Focal Passage: Psalm 102:1-14, 24-28
Life’s transitory nature (vv. 1-11). The Psalmist is anonymous, but his experience is timeless and can belong to anyone. Some of God’s greatest servants have endured the greatest afflictions. King David, John the Baptist and the Apostle Paul experienced suffering, yet we know they were highly favored of God. Oswald Chambers once said, “There is no throne without a thorn or crown without a cross.” We know that our suffering has a purpose though in the midst of our misery we think it will never end. However, the Apostle Paul gives us encouragement when he said in II Corinthians 4:17-18, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (KJV). The burdens we bear now will not compare with the blessings God will give us later. We do not make light of our difficulties, but they are a hiccup in comparison with eternity in Heaven.
God’s enduring promises (vv. 12-22). I believe it was Ron Dunn the great Baptist preacher who said, “You never know God is all you need until God is all you have and then you will find that God is all you need.” The Psalmist expresses that thought in these verses. God’s constant faithfulness will not fail any of His children. I have a friend who has endured one difficulty after another. At one point he stressed to me that he was helpless and did not know where to turn or what to do. He later shared with me that in the midst of his struggle, he experienced a peace he could not believe, and that God simply provided for him and helped him with a problem which in his eyes was insurmountable. After his difficulty passed, he told me that he did not know what he would have to deal with in life, but because of his previous experience he knew that he could trust God for anything else he faced. I am reminded of what Dante, the Italian writer once said concerning God’s purposes, “In His will is our peace”; even if God’s will involves difficulty.
We often have no say about the challenges we face, but we can decide as to how we will respond. God controls all of life but there is one thing He has left to us and that is our freedom to choose. The Psalmist may have been overwhelmed with pain, but it did not drive him from God, rather it led him to dependence upon his Lord. God’s tenderness and compassion was the Psalmist’s confidence then, and can be ours today.
God’s eternal nature (vv. 23-28). As I get older it seems the years pass faster and there is a good chance that I have lived more years than I have left. But the one thing God’s children can take comfort in is that though we change, God does not. And this is of great encouragement to one enduring affliction. We know that God will work in our suffering to accomplish His sovereign will and use our pain to fit into His purposes. C.H. Spurgeon said, “Bless God for your afflictions and your afflictions will be your greatest blessing.” Many can say that the beginning of their blessings began with burdens that had to be endured. God does not just have temporary plans for His children, but eternal purposes. He will use whatever struggles we face to prepare us for eternity. God’s comforts for us in glory will more than make up for any earthly misery and conflict.
— Davis is pastor of Lake Road Baptist Church, Union City.
