THE FAMILY ALTAR
July 16.
"Nevertheless I am continually with Thee; Thou hast holden
me by Thy right hand. Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel,
and afterward receive me to glory." Ps. 73:23-24.
In our text we hear the exultant voice of sorely tried, but
nevertheless victorious faith. Asaph, the God-inspired singer of
this immortal Psalm, has pondered an old, old question that so
often fills the heart of God's children with doubt and perplexity.
It concerns God's moral government of this present world. The
wicked, who so insolently defy God and His holy Law, grow rich
and prosper, whereas the pious, who fear God and love His Word,
are often in great trouble, down-trodden, and poor. How do these
glaring inconsistencies agree with God's truth and justice? Is it
worth while to lead a pious, God-fearing life? Asaph confesses
that the problem was too deep for him and nearly caused him
to fall away from his God. But in his perplexity he went into
the sanctuary there to commune with God. And there all his
doubts and fears were quieted. For God opened his eyes to see
how all the boasted prosperity of the wicked was but a fleeting
shadow, a dangerous illusion. Though God seemed to sleep and
permit evil to triumph for a while, He would finally awake, and
cast the wicked down into destruction, and uphold His own truth
and justice. Does not all history prove and substantiate what God
told Asaph, and what He still tells us in His sanctuary, His holy
and infallible Word? If we have ever doubted the wisdom and
justice of His divine government, let us repent and confess our
folly, as did Job and as does Asaph in this Psalm, and with him
declare : "Nevertheless I am continually with Thee," 0 my faithful
and merciful God ! With Thee wherever Thou dost lead me. Thy
right hand upholds me, and Thy divine counsel shall guide me
through all my life; and afterwards Thou shalt receive me into
everlasting glory where all the dark riddles of my life shall find
their satisfactory solution.
Thy way, not mine, O Lord
