KEY SCRIPTURE: Psalm 73 (All). A Psalm of Asaph. 

Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.

RELEVANCE

While reading Psalm 73, which I call the Psalm of Perspective, I was again reminded of the need for those who follow Christ not to get overly burdened or bogged down in human thought.

Asaph, a Chief Musician under the reigns of David and Solomon, wrote several psalms, including Psalm 73, and conducted a school of music. His sons worked with their father and followed his lead after his death. Further, his descendants returned from Babylon and continued the music ministry in Zerubbabel’s temple.

With all that spiritual music, one might think Asaph remained 'in the Spirit', shunning human anxieties and desires. However, our psalm shows a side that is not dissimilar to ours. He made the mistake of looking through his human lens at the wealthy and oppressive—the seemingly untouchable. He even moaned about it to God. 

V3 says he was envious of the foolish when he saw the prosperity of the wicked. Asaph said nothing could kill them or bring them to justice. They didn't seem to get into trouble like other people, nor did everyday problems plague them. Their pride was uncontainable, and violence was their second language. They were so self-consumed that their eyes bulged due to their fatness. They were corrupt, yet nothing stopped them from getting everything they wanted. They even laughed at God and the heavens, and their tongues walked through the earth, making any statement they wanted without challenge or reproof. 

Asaph had re-directed his eyes and thoughts from the godly symphonies of the Holy Spirit to a humanistic level, a mistake we can all make. Like Peter, when he took his eyes off Christ and began to sink into the ocean's depths, Asaph sunk in his spirit to those lower levels of anxiety, anger and fear. When this happens, we lose faith in God because we don't see him punishing the unrighteous. Due to Asaph's inner conflict, his feet were slipping from the Rock.

When he entered the sanctuary, he quieted himself and returned to the presence and peace of his Lord, which brought him back to God's perspective. Then, he was embarrassed. It was here he realised that nobody escapes their works. 

In every era, much ado happens outside God. The world is continually full of Canaan's depravities, but the Lord has written the end of wickedness. 

V26 says that Asaph's flesh and heart failed, but God was his strength and portion. There was no need for jealousy, feelings of injustice, or twisting his heart and mind in knots of bitterness and jealousy.

Ultimately, he resolves his predicament. Vs 27-28, For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee. But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all thy works.

Asaph decides to flee from the repetitious news headlines. He understands what is best for him: drawing near to God, where his trust undergirds his declaration of all the Lord's mighty works. 

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank you for the quietness of your presence. It is a place where we reset our perspectives, our aims and our understanding. Praise You!

Photo by Anika Huizinga