful,
broken man?
Like,
who are you
to judge me
the most high?
We do that.
So,
again,
we have to be careful.
Don't judge God
too quickly
at all.
Wait for Him.
Be patient.
Wait for Him
to reveal
what is going on.
So,
I will tell you this,
though.
God doesn't promise
in this life
to always tell you
exactly why
you went through
what you went through.
Sometimes He does.
Sometimes He gives you
a moment like Joseph
in Genesis
where he suffered
and suffered
for 13 years
and then all of a sudden
like He sees
His brothers
below Him
and like goes,
ah.
This is what
all this was for.
Sometimes He does,
but sometimes
you may have to wait
until glory
to know the purpose.
So,
be careful.
Be careful,
especially those
who are younger
in the faith.
They will watch
how you go through trials.
They watch.
Because if all you're doing
is this,
it won't go real far.
If you can quote theology
and quote theologians
and quote Bible verses
and that's all you got,
like,
you will suffer
in this life
and when that happens,
you're not going to stand.
So,
we have to be building,
asking God to build us
and prepare us
for this kind of stuff
because it's going to come.
So,
so here's His conclusion,
right?
He's like,
I'm glad I didn't do this.
Here's why.
Now let's really look
at the state
of the wicked.
He says,
I felt bitter.
I felt depressed
until I went
to the sanctuary
of God.
So basically,
he went
to worship.
He went to worship God
and during that encounter,
he chose to worship God
instead of cursing God
and it changed him.
It changed how he thought,
right?
So as he worshiped God,
his nearsightedness
kind of vanished
and God gave him
a fuller picture
of what really
was going on,
right?
So here's two things
about the wicked,
all right,
about their apparent ease
that they have
that it's not real.
So when you're envious,
you're looking at people
around you
who don't know God
and life's going great,
just think about
these two things.
One is,
their apparent joy
is not real.
It's not real.
God chooses
sometimes
to bless
even people
who hate him
out of his own goodness.
We never do that.
He does.
Jesus said
in Luke 6,
verse 35,
he says,
love your enemies
because God
does.
He says,
love your enemies
and do good
to them.
Lend,
expecting nothing
in return
and your reward
will be great
for you'll be
sons of the most high.
Listen to this,
for God
is kind
to the ungrateful
and the evil.
So,
even their
apparent prosperity
is like just God
being kind to them.
Like,
can you imagine
feeding your enemies?
Can you imagine
giving gifts
to your enemies?
That's like
a display
of God's grace
called common grace
in theological circles.
However,
right,
despite they may
have a big house,
they may have
a ton of cars,
they may have
a lot of money
in the bank,
they may have
a big retirement
laid up,
wearing the best
clothes,
it's nothing.
It's nothing.
Don't buy that.
It doesn't mean
anything.
God can blow it
away and it's gone.
Like,
if you don't
possess Christ,
you have nothing.
As the old
saying goes,
everything
minus Christ
equals nothing.
Right?
Everything minus Christ
equals nothing.
But Christ
minus everything
equals everything.
We possess
everything in Christ.
Solomon said,
more than likely
Solomon,
Ecclesiastes
chapter 1
verse 14,
I have seen
everything that is
done under the sun.
I've done it all.
And behold,
all is vanity
and a striving
after the wind.
It doesn't
satisfy.
So people who
really don't
have Christ,
it's not real.
They'll experience
pain, sorrow,
disappointment.
The joy of the
wicked is only
a mirage.
It's an illusion.
It's not real.
So,
don't buy the lie.
Right?
If you just saw
their outward condition,
you can't see their heart
and what's really
going on.
So,
secondly,
the joy of the wicked
is short-lived.
It's short-lived.
Hebrews 11 says,
they call sin
the fleeting
pleasures of sin.
So,
the joy they have
temporarily
is gone.
Like,
they may,
they have to go back
and back
and back again
to even get
some satisfaction.
They don't have
Christ who is
eternally satisfying.
And so,
those are the two
reasons.
It's not real
and it's short-lived.
Like,
their prosperity
and the joy
that they have.
And then,
moving in,
what else
convinced him
of this?
He saw
their judgment.
He saw
their end.
Right?
Look at that
in verse 18.
Truly you set them
in slippery places.
You make them
all fall
to ruin.
How they are
destroyed in a moment,
that swept away
utterly by terrors.
So,
they're boasting.
They're arrogant
about what they have.
And he's saying
that one day,
God will blow on that
and we'll be gone.
And they'll be
woken up
as if waking up
from a dream.
It'll be terrorizing
to them.
It will scare them.
Like nightmares,
it kind of says.
For he says
in verse 27,
all those
who are far from you
shall perish.
So really,
he just understood
this idea
that if they don't
have God,
they have nothing.
And their apparent
joy will be brought
to ruin one day
when God judges them.
Scripture is very
clear about this,
guys.
Hopefully,
most of you
in this room
out of believe
know Christ,
but I know
that there's so many
of you out there
who don't.
And you're probably
fooling yourself.
You think that
you can do
certain things
and God
not know about it.
Not okay.
The day of judgment
will come.
Zephaniah,
chapter 1,
verse 14,
is a prophecy
about
the final judgment
and the return
of Christ.
It's called
the day of the Lord
a lot of the times
in the Old Testament.
And it very much
parallels
what we see
in the New Testament
from what Jesus said
and from what John said
in Revelation.
The same kind of stuff.
But
I just want to read it.
Just a few verses
of it.
Not to scare you.
Well, maybe
if that's what
God's intent is.
But wake up.
If you're without Christ
today,
you have nothing.
But Zephaniah,
chapter 1,
verse 14,
it says,
the great day
of the Lord
is near,
near and hastening fast.
A sound
of the day
of the Lord
is bitter.
The mighty man
cries aloud.
A day of wrath
is that day.
A day of distress
and anguish.
A day of ruin
and devastation.
Of darkness
and gloom.
A day of clouds
and thick darkness.
And this is what
God says,
I will bring
distress
on mankind
so that they
shall walk
like the blind
because they
have sinned
against the Lord.
Their blood
shall be poured
out like dust
and their flesh
like dung.
Neither their silver
nor their gold
will be able
to save them.
So your wealth
will not save you
from this day.
Scary.
The fire
of his jealousy.
All the earth
shall be consumed
for a full
and sudden end
he will make
to all the inhabitants
of the earth.
That's what awaits
the wicked.
That's what awaits
people who are
think that they're
doing very well
right now
but without Christ
they possess nothing.
And he understands
that.
They don't have anything.
If they don't have Christ
they don't have anything.
So that he
that clicks
like he realizes
that it's not real.
So
so that's his conclusion.
He shifts
he shifts
his thought.
And this goes on
to our
last question.
What is the
psalmist's conclusion?
What is the
psalmist's conclusion?
See that?
Verse 21
through 28.
I won't read
all of this
right away
but
he says
let's pick a few
verses here.
He says
nevertheless
I am continually
with you.
you hold my right hand
you guide me
with your counsel
and afterwards
you receive me
to glory.
Right?
So
what he does
is he like
repents
of his jealous
covetous attitude.
Right?
You see that
in verse 15
or excuse me
verse 21
he says
I was angry
I was bitter
against you.
I was like a brute
before you.
The term brute
in the Hebrew here
is pretty cool.
It basically means
like
you're acting
like someone
who has never
been touched
by the grace
of God.
That's like
what it
reads.
He's saying
I was acting
that way.
I was envious.
Jesus said
in Luke 12
take care
and be on your guard
against all types
of covetousness
for one's life
does not consist
in the abundance
of his possessions.
Right?
They don't have
anything.
So never judge
God's love
based on
whether or not
he grants you
something
you want.
That's it.
Don't judge
God's love
based on
if he grants
you something
or he doesn't.
So
Spurgeon
again
he says
if earthly goods
were of much value
then why
does the Lord
give such a large
measure of them
to those who hate him.
True.
It is a pitiful thing.
Here's a
man this is so convicting.
He says
it is a pitiful thing
that an heir
of heaven
should ever
have to confess
I was envious.
When we possess
all in Christ
there's no grounds
for us to feel that way.
So
turn to this
please
hold your hand
in Psalm 73
but look at Job 42.
Job 42.
An heir
of heaven
should never
have to confess
that they were
envious.
Job 42
verse 1.
So
after Job
had been
disciplined
in a way
by God
God had
answered him
right
and his answer
is basically
I'm God
who are you
to question
me
and after
this encounter
he is
completely
humbled
and this
is his
response
in a similar
way
that
Asaph
is responding
in this
Psalm.
Verse 1
it says
Job
answered the
Lord
and said
I know
that you
can do
all
things
and no
purpose
of yours
can be
thwarted
who is
this
who hides
counsel
without
knowledge
therefore
I have
utterly
uttered
what I
did not
understand
things too
wonderful for
me
which I did
not know
so he's
saying
like I
was
speaking
about
stuff
I had
no idea
about
when I
was
questioning
you
I
was
clueless
and it
says
hear
and I
will
speak
I
will
question
you
and you
will
make
it
known
to
me
I
have
heard
of
you
by
the
hearing
of
the
ear
but
now
my
eyes
see
you
therefore
I
despise
myself
and I
repent
in dust
and ashes
so that
was his
response
like
who am
I
repent
of
this
attitude
I
had
towards
you
so
a couple
other
things
realize
and believe
that God
is still
good
that he
is still
sovereign
and even
despite
of our
the sin
that we
have
often
of doubting
him
not
trusting
him
when he
has won
our trust
a thousand
thousand
times
over
we still
doubt him
all the
time
he
still
bears
with
us
through
that
he
knows
what
is
good
and
he
knows
what's
best
for
you
so
write
this
down
if
you're
taking
notes
like
this
was
probably
like
one
of
the
most
convicting
things
to me
in my
prayer
life
I
remember
doubting
God's
goodness
to me
because
I
was
feeling
very
sick
a
relationship
that I
wanted
at the
time
was
not
working
out
and I
was
doubting
like his
goodness
in that
moment
this was
a few
years
ago
and this
is what
I really
felt
the spirit
just impressed
on me
okay
be careful
with impressions
Bible
first
alright
but
if you
ever
doubt
God's
goodness
and love
towards
you
look
no
further
than
the
cross
okay
if
you
doubt
that
like
God
took
care
of
your
greatest
need
and
sacrificed
his
own
son
to bring
you
eternal
good
in
him
that's
enough
that's
greater
than
anything
in
this
world
he
could
give
you
he
brought
you
back
to
himself
through
the
death
of
Christ
he
reconciled
you
to
himself
and
so
for
centuries
ancient
writers
have
called
God
son
of
which
means
like
he
is
the
chiefest
of
all
goods
the
greatest
of
all
goods
even
our
English
word
our
old
Saxon
word
for
God
means
the
good
because
he
is
good
Psalm
84
verse
11
this
is
so
good
for
the
Lord
God
is
a
sun
!
and
!
the
Lord
bestows
favor
and
honor
and
hear
this
no
good
thing
does
he
withhold
from
those
who
walk
up
rightly
no
good
thing
does
he
withhold
from
those
who
walk
up
rightly
so
as
the
as
a
man
said
a
long
time
ago
so
if
God
withholds
something
from
you
then
it
wasn't
good
for
you
in
that
moment
at
least
right
so
we
can
trust
him
trust
him
he's
worthy
to be
trusted
and
so
lastly
under
this
realize
and believe
that God
is enough
all right
not all
this stuff
that people
have you
don't need
you think
you do
but you
don't
verse
25
and
26
in
psalm
73
whom
have
I
in
heaven
but
you
and
there
is
nothing
on
the
earth
I
desire
besides
you
my
flesh
and
my
heart
may
fail
but
God
is
the
strength
of my
heart
and my
portion
forever
so
though
you
possess
little
on
this
earth
if
you
have
God
you
have
an
abundance
for
all
eternity
forever
so
though
you
may
struggle
tempted
to doubt
that
he
is
our
portion
see
that
in
the
verse
it
really
just
means
the
portion
doesn't
mean
like
a
slice
of
something
it
means
like
that
which
completely
satisfy
you
and
fills
you
completely
God
is
your
portion
!
And
he
is
the
!
the
strength
of
your
heart
so
I
like
to
pick
on
people
occasionally
just
for
my
own
pride
I guess
that's
what it
is
sometimes
it's
just
all in
good
fun
but
I
kind
of
watch
as
words
come
and
go
in
college
culture
particularly
it
seemed
like
for
three
years
one
word
hung
on
awkward
this
is
awkward
that
is
awkward
you
are
awkward
like
everything
was
awkward
!
can you
learn the
English
language
a little
better
and not
use
that
all
the
time
because
this
isn't
awkward
but
the
one
I
hear
lately
though
is
the
word
literally
this
literally
that
literally
this
but
this
is
going
to
be
like
literally
true
when I
say
this
in the
sense
of the
English
word
literally
right
you
literally
have
nothing
if
you
don't
have
Christ
and
you
literally
have
everything
if
you
do
possess
Christ
and
you
need
nothing
else
I
tell
guys
that
I'm
sharing
the
gospel
with
you
like
anything
you're
living
your
life
for
that
can
be
taken
away
from
you
is
not
worth
living
your
life
for
sports
relationships
this
is
all
going
to
go
this
great
body
and
great
!
health
you
have
it's
not
worth
it
so
the
last
thing
we're
going
to
do
turn
to
psalm
16
we'll
end
right
here
but
I
will
throw
out
there
that
this
psalm
this
conclusion
that
Asaph
has
it
leads
him
to
want
to
go
and
tell
others
about
God
okay
so
he
doesn't
just
stop
there
and
say
I
have
God
and
I'm
not
going
to
give
anybody
else
he
explodes
with
this
idea
that
I
have
to
tell
of
his
works
in
verse
28
I
have
made
the
Lord
God
my
refuge
that
I
may
tell
of
all
your
works
so
pity
those
who
are
without
Christ
and
go
to
them
and
give
them
the
truth
so
psalm
16
this
is
David
now
verse
5
the
Lord
is
my
chosen
portion
and
my
cup
you
hold
my
lot
the
lions
have
fallen
for
me
in
pleasant
places
indeed
I
have a
beautiful
inheritance
I
bless
the
Lord
who
gives
me
counsel
in
the
night
also
my
heart
also
instructs
me
I
have
set
the
Lord
always
before
me
he
is
at
my
right
hand
and
I
shall
not
be
shaken
therefore
my
heart
is
glad
and
my
whole
being
rejoices
my
flesh
also
dwells
secure
for
listen
to
this
for
you
will
not
abandon
!
my
soul
to
shield
or
let
your
holy
one
see
corruption
here
you
make
known
to
me
the
path
of
life
and
in
your
presence
there
is
fullness
of
joy
and
at
your
right
hand
there
are
pleasures
forever
more
amen
brought
this up
here
might as
well
use
it
so
cleaning
out
my
stuff
because
I'm
getting
ready
to
move
it's
like
a
nightmare
moving
so
I
found
something
that I
wrote
when I
was
16
but
like
I
got
a
job
that
was
paying
me
pretty
well
at
a
warehouse
and
so
all
of
a
sudden
I
have
money
and
I
put
things
to
buy
with
my
money
and
it
says
listen
to
this
it's
a
typical
country
boy
wish list
toolbox
for my
truck
which
I
never
got
3030
Winchester
I
got
that
12
gauge
shotgun
I
got
that
a
male
basset
hound
I
got
that
his
name
was
Fred
he
died
a
fishing
pole
got
it
four
wheeler
kind
of
got
it
45
pistol
I
got
a
40
not
a
45
boots
belt
buckle
a
horse
I
put
horse
$2,000
I
had
really
saved
for
that
one
I
never
got
it
but
I
rode
my
brother's
horses
so
it
worked
so
and
like
I
really
thought
this
stuff
was
going
to
do
it
like
this
stuff
was
going
to
do
it
and
a few
years
ago
if you
had
asked
me
what
three
things
will
satisfy
your
soul
if you
had
three
wishes
what
would
satisfy
it
I
would
say
better
health
I
would
say
a
job
or a
career
I
really
love
and
I
would
say
to
be
married
and
have
a
family
like
God
has
given
me
definitely
two
of
those
things
I
have
better
health
I
love
what
I
do
and
then
a
week
I'll
have
the
third
thing
but
if
but
if
those
other
two
things
didn't
satisfy
me
as
great
as
she
is
right
as
thankful
as
I
am
that
she'll
be
my
wife
soon
she's
not
going
to
do
it
either
and
I'm
not
going
to
do
it
for
her
like
Christ
only
will
satisfy
only
will
satisfy
don't
mean
a
word
of
prayer