The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Psalm 34:19,
"A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all..."
The notion that God keeps trouble from coming our way is a foreign concept to the Scriptures, even for those considered "righteous". There is much in the way of bad teaching within the church: that if we have enough faith, if we keep ourselves from sin, if we live by the principles taught us in the Scriptures, the Lord will keep troubles from us. After all, we are told, if God loves us, surely he will bless us and keep those troubles at bay. No more illness, no more fretting over bills at the end of the month, no more difficulties with the kids, etc.
As we see in this small snippet from Psalm 34, a "righteous man" may have many troubles. Is the one who is viewed as a righteous man in the Scriptures one who lacks faith? Is the one who is viewed as a righteous man in the Scriptures one who does not keep himself from a sinful lifestyle? Is one who is viewed as a righteous man in the Scriptures one who disregards what he his taught in the Scriptures? And, yet, it is the righteous man who "may have many troubles".
Listen to what Paul says about his experience (and that while serving the Lord!): "I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked." 2 Corinthians 11:23-27. One painful experience for Paul was his anxiety over the illness of Epaphroditus, who was sent by the church in Philippi to help Paul.
This is not to say that one who lives his life apart from faith, who engages in a sinful lifestyle or ignores what we are taught in the Scriptures does not bring himself harm. As the Lord said, we reap what we sow. But to say that we can avoid bringing trouble on ourselves by living a godly lifestyle is not to say we will live a trouble-free life.
In fact, we are told that the Lord uses these very difficulties to bring about wonderful things in our lives. Listen to what Jesus Christ said in Revelation 3:19, "Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent." The Lord brings us trouble at times to grow us. As the writer of Hebrews says, "Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:7-11.
The righteous man may have many troubles. From this Hebrews passage it is guaranteed. The wonderful news is that for the righteous man, these troubles have a design and purpose for the good in our lives. What is most wonderful, however, is the end of our verse in Psalm 34:19, "the Lord delivers him from them all".
How wonderful is that?!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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