Right Thinking in a Troubled World - 2

Introduction - The world in which we live is a troubled world.

The world is troubled because of sin.

We think about the peace that is described in the book of Genesis, how that in the beginning God created and called all before Him “very good.” (Genesis 1:31)

But then sin entered into the world by the wrong choices, we might say the wrong thinking, of Adam and Eve.

From that time of the fall moving forward the world has faced great calamity.

The Bible tells us speaking of the world around us in Romans 8:22 “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.”

In the book of Isaiah 57:20 we read, “…the wicked are like the troubled sea, When it cannot rest, Whose waters cast up mire and dirt.”

You see the world around us is troubled.

I am reminded that Ahab tried to accuse Elijah of troubling the nation of Israel, when in fact it is man sinning against God who has troubled this world.

1 Kings 18:17 says, “17 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?”

And such is the case for the world, they would look at Christians and attempt to blame them for the troubles that the world faces.

To which Elijah responds in 1 Kings 18:18 “18 And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.”

The fact that I am trying to point out is that we live in a troubled world.

Since we live in a troubled world, we must come to a place of right thinking in a troubled world.

We are looking at Psalm 77 because it shows us a man who had great difficulty in his thinking.

The man’s name is Asaph.

Asaph’s struggle is recorded for us in Psalm 77.

We have looked at the first six verses and have seen:

I. The Occupation With Self vs 1-6

There is:

The Cry Unto God vs 1

The Comfort That Escapes Me vs 2

The Complaint Within vs 3

The Conflict Taking Place vs 4

The Comparison To The Past vs. 5

The Communion With Self vs. 6

That brings us to the second major point in the first section:

What does the occupation with self bring? It brings an certain outcome.

II. The Outcome of Misery vs 7-9

Psalm 77:7–9 “7 Will the Lord cast off for ever? And will he be favourable no more? 8 Is his mercy clean gone for ever? Doth his promise fail for evermore? 9 Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies? Selah.”

Misery for the Christian is when we lose sight of God.

In these three verses we see great difficulty in the life of Asaph.

A. The Questions that Plaque Us.

There are three areas of concern mentioned by Asaph.

We already know that Asaph is seeking the Lord for help. This is a wonderful thing.

A christian ought to seek the Lord.

Because of his situation, He that has this dark day before him begins to ask about the reality of what he already knows about God.

Exalting Jesus in Psalms 51-100 (We Get to Be Weak (Psalm 77:1–10))

Psalm 77 is a believer trying to breathe. Christian friend, the fight of faith involves discerning the difference between our feelings and the truth. These verses don’t want to encourage you to fall in love with doubts you may be having about God. No, what we’re supposed to hear in this is God saying, “You don’t have to presort everything. Bring all of that mess to me. I want you to cast all your cares, all your anxieties on me

We see the reality of a man who begins to ask questions that he already knows the answers to.

The good news is, that we do not have to rely solely upon the counsel of our own heart when we ask these questions, but we can turn to the Word of God.

Asaph asks six questions that can be broken into three categories.

The first category is this:

The Question of God’s Presence.

He asks the question of God’s abiding presence. “Will the Lord cast off for ever?”

In other words there seems to be a seperation between us and God.

Sometimes in the pit of despair we feel this way— as if we are on an island by ourselves.

Jeremiah addresses this after seeing the desolation of the nation of Israel when He stated in Lamentations 3:31 “31 For the Lord will not cast off for ever:”

Psalm 16:11 tells us, “11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: In thy presence is fulness of joy; At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”

Perhaps part of the malady that you face is you feel as if God is not a present help in your time of need.

The Scriptures however indicate otherwise do they not, Psalm 46:1 tells us, “1 God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.”

In Genesis 3:8 after the fall of man, Adam and Eve hid themselves from the presence of God.

The great privilege of the child of God is to be in the presence of God.

Having trusted Christ, we are reconciled to God.

Romans 5:10 tells us, “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”

In difficult times however, we might ask, “Has the Lord cast off forever?”

Moses in Exodus chapter 33, stated, that His life and the life of the nation was dependent upon the presence of God.

Moses stated, “If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.” (Exodus 33:15)

My friend can I assure you this morning that God has not left you or forsaken you.

Can I encourage you by reminding you what you already know, God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1)

This my friend is the opening line of Psalm 46.

Turn with me there for a moment.

Psalm 46 “To the chief Musician for the sons of Korah, A Song upon Alamoth. 1 God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; 3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, Though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. 4 There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, The holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early. 6 The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: He uttered his voice, the earth melted. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah. 8 Come, behold the works of the Lord, What desolations he hath made in the earth. 9 He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; He burneth the chariot in the fire. 10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.”

We have not only a question of God’s presence, but a question of God’s pity.

The Question of God’s Pity.

Psalm 77:7–8 “7 …And will he be favourable no more? 8 Is his mercy clean gone for ever? …”

The psalmist asks in verses 7 and 8, “Will he be favourable no more?

“Is his mercy clean gone for ever?”

In Verse 9 we find, “9 Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies? Selah.”

In the midst of great difficulty I have noticed in my own life, how it is that we begin to speak in negative absolutes.

Asaph does not just ask is God’s mercy gone, but rather is His mercy gone forever?

Have we exhausted the compassion of God?

We might say as Paul did so often in the Epistles He penned, God forbid.

In verse 7 the allusion again is to the comparison of what God had done in times past to Asaph’s present circumstance.

He says by this statement in effect I know God was favourable to me in times past, will He never be favorable again?

What I want us to recognize is the raw transparent nature of these questions, by a child of God—

God did not filter these questions from His Word, but rather, we have here a transparent record of a man struggling with what we he feels versus the reality of the Lord’s presence, pity and promises.

In the book of Exodus in chapter 34, the Bible tells us that Moses presented Himself to the LORD after the he had destroyed the original tablets God had written on.

He was told by God to present Himself in the mount with two new tablets hewn from stone of which God would write again what He had written the first time.

When Moses presents Himself on the top of the mountain the Bible tells us that the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with Moses there and proclaimed the name of the Lord.

Verse 6 of that chapter records a marvelous proclamation of who God is.

Exodus 34:6 “6 And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,”

When God proclaims Himself and reveals Himself to man He does so by stating, The Lord God, merciful and gracious…

My friend regardless of how you feel, what the situation seems to be dictating… regardless of what it may seem like… can I help you, God is merciful and gracious.

The question is not will God be favourable?

My friend even in our worst days here on this earth God is favorable to you and me!

Is God’s mercy clean gone forever? Have we exhausted the mercy of God? My friend we have not!

The last question is a question of God’s promises

The Question of God’s Promises.

Psalm 77:8 “… Doth his promise fail for evermore?”

Like the questions before, Asaph asks with finality—- our God’s promises annulled, are they done away with?

I am reminded of the despairing statements of the disciples on the road to Emmaus they stated, “we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done.” Luke 24:21

Charles Spurgeon remarked concerning this question that, “The questions are suggested by fear, but they are also the cure of fear. It is a blessed thing to have grace enough to look such questions in the face, for their answer is self-evident and eminently fitted to cheer the heart.” C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David: Psalms 56-87, vol. 3 (London; Edinburgh; New York: Marshall Brothers, n.d.), 314.

I remember a man of God whom I greatly admired once rightly said this, “I am never afraid of the truth.”

My friend, if we get to the truth of these questions and reckon on the answers by faith— we see the salve that will heal the wounds of our despondency.

The fact is we serve the God who is present with us.

The fact is we serve the God who has pity upon us.

The fact is the God we serve has exceedingly great and precious promises that He has made to us.

The psalmist makes a turn in His thinking.

He realizes that the thoughts that He has been wrestling with are not right thoughts.

And in fact, it becomes clear to Him that His thinking has departed from truth.

Where do we find truth? We know the answer to that question.

The Bible tells us in John 17:17 “17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”

In other words, when our thoughts depart from truth we are bound for trouble.

Dr. John Goestch stated, “The challenge is”

as we will see in a moment

“to discipline our thoughts in the right direction so that we can live the right result.”

When Paul spoke to the church in Philippi, he stated, “Think on these things…”

What are we to think on?

Philippians 4:8–9 “8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.”

You see my friend, it is not just that we need to think on those things are true— or those things that are lovely… per say…, for that would be subjective… would it not?

In other words, we may be rationalizing truth from our perspective. We may have a difference of opinion on what is lovely.

But rather we are to see what have we been instructed in the Word of God.

Paul spent time teaching those in Philippi the truth of God’s Word.

And He states to them— go back to what I have taught you in the Word of God. Go back to what you have received. Go back to what you have heard of me while I was there.

Ultimately this is what we will see in the life of Asaph in this Psalm. Asaph is going to go back to a place of right thinking from the Word of God.

Notice with me this second major section,

IV. The Occupation With God vs 10-12

The turning point in Asaph’s mind is seen in verse 10.

Psalm 77:10 “10 And I said, This is my infirmity: But I will remember the years of the right hand of the most High.”

A. The Identification of His Infirmity. vs 10

What exactly is Asaph’s infirmity?

Was His infirmity an external problem?

We see that this was not the difficulty he faced.

There certainly were external influences upon his life, as is such with all of us.

All of us live in a troubled world.

All of us live in the in between…in between what— the present time and the eternal future.

We do not have the ability to change the world. However, we can change our thinking.

If the problem he was facing was in fact external to him, it would be named in this Psalm, but it is not.

In other words, the implication is that this infirmity the psalmist is facing can be traced back to what we discover in the first nine verses.

What did we find in the first nine verses?

Asaph’s infirmity is discovered in his poor thinking.

Here is the problem- oftentimes, we do not recognize our poor thinking and so therefore we continue in it.

You and I must first recognize our infirmity.

We must admit to our infirmity.

It does us know good to ignore the infirmity for it is only bound to show up more vigorously.

Not only do we see the identification of His infirmity, but secondly we see the:

B. The Insistence On His Right-Thinking

In verses 10-12 we see a series of “I will” statements. Do you realize here in these statements is the idea of action and choice on the part of Asaph?

Asaph stated, I know my infirmity…

Now He says, “I will…”

The first “I will” is supplied by the translators, however, by the content in verses 11-12 we can see the phrase is not unfounded.

Psalm 77:10 “… I will remember the years of the right hand of the most High.”

Psalm 77:11 “11 I will remember the works of the Lord: Surely I will remember thy wonders of old.”

Psalm 77:12 “12 I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.”

We see a five fold occupation with God.

Of which we will deal with next week. The main thought I want you to grasp though is the difference in the life of the believer when they are occupied with self versus being occupied with God.

The first deals with God’s sovereignty and exaltation.

“Here the eternity of God is contrasted with the hand-breadth measure of man.” Joseph S. Exell, The Biblical Illustrator: The Psalms, vol. 3, The Biblical Illustrator (New York; Chicago; Toronto; London; Edinburgh: Fleming H. Revell Company; Francis Griffiths, 1909), 384.

Notice what is stated in verse 10.

There is a connection with Abraham and victory in this verse.

Asaph speaks of God as the Most High God.

Turn with me for a moment to Genesis 14.

Here we see the introduction of Meckizedech who is referred to as the Priest of the Most High God or El- Elyon.

This is the first occurence of this name ascribed to God.

Psalm 90:15–16 “15 Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, And the years wherein we have seen evil. 16 Let thy work appear unto thy servants, And thy glory unto their children.”