From His Heart

Speaker 1

There is truth, there is bless, love. There is hope that you always dream of. He can heal every scar from his heart.

Speaker 2

We can all identify with frustration, with trying to do something and not realizing success as a result of our efforts and struggles. That's life in general, but that's also experienced in the Christian walk. Believers can get pretty discouraged at striving for godliness, but seeing themselves fail in small and sometimes large ways. We attempt to be godly husbands and dads, moms or wives, but we keep stumbling well.

Welcome to Promise Heart with Pastor Jeff Shreve, and the message today is appropriately called "Hey, What's the Deal, God?" Part two. Today we're going to explore the pitfalls that occur when we take our eyes off of the Lord. That's in contrast to the overwhelming purpose and joy that we have when we live a life that is surrendered to Him in every way.

Today's lesson is from Pastor Jeff's series "Roller Coaster: Facing the Ups and Downs of Life" that we're airing this month. You can catch up to any of the programs you may have missed when you click the Listen tab at fromhisheart.org. Right now, open your Bible to Psalm 73. Here's Pastor Jeff Shreve to reveal the answer we'll get from our Lord when we say to the Lord, "Hey, what's the deal, God?"

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**Psalm 73**

I'll begin reading. In verse one in the New American Standard Bible, it says this: "Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart." But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling, my steps had almost slipped, for I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked. I want you to notice with me three insights from this psalm that help us understand and answer the question, Is serving the Lord really worth it?

**Insight Number One**: We begin to question and doubt and wonder, is serving the Lord really worth it when we begin to compare? Look at it again in verse three. "For I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked." He began to look at what other people had. He began to compare his lot in life with the arrogant and the wicked, those who didn't know God, those who didn't follow God, and those who didn't worship God. He starts to look at and compare the two, and he's like, "This just stinks." We begin to question when we start to compare. Oh, God is good to Israel, but man, I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

**Second Insight**: Not only do we begin to question when we begin to compare, but we begin to question when we begin to assume. We begin to assume what? Assume that those who are doing better than we are outwardly have it all together. Asaph gets his eyes on the wicked, on those that don't trust God, those that don't serve God, those who don't obey God. He says, "They have so much more than I have. What's the deal, God?" And not only do they have more than I have, God, they are so much happier than I am. He begins to assume things about them. They are always at ease. When it says they're always at ease, that word ease means to be tranquil, to be secure, to be careless, to be trouble-free.

I want us to think about two questions. Question number one: Are the wicked really enjoying peace and tranquility? I mean, is that true? Are they always at ease? You can't just drive down some fancy street and say, "Well, gosh, just behind that door, it just has to be so wonderful because that person has so much money." You know what you can know for certain? For certain, for certain, for certain. Isaiah 57, verse 21: "There is no peace," says my God, "for the wicked." I don't care what someone has. If that person doesn't know the Lord, doesn't know Jesus as Savior and Lord, in today's world, you can know for certain that person doesn't have peace because there is no peace unless you have a relationship with the Prince of Peace.

Jim Carrey, the comedian, said this on one occasion: "I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it's not the answer." Great quote. So true. See, those of us who haven't made it, so to speak, we don't have the money that the wealthy do. We're never going to be on "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous." We always think, "Boy, if I just got a little more, if I just got that promotion, if I just made more, if I just had this or just had that, then I'd be happy." Hmm. No, then I'd have peace. No, there is no peace, says my God, for the wicked.

I love what the Lord says in Isaiah 57:20. The verse right before that verse says, "The wicked are like the tossing sea, for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up refuse and mud." There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked. But Asaph, as he looked out on these wicked people that were prospering so much, he just had this carefree life. He just assumed they were just at peace. Not so.

**Second Question**: Are the wicked really living satisfied lives? I mean, okay, there's no peace, says my God, for the wicked. But man, there's a lot of joy in having a bunch of money. There's a lot of fun in getting on your own private airplane and flying from here to New York to have a thousand-dollar dinner at some really nice restaurant. I mean, but is there? We can get temporary thrills from having lots of stuff, but does that produce satisfaction in life? And the answer is no.

Solomon had more than anybody has ever had. I mean, he had so much money and so much fame and so much glory as King of Israel. He wrote a book led by the Holy Spirit called the Book of Ecclesiastes. The whole purpose of the book of Ecclesiastes is Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived apart from Christ, goes on a search to find satisfaction under the sun. He uses that phrase 29 times: "Under the sun. Under the sun. Under the sun." This is what he's doing. He's searching to see, "Can I find satisfaction in this world apart from God? I'm going to just do it under the sun. I'm going to leave God out, I'm going to leave heaven out, and I'm going to see where I can find something that really will satisfy my heart."

He searched for satisfaction in wine, and he searched in women. You know, he had 700 wives and 300 girlfriends. I mean, he really explored things to the depth. "Will this make me happy?" He searched wisdom, he searched work, and he did all sorts of building projects and things. He just searched wealth. He had more money than anybody else. Silver, in the Day of Solomon, was as common as stones because there was so much wealth in the city. He tried and tried and tried and tried. He begins the book of Ecclesiastes with his executive summary, and he says this: "Vanity of vanities," says the preacher. "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity." It's all empty. It's all meaningless. You can't find any satisfaction in the things under the sun. They might give you a temporary thrill, but they're not going to satisfy your soul.

He says in Ecclesiastes 2:25, "For who can eat and who can have enjoyment without him?" Without the Lord, no one can. Blaise Pascal, the great thinker of the 1600s, the French theologian, mathematician, scientist, and philosopher, said this: "In every human heart, there's a God-shaped vacuum. And the only thing that can fill a God-shaped vacuum is God." You can try to fill it with all sorts of things, but it's never going to be filled with things. As D.L. Moody said, "If you could take the whole world and concentrate it down in a pitcher and pour that pitcher in a man's heart, his heart would still be empty." Because the only thing that can fill a God-shaped vacuum is God.

All of us in this room have probably heard the name Mick Jagger. Mick Jagger has been one of the kings of rock and roll for decades, the lead singer of the Rolling Stones, and his sidekick, Keith Richards, they're still singing, they're still at it. They've been doing this for 50 years. Their most famous song is the most honest song. These guys who have gone way down the road of drugs, sex, and rock and roll sing this song: "I can't get no satisfaction because I try and I try and I try and I try. I can't get no satisfaction." Hey, hey, hey. That's what I say; you're not going to do it. There is no satisfaction in the things of this world. God didn't set it up that way. He didn't create you that way. Because in your heart, there's a God-shaped vacuum.

So Asaph looks out at the wicked and sees all these outward things. There are no pains in their body when they die. Baloney. They have pain when they die. If you cut them, they bleed. I don't care how much money you have. They have family problems, they have marital problems. Many of them have more problems than if they were never rich and famous. You're not going to find satisfaction in those things.

So does it pay to serve the Lord? Is it worth it to serve God? Well, we question when we begin to compare. We question, number two, when we begin to assume how all these other people have it so great. But the third insight we begin to see when we begin to seek God. We see the real score when we begin to seek God.

So Asaph says this in verse 13: "Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence. For I have been stricken all day long and chastened every morning." I'm just getting smashed in the face every day while the wicked just prosper. Then he says in verse 15, "If I had said, 'I will speak thus,' behold, I should have betrayed the generation of your children." I got to be careful, God. I can't publicly say this stuff because then that's going to cause other people to stumble, and I don't want to betray the generation of your children. But I'm coming close to slipping. My feet almost slipped, he says in verse 2.

Then he says in verse 16, "When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome in my sight." I don't understand why the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer. Verse 17: "Until I came into the sanctuary of God. Then I perceived their end." He came into the sanctuary of God and started to seek the Lord. He started to see things clearly.

Hey, we begin to see when we begin to seek God. Asaph was in the ministry, a Levitical priest, led in the choir, in the worship and playing of the instruments. But, you know, he's just like everybody else. He can get away from the Lord. He can get his eyes off the Lord. He can maybe get out of church for a while. It doesn't take long. You get out of church, and all of a sudden your mind starts to get warped, and your world starts to turn upside down.

It's sad when you see people doing so well, and they're coming week in and week out, and then something happens, and they miss. Then something happens again the next week, and then they miss, and then they miss a third time. Then they buy a lake house, and they're gone every single weekend to go to the lake. Their spiritual life goes down the tubes. Then they start having marital problems, and then they start having family problems. They say, "What's going on?" You've been neglecting the sanctuary of God. That's what's going on.

You know, we say, "Well, church isn't that big a deal." It's a huge deal because you need it. I need it. We need it. We come together, and we worship the Lord, and we praise the Lord, and we see things clearly when we sing his praises and when we study his word.

So what did he begin to see when he sought God? No one gets away with sin. No one gets away with sin. Do not be deceived. Galatians 6 says, "God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows, this he will also reap." The wicked don't get away with sin. God is a righteous judge. We wonder sometimes, is God fair? Yes, God is fair. If God weren't fair, he couldn't be God. Because if God weren't fair, then he wouldn't be righteous.

If you have an umpire in baseball, football, or a referee in basketball, and they're not calling a fair game, you say, "Well, that guy's crooked. That ump behind the plate is crooked. He's rooting for the other team. He calls balls strikes and strikes balls." I mean, that's not right. God is fair. God is fair. And God will judge sin.

The Lord says in Numbers, chapter 32, "Be sure your sin will find you out." Listen, we have a group in America today called Planned Parenthood, and they're butchers. God sees what they're doing, and God's going to judge that, and it's horrible, but God sees, and God is righteous. God cares about those children who have been ripped apart in the womb—the 50 million in America since 1973, Roe versus Wade. God sees. God cares. God knows about all the politicians and all the lies and all the graft and all the corruption.

You say, "Well, does God see that?" The eyes of the Lord are in every place watching the evil and the good. God sees the preachers who cheat people, get on television, and get people to give their money just so that they can line their pockets and buy a $65 million jet. God sees all that. Do not be deceived. God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.

And God sees the sin in your life. He sees the sin in my life. And listen, we can struggle with sin, and all of us do struggle with sin, but there's a big difference between struggling with sin and yielding to sin. We live in a world today where many, many Christians are just yielding to sin. They're just giving sin a place in their lives, and they're not doing anything about it. They're not fighting against that. They're just giving into that. And God will judge that. You don't get away with sin.

You know, David was king in Israel, and God's hand was on him. He was a man after God's own heart. But David got to thinking that he could get away with sin. In 2 Samuel, chapter 11, we read about the story of him with Bathsheba and how he brought her to himself and how he committed adultery with her. Then she comes up pregnant, and then he's like, "Oh man, what am I gonna do?" Her husband, Uriah the Hittite, is out in battle. So he brings Uriah back to try and get Uriah to spend the night with his wife so Uriah would think the baby was his. But Uriah wouldn't do it.

So David has to send Uriah into battle and concoct a plan so Uriah will be in the fiercest part of the battle, and everybody will withdraw from him so he'll get killed. Uriah gets killed. Then they mourn Uriah, and then David brings Bathsheba into his harem. It says in the last verse of 2 Samuel, chapter 11, verse 27, this little phrase: "But the thing that David did was evil in the sight of the Lord." God saw what he did, and God punished him for what he did. There are consequences. For every kick, there's a kickback. There were consequences for David, and they were tremendous and horrible. There'll be consequences for you, and there'll be consequences for me.

We need to walk in the light as he himself is in the light. Like I said, all of us struggle with sin. But there's a big difference between struggling with sin and giving in to sin and letting it just have a part of your life. You can't do that because it will take over, and it will eat your lunch.

Well, Asaph learned, "Hey, until I came into the sanctuary of God, then I perceived their end." No one gets away with sin. The wicked are one heartbeat away from hell. That's what it says in verse 18: "Surely you set them in slippery places; you cast them down to destruction. How they are destroyed in a moment; they are utterly swept away by sudden terrors, like a dream when one awakes. O Lord, when aroused, you will despise their form." One heartbeat away from an eternal hell. That's what the people that don't know God are.

You might be here today, and you say, "Well, I'm not so sure I know God." Well, then I want to tell you with love in my heart that you're one heartbeat away from everlasting hell. The Lord does not want that for you. Jesus hung naked on a cross for you so that you wouldn't have to go to hell. The veil of the temple was torn in two so that you could have access to God.

But what happens to the wicked? What do we read about in the New Testament? Jesus told the parable of the man who had so much. He said, "Oh, I have so many goods laid up for so many years." He's the guy that built bigger barns. He says, "Oh, look, now everything is taken care of. I'm on easy street. I'll say to my soul, 'Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years. Take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry.'" And God said to him, "Fool, this day your soul is required of you. Now what are you going to do? Who's going to own all that you have amassed?" You can't take it with you, and you're going to have to stand before me one day.

In Luke, chapter 16, there's the story of the poor man Lazarus and the rich man. He's not given a name, although the theologians like to give him a name. They call him Dives. Dives in Latin means rich man. The rich man Dives is living high, wide, and handsome. He's got everything that he needs. The poor man, Lazarus, is begging at his gate. The rich man doesn't pay him any attention. But then Lazarus dies. He's carried off to Abraham's bosom, and the rich man Dives dies. The Scripture says, "In hell he lifted up his eyes being in torment." Hell's a real place. It's a real place. An unbeliever is one heartbeat away from hell.

And how should that make us feel as Christians? Hey, do we really believe this? Do we really believe that our neighbors without Christ are going to hell? Do we really believe that the person we work next to is going to hell that doesn't know Jesus Christ? If we really believed that, wouldn't we talk to them about it? Wouldn't we look for opportunities? Wouldn't we pray for them?

Asaph said, "Hey, when I came into the sanctuary of God, then I saw the real story." He closes out by saying this: There is nothing more wonderful than the presence of God. "Oh God, I was so senseless. I was like an animal before you." Earlier in this psalm, he said, "I was so bitter." But then I realized, verse 28: "But as for me, the nearness of God is my good. I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all thy works." It says in the easy-to-read version, "As for me, all I need is to be close to God." That's what I need. I just need to be close to you, God. I need to keep my eyes on you, and I need to be close to you.

Because no matter what's going on, if I have plenty or if I have nothing, if I'm close to you and I'm walking with you, then you have promised me love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control. Against such things, there is no law. And that's my birthright as a child of the King. I can have those things. The nearness of God is my good

Speaker 2

Hey, maybe you're at a point now where you know that you've not drawn close to God in quite a while in genuine prayer. Well, that would be the first thing to do. Come to him. Humble your heart. Come to him and ask him, "Lord, I've been away from you. Tough times are all around and I can't seem to break away. I'm asking, what's the deal, God? But I'm not hearing you. Answer me, Lord, please speak to me. Give me ears to hear and a heart to be receptive. Help me to block out the negative thoughts, the negative people, the negative circumstances, and give it all to you. I need you, Lord. I need you. Now please come and change my heart, my mind, my spirit. I'll draw closer to you. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen."

Well, the Bible clearly states in Acts 10:43 that through his name, everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins. Isn't that incredible? Well, if that was the prayer of your heart, we invite you to go to our website at fromisheart.org, click the "Why Jesus?" link, and there you'll learn how to have a wonderful life, what it really means to have a wonderful life in Christ.

Today's lesson was part two of the message "What's the Deal, God?" from Pastor Jeff's eight-lesson series "Roller Coaster: Facing the Ups and Downs of Life." Click the "Listen" link to hear more or get a copy of this series in the format of your choice. And when you do, make a gift to From His Heart. This month, we want to say thank you by sending you Pastor Jeff's series "Nothing but the Truth" and his booklet "Sticks and Stones: What to Do When the Going Gets Tough." Just call 866-40-BIBLE to get yours when you make your gift—866-40-BIBLE—or go online to fromisheart.org.

Thank you for joining us today here on From His Heart. I'm Larry Nobles, inviting you to be sure to join us next time for the next lesson in the Roller Coaster series called "Real Faith for Real Life." Join us then when Pastor Jeff Shreve will open up God's word and share real truth, love, and hope from his heart.

Speaker 1

There is truth. There is Love.

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From His Heart is the listener-supported Broadcast Ministry of Dr. Jeff Shreve, speaking the truth in love to a lost and hurting world.

Remember that no matter what, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.

Find out more at fromhisheart.org.