God is Good

DEVOTION

PSALMS

GOD IS GOOD

 Ps 73:1-12

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.

NIV

Wow, this is surely a great definition of those who live without any recognition of the fact God exists and watches over his creation. But the writer is having trouble with seeing how they are increasing in wealth, living high off the hog, so to speak, having no troubles, and being healthy wealthy and wise in a sense. He says that he envied the arrogant. He cannot understand how they have live without caring about God and have so much and live so well. They are carefree, foot lose and fancy free, while he has been trying to live in accordance with the law of God and may not be doing so well. But he begins with this statement that surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. He knows the truth and still he admits he nearly lost his foothold. At least he is being honest with God. There seems to be no hypocrisy in him. He is not pretending to be this great believer while trying to live like the world to gain all the things the people of the world gain, without having any constraints from the law of God. Do we have a tendency to be like that? Are we jealous at all when we see non-believers becoming abundantly wealthy? Are we secretly wishing we would have done things differently? Are we sorry that we tried to live by the scriptures, even at the cost of gaining the world? Ha! That sounds just the words of Jesus.

Luke 9:23-25

23 Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?

NIV

The Greek words of verse 24 are very interesting. For what advantage a man if he gain the whole world himself and lose or be cast away. The meaning of the words translated lose and cast away are to perish and experience detriment. That is the lot of the arrogant, those who care not for God and his ways, but live to satisfy their own appetites. We cannot allow this to happen within us. We cannot allow envy to rule our heart and mind. It does not matter how anyone else lives, even other believers who have lost their foothold and are chasing after the things of the world. We must remain steadfast to the truth the Lord has revealed to us. We must remain with our feet on solid ground, on the rock of our salvation. That is not to say we are poor and without our needs or that we live in pain all day long with some illness or ill-health. Surely God is good to us and has provided for well for us. Surely we live in comfort and have many nice things, but all of them are from the hand of the Lord, and not by our striving, not by our arrogant ways. Thank you Lord for caring for us, for loving us and providing for our lives in ways men of the world cannot understand. God is good all the time, all the time God is good.