Seeking God Through the Psalms
09/05/2004 - A Psalm for Chumps
Do you know what a chump is? A chump is somebody who tries hard to live life by the rules and do everything right, but never seems to get ahead. Chumps can sometimes feel like they're always getting the raw end of the deal. Charlie Brown was a chump. It always rained on his parade, and on his baseball game, and on his life. Nothing ever seemed to go Charlie Brown's way and our hearts go out to him.
Leo Durocher, the Hall of Fame manager, was describing chumps when he said, "Nice guys finish last." And they sometimes do, in this life. Let me warn you, if you're serious about following Jesus Christ sooner or later you're going to feel like a chump. You're going to wonder, "Is this all worth it?"
I love the way Bill Hybels describes that chump feeling when he says, "You're in the express lane at the supermarket and the sign says, 'Eight items or less.' So you count your items and you have 9. You obey the sign and go to the next aisle and watch shopper after shopper with 9, 10, 12, 15 items zip through the express lane while you stand for 20 minutes behind a woman who is catering a dinner for a marching band. And you walk out of the store feeling like a chump."
"It's tax time when people routinely see it as their role in life to keep the IRS on their toes. So they forget a little income, fudge a little on their expenses and think, 'No big deal.' But you don't do that. You meticulously record every single penny you've made. And so when the refund checks are issued your friends go out and buy big screen TV's and take exotic trips to the islands, while you treat your family to dinner at Wendy's. And you feel like a chump."
"You know how chumps drive? They put on their seat belts and drive the speed limit while the rest of the world goes whizzing by with their radar detectors and fuzz busters. Do you ever feel like a chump?"
The psalm we're going to look at today reveals the heart of a man who feels like a spiritual chump and he's sick and tired of it. He's tired of seeing the wicked prosper while the righteous get the raw end of the deal. And he wonders, "Is it worth it? Is it really worth it to live for God?" He's conflicted because the realities of his life seem to contradict his convictions about God.
Do you ever wonder that? Do you ever wonder why life can be so difficult for people who really want to please God? While those who could care less about God seem to have it made in the shade. Everything seems to go their way. It can challenge our faith. It challenges mine. If you've ever wondered that, then this psalm was written for you.
This morning we conclude our summer series called Seeking God Through the Psalms with a look at Psalm 73 and a teaching I've called "A Psalm for Chumps." If you have a Bible turn to Psalm 73 and listen as I read.
Psalm 73, A psalm of Asaph. Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. 2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. 5 They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. 6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. 7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits. 8 They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression. 9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth. 10 Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. 11 They say, "How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?" 12 This is what the wicked are like - always carefree, they increase in wealth. 13 Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence. 14 All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning. 15 If I had said, "I will speak thus," I would have betrayed your children. 16 When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me 17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. 18 Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. 19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! 20 As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies. 21 When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, 22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you. 23 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. 24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. 25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. 27 Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. 28 But as for me, it is good to be near God, I have made the Sovereign Lordmy refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.
Psalm 73 was written by a man named Asaph. Asaph was one of Israel's three worship leaders while David was king. He was a spiritually mature man who had significant spiritual responsibilities. He wrote twelve psalms altogether, Psalm 73 through Psalm 83, along with Psalm 50. Scholars call this a wisdom psalm because it gives us wisdom and insight into how life works.
In this psalm, Asaph is gut level honest to God. He takes the gloves off and tells God things that he's really struggling with, things that he's never told anyone else. He pulls back the curtain and exposes the ugliness of his heart. He is angry and bitter at God.
He says, "God, I don't get it! I know you're good. But, when I Iook around I get jealous of all those living on Easy Street. My faith is really slipping right now. It looks to me like the wicked don't have any problems. No worries in life. They're fit and trim, healthy and strong. Yet they totally ignore you. They don't go to church, read their Bibles, pray, serve, give. Nothing. Sometimes they do some pretty horrible stuff and seem to get away with murder. Which makes me wonder, 'What's the use? Why live for God?' They have it easy. I have it tough. I can't figure it out. And I can't say anything to anybody because I'm a highly respected spiritual leader and I don't want to lead anyone astray. So I'm confessing my struggles to you and it's tearing me up inside."
One of the many temptations that Christ followers face is the temptation to envy the prosperity of others, especially those who don't appear to have God in their lives at all. Asaph refers to them as "the wicked."
He describes them as arrogant and prosperous, as beautiful and attractive, carefree and struggle free. Everything they touch turns to gold. They're the beautiful people, the movers and shakers in his world who totally blow God off. And they seem to get away with it. They're bulletproof. On the outside it looks like they have everything going for them.
On the other hand, Asaph is doing his very best to live for God, to keep his heart pure. He's trying to do the right things and think the right things and say the right things. Yet everyday is a struggle for him and he feels like a spiritual chump. He wonders if it's all worth it. In verse 13-14 he says, Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure. In vain have I washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been plagued. I have been punished every morning. Why should people who hate God be better off than those who love God? It doesn't make sense. I don't get it!
Asaph saw it and you see it too. You go to work and try to live honestly and ethically and keep your hands clean, but you're surrounded by people who muddy up their hands every single day. And they cut deals doing it. In fact, that's often what it takes to get the deals done. And you sit there with your clean hands and your clean conscience cleaned out because there are just certain things you're not going to do. But a clean conscience doesn't pay the bills and get the bonuses and so you look up and say, "God I don't get it. I hate being a chump. Why do good things happen to bad people?"
You're in college and you set the alarm each morning and you drag yourself out of bed to get to that 8 o'clock class that some of your classmates blow off. And you listen to the lecture and you take notes and keep up with the reading assignments and do your homework. But the night before the big test you get a knock on your dorm room door and some of your buddies want to borrow your notes so that they can cram all night.
So you let them make a copy and you all take the test. But a few days later when you get the results back you find out that they all did better than you did. They got A's and you got a C+. And on top of that they're joking about how they cheated and got away with it. And you wonder, "God, I don't get it. I went to class, I took notes, I read, I studied, I even prayed before I took the test and they all did better. I hate being a chump. It's not fair!"
Asaph confesses his doubts about his faith, which nearly buried him when he compared his life to others. But then he discovers something that helps him turn the corner and regain his faith. He catches a glimpse of the big picture and the end of the story. Look at verses 16-17, When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me 17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.
Asaph goes to church or to his Bible or to someplace where he meets God who reveals two great promises to him that change everything. But he never would have turned the corner if he didn't take time to meet with God. That's what Sunday's for. That's what worship does and the Word and the Lord's Table and prayer and quiet moments with God during the week. They put God back at the center of our vision. And only when God is at the center of our vision do we see things the way they really are.
And in the sanctuary God gives him two promises. The first promise is that obedience to God does pay off in this life.
Look at verses 21-26, When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, 22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you. 23 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. 24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. 25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Obedience may not always mean higher test scores or bigger paychecks but it does mean a greater sense of the presence of God in our lives and you can't put a price tag on that. It doesn't always pay off materially. It doesn't mean we'll be insulated from adversity, but obedience to God is the best way to live. It is the pathway to blessing. Keeping God first in our lives will keep us from being bitter, senseless, ignorant, brute beasts.
Psalm 1 puts it this way. Turn to Psalm 1 and look at what it says, Blessed are those who do not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But their delight is in the law of the Lord , and on his law they meditate day and night. 3 They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in season and whose leaves do not wither. Whatever they do prospers. 4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
Blessed, "happy, fulfilled," is the man or woman who chooses the path marked obedience, because that path leads to the land of blessedness and fruitfulness. But the path of disobedience leads to the land of brokenness and destruction.
Sooner or later every believer will discover that obedience to God pays off in this life. One time Jesus' disciples were worried about being spiritual chumps. They wondered whether following Jesus was really worth it all or if they were just kidding themselves. So they asked Jesus about it. And in response he said something remarkable.
Turn to Mark 10:28 and read these words with me, Peter said to him (Jesus), "We have left everything to follow you!" 29 "I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields - and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first."
This is a promise straight from the lips of Jesus to those who make sacrifices to follow him. And some of those sacrifices may put us at odds with our families or cost us financially. There will be persecutions, yes. Yet, Jesus himself says that those sacrifices will be rewarded a hundred fold in this life and in the next. It's an amazing promise that only spiritual chumps understand.
To those who have severed ties that once provided earthly security, protection, and affection Jesus promises a new kind of security, total security in him, and divine protection and the affection of a new kind of family of brothers and sisters and greater adventure and fulfillment in this life than we ever dreamed possible. Following Jesus isn't just the best way to die, it's the best way to live.
God blesses spiritual chumps in extraordinary ways if they're willing to keep their hands clean and their hearts pure over the long haul. Obedience to God pays dividends like a peace that the world can't comprehend, a contentment that God is in control, purpose in life that is laser focused, a joy that's not tied to circumstances, a sense of dignity and self-worth that comes from knowing God loves us, divine companionship, supernatural wisdom, a community of caring brothers and sisters, miraculous provisions. Obedience to God pays off in this life.
That's the first promise that Asaph discovered when he entered the sanctuary and took his eyes off himself and others and fixed them on God. That's the power of worship. And the second promise that he discovered is that obedience to God pays off in the next life as well.
Look again at verse 24, You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.
Another psalm, Psalm 23, puts it this way in verse 6, Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Jesus also referred to future pay offs in Mark 10:30 when he said, in this present age, and in the age to come, eternal life. The Bible has a lot to say about future rewards given to those who are willing to be chumps for Jesus. It's the big picture, the end of the story that gives Asaph hope.
One reason I love Sunday's at Valley View is because it gives me a chance to reboot my life and reorient me around eternal values. Worshiping God together, hearing God's Word taught, listening to stories like we did a few weeks ago, celebrating the Lord's Table, being with the community, reminds me of the big picture and of the things that really matter in life. He helps me to keep chumping along.
Asaph collects himself and realizes that corner cutters and fast trackers might not have it so good after all. They're climbing up a very slippery slope.
Look at verses 18-20, Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. 19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! 20 As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies.
People who live life without God may look prosperous on the outside, but inside they often live with the fear that one day they're going to be found out. I read about a man who for thirty years cheated the IRS. And when he was asked why he finally stopped he said, "I got sick and tired of worrying about the knock on the door. I couldn't live with the anxiety anymore."
Corner cutters live with the constant fear of being found out, of that letter that comes from the government, the summons that comes from the court, the phone call that comes from the suspicious spouse. Slippery places. People who defy God expend enormous amounts of emotional energy keeping their guard up and their stories straight and their backs covered.
Drop down to verses 27-28, Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. 28 But as for me, it is good to be near God, I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds. People who live life without God face disaster in eternity. This is the worst consequence of all.
Again Psalm 1 puts it this way in verses 4-6, The wicked are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
Make no mistake about it, the price of disobedience is always higher than the price of obedience. Obedience to God will always cost us something, but a life of disobedience to God will cost us everything in the end. It's just not worth it.
At the very end of the Bible we see the kings and rulers in the book of Revelation screaming for the mountains to fall on them before they have to stand before a holy God and face judgment. I read passages like that and I say it's not so bad being a spiritual chump. Jesus once told a story about a rich man and a poor man named Lazarus. The poor man had God in his life and died and went to heaven. But the rich man didn't. And from the flames of hell he begged to go back and tell his family to make sure they have God in their lives too. I read that and I say it's not so bad being a chump for Jesus.
Everyday we face the choice to obey God or to disobey him, to be a chump or to live life in the fast lane. Everyday we have opportunities to respond to the quiet promptings of the Holy Spirit or ignore them and go our own way. We can choose to be a chump with our feet planted firmly on a rock, or we can join the corner cutters and the fast trackers and start the slide down the slippery slope. Which will it be?