The Strength of My Heart
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Psalm 73 is a psalm of self-analysis. It is a time of introspection and reflection. Having times like this are very important for us as it can be wonderfully healing and nurturing to reflect on what God has done for us. The Psalmist gives us a wonderful outline in verses 21-26 that help us remember the condition, the cure, the counsel and the comfort we have through a relationship with God.
When my heart was grieved
and my spirit embittered,
I was senseless and ignorant;
I was a brute beast before you.
Yet I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will take me into glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.
The Condition (vs. 21-22)
The Condition (vs. 21-22)
The condition is outlined in verse 21. Before a person gives his or her heart to God, allowing Him to enter in and dwell there, the condition of the heart is one of grieving. It is so because the heart is not being used as it has been designed. It is worse than what Billy Ray Cyrus meant when he sang, “Don’t tell my heart, my achy breaky heart, I just don’t think he’d understand.”
A heart without God is one that is hopeless and that hopelessness causes a grieving that is like no other. I have led, participated and attended hundreds of funerals. I can tell you that the ones grieving who do not know God are much more hopeless than the ones that do. It seems no matter what one does, a sad heart cannot be remedied apart from God.
Like one who takes away a garment on a cold day,
or like vinegar poured on soda,
is one who sings songs to a heavy heart.
Even in laughter the heart may ache,
and joy may end in grief.
When there is hope no hope, the heart grieves.
I read this quote recently that said, “Grieving is like having broken ribs: On the outside you look fine, but with every breath, it hurts.” The person without God is like that as well.
We are aliens and strangers in your sight, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope.
The heart in the Old Testament refers to the mind. If you do not know God your heart will grieve and be hopeless. A grieving heart, according to Psalm 73:21, is accompanied by an embittered spirit. The Hebrew word for spirit here is translated kilyah. It was believed that the kidneys were the seat of emotions. The literal translation of that phrase means “I felt stabbed in my kidneys.” The pain in like having a kidney stone.
Being apart from God causes stinging pains. The agony of the emotions and the thoughts apart from God reminded the Psalmist that he was senseless. It literally means that he was stupid. I know we are not supposed to use that “s” word but how more blunt can our writer be? He goes on to say that not only was stupid, but he was ignorant, which means not discerning. He compares himself to that of a brute beast in respect to his conduct before the Lord. A brute beast would be an animal like a hippopotamus. It only thinks of the present and not of things to come. That type of person would be like what was mentioned in Psalm 78:37:
their hearts were not loyal to him,
they were not faithful to his covenant.
What a mess this guy was in on a path without God!
He mentions in Psalm 73:2 the severity of his dilemma:
But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;
I had nearly lost my foothold.
Notice the words “almost” and “nearly” that are mentioned there. These words tell me that there is a “BUT GOD” coming, and we see that unfold in the rest of the verses. You see, we cannot fully embrace what God does for us unless we fully understand the condition we are in apart from Him. But God....thanks be to God there is a cure!
The Cure (vs. 23)
The Cure (vs. 23)
Yet I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.
In spite of, God is close enough to be with us. In fact, our Abba Father is close enough to hold on to our hand. God as our Father and our example is not going to cause us to grieve or be more embittered.
Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.
He is going to draw us close and protect us. By the way, in the Old Testament the phrase “hold m by my right hand” is a declaration of that protection and help.
My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.
So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
For I am the Lord, your God,
who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help you.
“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people
and a light for the Gentiles,
Are you clinging to the right hand of God? There’s great promise doing so!
I have set the Lord always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
Aren’t you glad that God still has compassion for those who have drifted away? The cure is that God loves us so much that He gave us His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life!
He gives us the cure and then gives us His counsel.
The Counsel (vs. 24)
The Counsel (vs. 24)
You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will take me into glory.
We are so fortunate that God gives us counsel through His written word and spoken word.
My sister Lynette is quite the write. She has developed a beautiful hobby of taking pictures, writing a reflective thought and posting it on social media. This week, not knowing I was speaking on this passage, wrote the most beautiful synopsis of this verse I could ever see.
She writes:
Reaching into my mailbox, I pulled out a bright envelope with the printed wording: “Awake Each Day to the Wonders of Jesus; Spend Time In His Comforting Presence Every Day”. Looking at the address, I began to laugh and thought, “This goal certainly has been accomplished.” You see, the targeted recipient of this advertisement for a devotional book was my dear mother-in-law, who left this earth almost four years ago. The wording of invitation sent me on a reflective journey, thinking about the 16 years my mother-in-law had lived with us and imagining the brightness and marvels that she must be experiencing in her new life.
Then I began to think about the many devotional books that line the shelves in my home. While each served a purpose for a season, I wondered about their current value as they collect dust on the shelves. There were times when I erroneously thought that a certain book would be the answer I was searching for. The messages were good, but by themselves they were not enough.
I clipped out the wording from the advertisement and stuck on my kitchen bulletin board to remind myself. It IS a daily choice to spend time in the Comforting Presence of Jesus. My busiest days should be the considered the most vital days to do so. I thank God for the prompt and the wording... While I don’t desire an additional book right now, I definitely need to ensure time to pray and meditate on God’s Word. That’s the way to the ‘Comforting Presence’!
“You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Psalm 73:24-26 ESV
Her reflective thoughts are a great segway to what these last verses give us. God gives us comfort.
The Comfort (vs. 25-26)
The Comfort (vs. 25-26)
Look at those words again:
Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.
There is nothing greater than our God.
There is nothing stronger than our God.
There is nothing mightier than our God.
There is nothing more loving than our God!
Our desire must be toward Him and our delight must be in Him! God is more glorious than anything!
For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord?
Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings?
Only God is capable of fully satisfying! Through Him, we are confirmed and comforted.
This passage tells us that our flesh will fail us. Our hearts will fail us. The death rate remains 100%!
But God, He is the strength of my heart! He is my Rock.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.
He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
He is my firm foundation. He is capable of bearing the weight of all that weighs me down, that weighs you down, and all your kin and my kin....every bit of it!
He is the strength of our hearts and He is our portion.
Portion comes from the Hebrew word cheleq. It means reward.
Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
you have made my lot secure.
You are my portion, O Lord;
I have promised to obey your words.
I cry to you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living.”
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion…then notice the last word: Forever!
The word forever helps us understand why we need to have such a self analysis that I mentioned at the beginning. God is forever. Another passage in Psalm 103:17 reminds us that the Lord’s love is from everlasting to everlasting. God is forever! We have the opportunity to experience the presence of God Almighty.
Why would God even allow us to have such an experience? In Psalm 73:16-17, the Psalmist even says when he tried to understand it all it was oppressive to him. The Message translation says it this way:
Still, when I tried to figure it out,
all I got was a splitting headache …
Until I entered the sanctuary of God.
Then I saw the whole picture:
We do not need to figure it out. All we need to do is worship the One Who has already got it planned just right for us! His whole picture for us is way better than anything we can do on our own. We need to turn to Him and His ways. and simply trust and obey.
How are you doing with that today? Take Him by His word and grasp the right hand He has extended to you. He’s reaching towards you right now!