Sermon
What To Do When You Feel Like Giving Up (Part 3)
June 30 - July 1, 2001
Pastor Donald Sheley

Quickly take your Bible and join with me in a Psalm we have been thinking about now for three Sundays. This is our fourth Sunday and I'll try in 12 minutes to finish it up today. Psalm 73. Just take your Bible. Psalm 73. For you that join with us for the first time -- it's a man talking about a difficult moment in his life, an experience where he went through a difficult time of doubting God. He knows that there is a certain truth that never changes. God is truly good -- truly God is good, he says. That's an eternal truth that doesn't change even though my circumstances do. But he said, I'll tell you what; there are times I couldn't say that honestly. In fact he said, what created the problem, verses 3 through 10, is he said I started to contrast the way people that are wicked and unrighteous people live, and it seems to me, my perception is, that God, You bless the wicked more than You bless the righteous. That disturbs him. He couldn't figure that out.

In those verses he describes the wicked. He said they wear pride like a necklace. He said they're arrogant. They talk against heaven. They say God doesn't know. And then he comes to verse 13 in our text and his emotions take over. Remember we talked about this last week. We said that many times in going through difficult times emotion takes hold of the driver's seat and puts reason and logic in the back seat. You and I know when we've gone through difficult times emotions do become a very controlling part of the experience. And then after emotions have embarrassed us, then we're sorry that we set logic and reason aside. And in verse 13 his emotions have got the best of him. He's almost bitter at God, and he says, I really wonder if it's worth it. Have I cleanse my hands in innocency? That is, I try to be good. Is it worth it?

Does honesty always pay? Is truth always the best route? Because he said, verse 13 he said, I'm plagued every day and I'm chastised every morning. What he's simply saying is even though I'm righteous, I still live many of my days with the same problems I had the day before, and I wake up every morning with the same problem I went to sleep with. So he says, in this deep, dark valley of doubt he is saying, is it really worth being a Christian? Now if all of us are honest we've all gone through those experiences when it seems like everything -- we look up at God and say, God, if You're really there, why do You let this happen? Right? We say the same thing.

Now we come to an interesting part. Verse 15 he said, but if I speak thus, I will offend the next generation. And I think here's where his feet stop slipping, and he grabs a hold of his emotions and he says, now look at, if I keep talking this way, if I keep spewing out all of these doubts and these criticisms of God that are going through my mind, it's not doing me a bit of good and I run the risk of saying something to someone with a more feeble faith than mine and upset them in their spiritual journey. Now it's a very technical, but it's a very practical way of dealing with doubt. And just in passing let me say to all the parents here, we will all go through these dark moments, but it's wise to keep them inside and not to share your doubts with your children. Because in their little minds you may plant a seed that misrepresents the God you're trying to work out and understand. To them, that's not a problem. And thus, what the man in the Psalm says, I'm going to be very, very cautious with my tongue as to who I talk with when I'm going through my times of hurting. That's wise.

Then we come to verse 17. Well first verse 16 says, if I talk, he said, the pain of realizing that I may cause hurt, he said, is too deep for me. In other words he said, I don't want to bring spiritual injury to anybody by flooding them with my doubts and upsetting them in their spiritual journey. Then he comes to verse 17, then I went -- until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood their end. Now here's the turning point. He's gone through his valley of doubt. His emotions have taken over. He knows he's got to bring them into grips. He knows he's got to stop talking, and then he heads for church. He said I went to the sanctuary. The reason why he did that is because he knew that in going to God's house somehow life with all of its confusions and all of its tensions will somehow balance out, and I can leave the sanctuary with a better knowledge of God. Thus he goes to church to learn how God sees things himself.

You know folks, one of the great challenges we have the spiritual leaders is our prayer is knowing that we have, throughout our sanctuary, service after service, we have people who come who are hurting, people who are searching, and our goal is to help them to know God better and to love Him more when they leave the sanctuary. That's always my prayer. And somehow, in this moment in God's house, their lives are turned around and their doubts become less and their belief becomes stronger and their faith comes into focus. And I make an observation in our notes that it's a tragedy that most people when they're going through their difficult times of doubting, they absent themselves from the church. That's dangerous because it's just like a little ember in the fireplace. You set it out to the side. It isn't very long before it goes out. Bring it back into the coals that are burning and are hot, its warmth will linger much longer. And I tell you when you're going through those difficult moments don't stay away from God's house. It's here, somehow, in all of our pain and in all of our hurt we begin to see things as God sees them.

Now you'll notice there's a very interesting part to this verse 17, he said, then I understood. What did he understand? Their end. The end of what? The end of the wicked. Because that's who he's drawn the contrast. He can't understand how God seems to bless them and not bless the righteous. And all of a sudden, in the house of God, he sees what happens to wicked people ultimately, and that he doesn't want. He understands the end of the wicked. It's at this point I have a great concern in the Evangelical pulpit today because there's a movement abroad that is called the seeker sensitive church. And the whole theory is don't say anything that offends the sinner, don't talk about hell. Don't offend him. He may not come back next Sunday. Ladies and gentlemen, the cross is always an offense. And never should truth be covered, and I pray that when people come here they understand that the righteous go to heaven and the wicked go to hell. That's what the Bible says. And as much as we try to avoid it, it doesn't change the truth of Scripture. And as much as preachers try to mellow it down, soften it up, sweeten it up with some sugar, and mellow out the theology, it doesn't change the truth. The truth is this man said when I went to church all of a sudden I realized those ungodly people will ultimately be in God's judgment.

Look at what he says; God puts them in slippery places. He says He casts them down to destruction. They are brought to desolation in a moment. They are utterly consumed with terrors. And as a dream, when one awakes, oh Lord when You awake, You shall despise their image. He is saying, God, I've over exaggerated this thing with regards to the wicked. When I really think it through and see them through Your eyes, the day will come when Your judgment will be upon them forever and eternal. May it be that we always find truth in balance here so that when people who come, they're understanding is the ways of God and the word of God. Now you'll notice the next thing he does. I'll have to hurry. He said then was my heart vexed. Do you see it? And he said my heart was grieved and I was vexed in my mind, and this is what he's saying, he said, God, I want to repent. I want to ask You to forgive me for the way I've thought about You. I was unfair when I said, God, where are You? If there's a good God why is He allowing this? He's saying, God, I really shouldn't have said that to You. He said that's just like a brute, a beast to before You. You're the Almighty, the majestic, the eternal God, and here I am a little finite mortal being talking to the Infinite in such disgraceful and disrespectful sentences. And he says, God, I hurt.

I know, because I've gone through times when I've said, God, You're not fair. And then I've had to come back and say, God, I'm sorry I talked to You like that. I need You to forgive me. The man in the Psalm says part of this matter of dealing with doubt is repenting for the way we think of God and talk to Him. Then he goes on, he said, after he's repented all of a sudden the scales fall from his eyes and he says, God, it's true--You are always with me. You never left me. Even though I didn't see You and didn't think You were there, You were with me continually. You never left me. It's true. The Bible says--His promise is this; He will never leave us nor forsake us.

Now in Hebrews, if you'd like to turn there, chapter 13 verse 5 there's a very interesting verse. Hebrews -- it's in the last part of your Bible. But there are words in the Greek that are words that have a continuous action. Hebrews 13:5, and in that particular passage it says that phrase, I will never leave you nor forsake you. Therefore I can boldly say: "The Lord is my helper." Do you see it there? Now the word that's the continuous action word is the word never. And it's like saying I will never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never leave you nor forsake you. That's what that man in the Psalm realized; that God is truthful even through our darkest hours He will never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never leave us nor forsake us. So if you're going through your dark moment today He's there.

A man came to me after one of my services and he said I have a picture of a father taking his boy for a walk on the beach, and all of a sudden from four footprints it goes to two, because Daddy picked up his son. And there are times in our journey when there are only two footprints, the footprints of God as He carries us in His love. Now, the psalmists says, You hold me by my right hand. You will counsel me. Ladies and gentlemen, the grass will fade, the flowers with blow away, but His counsel stands forever. And then he says when it's all over You'll receive me up into glory. Isn't that great? He says, God, I'm sorry that I talked to You that way because the fact has never changed, You didn't leave me, even though I didn't feel Your presence. You're continually with me. You've upheld me. You've carried me at times when I couldn't carry myself. And I always have Your word to turn to, and it will counsel my footsteps. It will be a light to my feet and a lamp to my pathway. And then God, when the journey is over and I've cried my last tear, and I've stumbled over my last failure, and when heaven calls, I'll walk the streets of glory and I'll see You face to face. That's our hope.

When people often say goodbye to me I say I'll see you in heaven. They say, oh no, Pastor, I'll see you tomorrow morning. No, what a secondary place to see you. I want to see you in heaven because I know the journey will soon be at an end, and He will bring me up into glory and I want you there with me.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace
That's what he tells us in this Psalm. Father, to know You is to love You. To know You more is to trust You. To trust You more is to have a peaceful heart, and to have a peaceful heart knowing that when the journey is finished and we've walk through our last valley and climbed our last mountain, You will meet us. We'll spend eternity with You. Ah, what hope we have. What expectation fills our heart. Thank you Jesus, and everybody said...amen. God bless you. God bless you.