When Things Just Don’t Make Sense
Psalm 143
September 18, 2005
Dr. James Dobson gives us a good illustration from his book When God Doesn’t Make Sense (pp. 45-46). He recalls a mystery radio program that told the story of a prisoner who was kept in solitary confinement in a pitch-black cell. The only thing that he had to occupy his time was a marble. Over and over he would throw that marble against the wall and then grope through the darkness to find it. One day he threw the marble high and it didn’t come down. Only silence was the answer. He was deeply disturbed by the evaporation of the marble and his inability to explain its disappearance. Finally, he went berserk, pulled out all his hair and died. He died in disappointment and despair because he had no answer to the lost marble.
When the prison guards came in to remove his body, one of them noticed something caught in a spider’s web in the upper corner of the room. “That’s strange,” he thought. “I wonder how a marble got up there.”
This story illustrates for us the human frustration of trying to explain the unexplainable. We are so used to having answers to our questions and finding satisfaction to mysteries within a one hour television program. We are told that God knows the answers and yet find a God in our time of pain who seems to be silent. We go to church, live a good life and yet there are times when things just don’t make sense. And so as good Christians we live by faith hoping for that day when we will finally know what we cannot see.
What we must learn is that our human ability to find all the right answers is not possible while here on the earth. And who is to say that we will have all the answers in the sweet by and by?
And so there must be a better way to deal with the problems that we face. If I cannot find out the answers to all of my problems, if I cannot make sense of injustice and untimely death, then there must be a way to live that rises above the clouds.
Psalm 143, written by King David- during his exile while his own son Absalom was trying to kill him- is the lament of an individual who is hurting deeply. Perhaps you are that individual listening to this today. Maybe your tears have become your pillow at night and your heavy heart has burdened you in the daytime.
Maybe your voice would echo the words of a young lady who told me during the depths of her hurt: “I don’t want to die but I don’t want to live either.”
There are so many times in life when things just don’t make sense. Try as we might but we cannot seem to find the real meanings to the tragedies that we must endure. But I assure you of one very important truth: God heals the hurts of the heart. When we turn to Him, when we give Him our pain, He will hear and heal.
A few things are important for us to understand this morning. The first is this:
THERE NEEDS TO BE A BELIEF IN THE GOD WHO IS THERE.
King David understood that within himself there was no way out. He understood that in spite of those who were with him and supported him he still needed a higher power. He knew what most of us know: Someone is out there who cares. And so he found…
1. VINDICATION IN PRAYER. Verses 1-4
There is something about prayer that even the unbeliever understands. Those who are going through trials and tribulations have an instinct to pray. Why is that? Somehow we know that there has to be Someone greater than ourselves to see us through great difficulty. Look at any tragedy and you will find most people driven to their knees.
David sees prayer as the very center of what he is going through. But he does not assume the place of prayer without recognizing his own unworthiness.
Notice four important aspects of his prayer.
First, he recognizes God’s holiness.
God hears because he is perfect.
God answers because he is faithful.
God responds because of his righteousness.
But does God have to answer our prayer? And this is the hardest part for any of us to understand. It calls for us to look in the mirror in our time of distress.
Secondly, he sees his own personal sinfulness.
It seems so easy to simply have a blind faith and believe that God will do something wonderful and great for us. But have we considered that perhaps God does not owe us anything but what we deserve? The reality is that we deserve nothing less than eternity out of His presence. And the only thing between us and that eternity is air.
So what we must do is realize our own sinfulness. As hard as this is for us Wesleyans, we need to see our self for what we really are without Christ. And then…
Third, he pleads for God’s mercy.
Without mercy we are lost before we start. The Psalmist sees this clearly and so he asks, “Do not enter into judgment with Your servant.” If judgment were the case, we would all be deemed guilty.
However, God’s grace enters. And it is God’s grace that King David sees he needs.
I cannot help but recall those words the Apostle Paul wrote to the Ephesian church: “But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions- it is by grace you have been saved.”
May none of us ever forget this truth. God loves you. God has mercy for you. God has made you alive again. It is by grace you have been saved.
Even though there is an obvious relationship between the believer and God, there is recognition of the need for mercy. We must see this. We must grab a hold of God’s “forever mercy.”
And with this mercy comes an even further revelation. Not only am I in a fix and need the mercy of God, but this fix I am in is the result of an enemy.
Fourth, he knows that there is an enemy.
He does not name names but realize this much: there is an enemy that is out to destroy us. Perhaps your enemy cloaked himself through illness, disease or even death. Or your enemy came as a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Your enemy may have even used you and your poor choices to bring calamity to your life. However your enemy came is not near as important as recognizing that the enemy is not flesh and blood but the devil who is out to steal, kill and destroy.
Know this: God does care. Regardless of your trouble, God cares. And that God is able to deliver you from the enemy.
Not only does King David find vindication in prayer but he also finds…
2. VERIFICATION OF GOD’S PRESENCE. Verses 5-6
God’s Spirit causes David to look to God’s track record. He sees God at work through his life. He has seen the unseen hand of God in the “days of old.” He sees the great things that God has done in his life.
I don’t know about you, but when the enemy is on the prowl all I need to do to find re-assurance is to look back see how God brought me out of Egypt. I can look back and see how the Lord led me across the Jordan River. What is more, I see how by the River Jabbok God got a real hold of my heart. Over and over I can look back and see God’s hand at work. Even in those days when God seemed so silent, I can see His hand of love “reaching and touching my life in more ways than I ever knew.” This assures me of His presence in the midst of any of my current problems.
What is the result of realizing God’s presence?
First, we lift our hands like a child.
Oh, if we could only be children again. The one thing we seem to lose in our spiritual maturing is that child-like sense. As we get older we must understand that we are still God’s children.
My son Joshua never asked to be held. He would just grab a hold my leg and hang on. Charity- well, she was the little beggar. She would lift her hands up and say, “Wantchoo, wantchoo.”
In my time of distress and in yours, we need to learn to simply lift our hands and with child-like faith say to our Father God, “Wantchoo, wantchoo.” And let Him lift us up out of the swirling of our sorrow.
Secondly, we long for the living God.
Just as we thirst during a hard day of working outdoors, so we can develop a thirst for God as we commit our self and our problem to Him. Have you ever had that kind of thirst in your life? Maybe today, maybe right now you can thirst for something real.
How easy it is to look back to the glory years and realize how important God was back then. A lot of times it is us who have gotten away from God. And in the midst of our suffering and pain we learn to turn our thirsty hearts and lift our empty hands. When we do, this confirms to our heart that God is there and he is not silent.
Yes, we can have a belief that God is present in the midst of our hurt and pain.
Remember, it was God who stood back and watched His one and only Son be sentenced to death by the very people who called themselves the people of God. It was God who watched them turn His Son over to Roman soldiers whose only purpose was to harm and kill others. It was God who saw His Son be forced up to a hill aptly called “Hill of the Skull.” It was God who saw His Son nailed to a cross. It was God the Father watching as Jesus His Son died.
Yeah, God knows exactly what you are going through when the stormy days come your way. He knows the pain just like you. And He is the only One who can heal the hurt of your heart. Even when things just don’t make sense.
We look around our world and see tragedy and despair at every corner. Nations war, terrorists terrorize and hate rises like smoke over a forest fire. But as you go from the international suffering to the individual you see a similar suffering. Each person regardless of their stature in life, regardless of their money or lack thereof, suffers in their own private world. As Ravi Zacharias so aptly stated: “…the only hope that makes sense and is legitimate is the hope that comes from God, the hope for life and death beyond.”
PART TWO
What we can know is that despite the time of trouble there is Someone who is ready, willing and able to bring us relief.
Yes, what we are going through may seem senseless but not only can we have a firm belief that God is present but we can find…
RELIEF IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE.
These next set of verses reminds us that we can have a strength of trust and faith that will see us through the difficulties of life. Even when things just don’t make sense.
We have a family photo that my foster mom likes to refer to as “Bridge Over Troubled Waters.” We are all on a small foot-bridge posing and hoping the thing wouldn’t break under the weight of all of us. She calls it this because it seemed that each of our families were going through difficult circumstances at the time. And when I look back to those times we were. Without getting into the details I can confidently say that the faith of our fathers and mothers saw us through.
And whatever is happening to you let me assure you again: God can heal the hurts of your heart. He is not so far away that he does not hear. He is not so out of touch that He does not care. He is not so busy that He cannot take time to be near to you.
How can we make sense of the problems we face?
1. THERE IS A FELLOWSHIP OF TRUST. Verses 7-8
Notice two important phrases in verses 7 & 8.
First, “Answer me quickly…”
For King David to pray in such a way shows his confident desperation. Sometimes we find ourselves occupied with praying about a loved one’s salvation, or about a particular issue for years on end. What is wrong with having such an expectation that God will answer right away? The Psalmist brings to us that hope that we can see God’s hand today- right now, right where our need is at. Why wait for tomorrow or next year? Why not believe God today and believe that He will answer quickly?
Two things are important to this kind of trust. Pray with expectation and pray with desperation. If we want God to answer us quickly then we need to get desperate and expect an answer now.
Second, “Help me to hear…”
In believing that God will answer us quickly calls on you and me to allow God to open our ears. Sometimes God has been giving us the answer all along but we might be too stubborn to listen. There needs to be humility on our part to open our ears to what God is saying to us.
When we have this fellowship of trust there is fullness in life that we could never have otherwise.
2. THERE IS A FULNESS IN LIFE. Verses 9-12
To live a full life in Jesus Christ we see some important characteristics and the Psalmist gives these to us.
a. We are Teachable.
Verse 10- “Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God.”
To be lead by the Holy Spirit calls for us to let go and let God. Too often we want to hang on to people, issues, problems and strife. For some of us here this morning, there may even be an addiction to the problem. We are called to be teachable by God Himself.
I like what Adam Clarke said about his verse:
“[It is] both by an active and passive obedience [that] I may know thy will perfectly; in adversity, to submit to it; in prosperity, to do it without pride or presumption.”
Are we willing to be taught to do God’s will?
Are we willing to let the Holy Spirit lead us on level ground?
b. We are Vulnerable. To be obedient to God actually makes us vulnerable. Sometimes we will face daunting days and dark nights. And yet in our vulnerability we learn to be
Verse 10b-11- “Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground. For the sake of Your name, O LORD, revive me. In Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.”
c. We are Defended.
Verse 12- “And in Your loving-kindness, cut off my enemies, And destroy all those who afflict my soul, For I am Your servant.”
In this verse, the Psalmist is calling for the destruction of Satan’s kingdom. The enemy is walking to and fro seeking whom he may devour. What we must do is resist the devil and he will flee. Our appeal in the time of trial and tribulation is that we are God’s servants.
And this highlights the importance of being a part of God’s kingdom.
In the movie “Signs” Mel Gibson plays the role of disenchanted pastor whose wife tragically died in a car accident. If you watch the movie please understand that the movie is not about space aliens. The movie is a classic about human suffering. Part way through the movie when the aliens seem to be prime to attack, Graham is asked by his brother what the signs of these aliens mean.
He replies that there are two kinds of people in the world. Those who believe in luck and therefore these signs are either good or bad and whatever happens they are alone and that makes them afraid. To the other group, the signs are a miracle and deep inside they know that are going to be okay. The signs, as terrible as they may look, gives them hope.
When tragedy comes our way, when despair puts us into the dumps, when the frustration of life is overwhelming, we can choose to either believe that we are all alone and that these “signs” could be good or could be bad. Or we can choose believe that whatever we are dealt, we know contains a miracle and that we are not alone.
And I close with this very thought. Whatever you are going through, even when things just don’t make sense, we can know that every tragedy contains a miracle that God wants to bring our way.
The Psalmist knew this- in spite of the fact that his sin brought on the destruction he was facing. And we can know this as well- through our faith in Jesus Christ.
There are three verses I want to leave with you. These verses are worth memorizing so that we can be strengthened when things just don’t make sense.
Psalm 109:4 “But I give myself to prayer.” In every circumstance prayer will be my out; prayer will be my place of refuge; prayer will be who I am before trouble comes.
Psalm 119:71- “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn your statutes.” I am determined to see my problems as a way to learn more about God and His will for my life. What the devil might mean for bad God will mean for good.
Psalm 130:7- “For with the Lord there is mercy; And with Him is abundant redemption.” Every problem is a means for me to work out my salvation with fear and trembling.
So what you are going through is difficult and you are wounded by the enemy. Remember this, only God can heal the hurt of your heart.