Do not Fret
Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Psalms 37:1-3 NKJV
So much is happening so fast.
The world is changing at a rate that can’t be kept up with.
As time draws closer and closer to the return of the Lord, there is a deconstruction that the Lord is allowing to happen.
I’m not sure when the last time I saw something on the news that was uplifting.
It has been a while since there was a sense of peace and calm in the streets.
Fear has settled into the hearts of many.
Anxiety has overcome many people and it has been debilitating in every aspect of their lives.
Much of this is due to the evil doers.
We have been inundated with images and sound clips and social media to consume our very thoughts.
It is changing the way we think.
It is a hard thing in our human minds to try and make sense of the evil that those that are made in the image of God are capable of.
We have been reminded to not fret.
The definition of fret is to be constantly or visibly worried or anxious.
The definition in Hebrew is a little different.
It means to be burned or distressed.
To fret is to be concerned over the things we cannot and do not have the ability to change.
We don’t realize something about this passage. This was a dark and evil time in Israel’s history.
King David is giving these encouraging words at a time when it seems like the evil was taking over the good.
The faith of the saints starts to dwindle. The hope starts to fade. The questions of why, start to cloud our minds. Then hearts sink to a state that seems like there is no recovery from what is happening around us.
Scholars have called this Psalm the Psalm of the Persecuted!
It is very easy to concentrate on the wicked things happening around us. It’s easy to get distracted at what may happen next.
Sometimes we purposely look for the next big disaster.
Why?
Why do we torture ourselves in this manner?
We often speak of stumbling blocks in church. We talk about the things that steer us off of the path of God. Sometimes we do it to ourselves by tracking down evil rather than searching for what is Holy!
There’s a lot.
Many are walking away from Faith in Christ for some of these very reasons.
Let me say this;
Evil MUST have its time.
This is a hard thing to say, even harder to think.
In these hard times we are going through, as a society we have two choices.
We can allow the evil of the world to distract us.
Or
We can use it as a means to get closer to the Lord. To cling to His promises. To trust what He says is true.
There is an illusion that the evil gets a way with the evil it does.
It may for a time.
The havoc it causes. The pain and the trauma is unbearable to the ones that experience it. Horrible.
Where is GOD!
He is still on His Throne.
WHY doesn’t He do something!
God is fully and completely aware of the situations His righteous, faithful face on a daily basis.
He is also fully and completely aware of how it seems like evil gets away with doing evil.
He sees the unfairness.
He knows the wicked abuse the poor.
He sees how the needy go without.
He also sees how passionately those that plot evil oppose His righteousness!
But there is something that He gives us that outlasts anything that may come about. No evil deed could ever overtake or overcome!
His Holy and Righteous Word! His precious truth that outlasts the ages!
No evil can or ever will prevail over it!
We are told here to Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Do good!
Do the good work of a servant of Jesus.
Bring hope where no hope can be found!
Show mercy to the ones that have seen no mercy!
Love even the unlovable evildoers.
Because we represent the King of Glory! The Faithful And true! The One that is and is to come!
In the middle of all the hurt and pain we are given direction in how to deal with it all!
Feed on His faithfulness!
When we feed we become full. And if we are going to be full, shouldn’t we be totally and completely full in the Lord?
And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
John 6:35 NKJV
Sometimes when we see so much happening around us it starts to take our hunger for the Lord away.
There is nothing that should have that much power to keep us from searching for and engaging or be distracted from the faithfulness of our God!
The evil doers, their day will come.
I believe the Lord will give them an opportunity to repent of their wicked ways. But if they choose not to, there are consequences.
For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.
Grass grows for a season.
The green herb is delicate and withers quickly.
As horrible and hard as it is to see wicked overcome the righteous, we just have to endure.
That’s why we fill ourselves with the Gospel. This is why we fill our hearts to the very top! So we rely on His strength. So we can endure these hard days because of His faithfulness.
He provides.
The Lord is faithful and is not slack in His promises.
Your mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
Psalms 36:5 NKJV
Think about this today.
A faithful heart will always open its doors to the faithfulness of Jesus.
The ones that do what is against the Lord, those that purposely plot will have their time.
The wicked plots against the just, And gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him, For He sees that his day is coming.
Psalms 37:12-13 NKJV
The Lord laughs in the face of those because His judgment on them and their actions are near.
I encourage you to go and read all of Psalm 37. Especially when we see the eye of evil spring up.
David told the people this as encouraging words to cling to.
I pray it helps us today.
I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lends; And his descendants are blessed. Depart from evil, and do good; And dwell forevermore. For the Lord loves justice, And does not forsake His saints; They are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off.
Psalms 37:25-28 NKJV
Preserved forevermore by the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord! Covered and cleansed by the washing of His Blood! No evil can stand against or overcome!
Pastor Ed