Pastor Thomas Anderson | PSALMS for Summer | Week 3

Psalm 73 opens with Asaph saying the thing that has to be said first: “Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.” God’s goodness is not aimed at morally flawless people, but at people with an undivided heart, people who have turned from idols and given themselves to him. Asaph has banked his whole life on that promise, but verse two gets honest fast: his feet had almost stumbled, and his steps had nearly slipped.

Envy almost knocked Asaph off the path. Envy was not just him wishing he had what somebody else had. Envy became sorrow and resentment because the wicked seemed to have the good life, and underneath that resentment sat the suspicion that God had been better to them than to him. The wicked had healthy bodies, easy lives, bold mouths, fat bank accounts, and no visible consequences. They talked reckless to God, and nothing seemed to happen.

Comparison started discipling Asaph. His eyes kept moving from them to him, from what they had to what he lacked, until God was pushed out of the frame. Envy shrunk his whole world down to one small window, and through that window he could only see their prosperity and his pain. Once God disappeared from the frame, comparison started writing theology for him: God must not be good, God must not be wise, God must not be near.

Asaph did two faithful things in the middle of real doubt. He guarded the people of God from words that would have betrayed them, and then he brought his confusion into the sanctuary of God. The sanctuary did not change his circumstances, but it changed his sight. In God’s presence, Asaph saw the wicked rightly, like a dream that feels real until morning comes. He also saw his own heart rightly, confessing that bitterness had made him act like an unthinking animal toward God.

God’s goodness became clear when Asaph stopped measuring by what he did not have and started measuring by what God had given. “Yet I am always with you. You hold my right hand.” God had kept him even while he questioned whether God was good. As a Levite, Asaph knew what “portion” meant, because the Levites had no land. God himself was their portion. The New Testament makes that even bigger in Jesus, who gives himself, his righteousness, his blood, his resurrection, and an inheritance greater than anything on earth.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Envy puts God on trial Envy is not a small little attitude tucked at the end of confession. Envy looks at what God gave someone else and what he did not give another, then starts asking whether God is still good. The danger is not only wanting another person’s life, but interpreting God through that life. [13:21]
• 2. Comparison becomes a false discipler Comparison forms the heart while pretending to be harmless observation. Social media, success stories, other ministries, and other people’s ease can start telling the soul who God is. When the frame fills with what they have and what is lacking, God gets pushed out of view. [20:26]
• 3. Doubt belongs before God Asaph does not spread his doubt in a way that breaks the people of God. Asaph also does not pretend the doubt is fake or try to think himself out of it. The confusion finds its proper place when it is carried into the sanctuary, before the God who made life and can interpret it rightly. [27:15]
• 4. God keeps questioning people near God’s hand never let go of Asaph while Asaph was calling obedience vain. God’s goodness was seen not first in changed circumstances, but in sustained nearness. The wonder is that God is good enough to keep his people even while they are questioning his goodness. [34:22]
• 5. God himself is the portion Asaph’s word “portion” carries weight because a Levite had no land like the other tribes. God was not a backup prize, but the inheritance itself. In Jesus, that portion becomes even clearer: righteousness, access, presence, resurrection, and glory are all given in him. [38:28]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [01:19] - The Comparison Game
• [04:27] - Asaph Says the Quiet Part
• [08:10] - God’s Goodness Is Himself
• [09:04] - Pure in Heart and Almost Slipping
• [12:25] - Envy Is Not Small
• [15:19] - Discipled by the Wicked
• [18:10] - When God Leaves the Frame
• [20:26] - Who Is Discipling the Heart?
• [25:26] - Guarding Others From Doubt
• [28:04] - Entering God’s Sanctuary
• [31:35] - Seeing the Heart Clearly
• [33:20] - Held by God’s Hand
• [38:28] - God as Portion
• [39:29] - Jesus Gives the Greater Inheritance

Bible Reading

Psalm 73
“A psalm of Asaph. Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills. Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. From their callous hearts comes iniquity; their evil imaginations have no limits. They scoff, and speak with malice; with arrogance they threaten oppression. Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth. Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. They say, ‘How would God know? Does the Most High know anything?’ This is what the wicked are like— always free of care, they increase in wealth. Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments. If I had spoken out like that, I would have betrayed your children. When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies. When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you. Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.” [04:44]

Malachi 3:14-18
“‘You have said, “It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements and by going about like mourners before the LORD Almighty? But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.”’ Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name. ‘On the day when I act,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.’” [22:50]

Ephesians 4:25
“Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body.” [26:52]

Observation questions

1. In Psalm 73, what are some of the specific things Asaph notices about the wicked that stir up his envy?
2. What does Asaph say he almost did with his words in Psalm 73, and why did he hold back? [25:26]
3. According to Psalm 73, what changes for Asaph when he enters the sanctuary of God, and what does not change?
4. In the closing part of Psalm 73, what does Asaph say God is to him, and what words does he use to describe God’s nearness and care? [33:28]

Interpretation questions

1. Psalm 73 begins with “Surely God is good,” and then quickly moves into envy, doubt, and bitterness. Why is that opening confession important for reading the rest of the psalm?
2. Asaph says he envied the arrogant when he saw their prosperity. How does envy become more than wanting what someone else has? How can it start becoming a judgment about God himself? [13:21]
3. Asaph says he could not understand things rightly until he entered the sanctuary of God. What does that suggest about where confusion, resentment, and doubt are meant to be taken? [28:04]
4. Asaph calls God his “portion forever.” Why is that such a strong statement, especially for someone who knows that earthly gifts can fade, fail, or be taken away? [38:28]

Application questions

1. Where does comparison most easily catch hold of the heart right now—work, family, money, singleness, marriage, ministry, health, or something online? What does that comparison usually make God seem like in that moment? [20:26]
2. Envy can shrink the whole frame down to what others have and what is lacking. What is one situation where that has happened recently, and what got pushed out of view when it did? [18:10]
3. Asaph did not pretend his doubt was fake, but he also did not spread it in a way that would wound God’s people. When confusion or frustration rises, what helps someone speak honestly without becoming careless or destructive with their words? [27:15]
4. God held Asaph by the right hand even while Asaph was questioning whether obedience was worth it. When has God’s nearness been the main evidence of his goodness in a hard season, even if circumstances did not improve quickly? [34:22]
5. “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you” does not mean earthly gifts are evil; it means none of them can replace God. What gifts are easiest to enjoy as gifts, and which ones are easiest to turn into competitors with God? [37:07]
6. “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” Where does personal weakness feel most real right now, and what would it look like to lean on God there instead of measuring life by what is missing? [38:07]
7. In Jesus, God gives more than help; he gives himself, his righteousness, his presence, and an inheritance that cannot be lost. How might that truth reshape the way someone responds to another person’s success this week? [39:29]