Take Aways - What does God reveal to us about Remembering the Past – Psalm 78
Today we continued our study of the Book of Psalms with a focus on Psalm 78. The psalmist appeals to the people to remember the history of God’s relationship with their ancestors in order to instruct the current generation to take the path of faithful obedience to the Lord.
· The author of Psalm 78 is Asaph who was from the tribe of Levi and appointed by King David as the “Music Director” according to 1 Chronicles 6:39 and 16:7). Asaph is credited with twelve psalms (Psalm 50 and 73-83). Assigning a date to the writing of this psalm is difficult. Because of its content however, some scholars believe a date near or at the end of David’s life.
· Asaph seriously challenges the Israelites to teach their children God’s commands and to warn them about the consequences of forgetting the Lord’s mighty works in the past. He does this by reminding his people of their past cycles of failure and of God’s unwavering compassion and grace.
o We say we want to serve the Lord and know His will, then when He tells us what He wants us to do; we often hesitate and/or refuse. This was Israel's problem. They were called out of Egypt to follow the Lord by faith. However, they seemed to constantly doubt the power, the promises and even the presence of God as they traveled. The entire attitude of their hearts is summed up in a two-word question – "Can God?". When they asked this question, they doubted everything about God. They needed a lesson in trust.
· 78:5 follows closely the thought expressed in 78:2-4, in which the psalmist committed himself and his generation to tell future generations of the “praiseworthy acts of the Lord, His might, and the wondrous works He has performed”. In doing this, Asaph and his generation would be continuing to pass down the truths their ancestors had taught them.
· In 78:6-8, we find the goal of this cross-generational teaching. The intent is that each new generation will know personally how God delivered Israel from bondage in Egypt and made a covenant with His people at Mount Sinai. In time, the tradition will be repeated so that the covenant of faith would continue and expand.
· In 78:7, the psalmist tells us specifically what results from such teaching – “that they may set their hope in God”. He’s talking about strengthening the faith muscle. This idea actually sums up the psalm’s overall theme – answering the question – Can God?
· Key Point: Have you ever seen the disclaimer associated with an investment prospectus – “Past performance is no guarantee of future results”? The psalmist is trying to teach us the opposite – “God’s past performance is a guarantee of His future performance”. When you know what He’s done in the past, and you know that He is consistent, then you have confidence that He’ll do it again.
· When you think about God’s purpose for His chosen people – for them to be a model nation among the other nations, you can understand how important it is for them to learn how to be reliable and not rebellious. Israel was to be a nation of priests, prophets, and missionaries to the world. God’s intent was for Israel to be a distinct people, a nation who pointed others towards God and His promised provision of a Redeemer, Messiah, and Savior.
· Asaph uses the remainder of Psalm 78 to document the Israelite’s sad history of unfaithfulness. The people failed to consistently remember God’s works or obey His commands. Let’s take a look at Asaph’s litany of unreliability and see if it reminds us at all of our behavior.
o They were Ungrateful. It seems that no matter what great thing God did for these people they weren’t satisfied. Examples: God provides them with food (manna from heaven) but they complain and demand meat. Moses is miraculously used by God to be their leader who leads them out of Egyptian bondage and later they complain about his leadership.
o Are we ungrateful? Do we appreciate and are we content with what God has blessed us with? Do we appreciate our church leadership? Do we complain, and grumble about how the church is managed?
o They were Forgetful. The nation of Israel seemed to be unable to remember all the great miracles that God had performed on their behalf. How He had delivered them from Egypt by the plagues. How He had parted the Red Sea. How He made the waters of Mara pure. How He had put their enemies, the Amelikites on the run. How He had proven Himself to be God and to be all powerful time and again. They were forgetful of the mighty power of God they had witnessed in their lives.
o Are we forgetful? Do we soon forget how God has answered our prayers for deliverance because we’re focused on our latest difficulty?
o They were Faithless. By asking "Can God?" they proved their ignorance of His power and of His Person. This same scene was played out many times during the course of Israel's wilderness wanderings, and after they arrived in Canaan. One time that comes to mind is when the 12 spies were sent into Canaan. While there, they encountered a race of people known as the Anakim. They were giants. When the 10 faithless spies saw the giants, they looked at them and then looked at themselves and compared themselves to grasshoppers, Num. 13:33.
o Are we faithless? Do we wait on God, yield to His will, and remain still so that we don’t miss His voice? Do we believe that God’s in control and therefore trust Him enough so that we’re at peace?
o They were Insincere. In 78:36-37, we see how the people were insincere in their repentance. What the psalmist is referring to in 78:36 is how the Israelites had a habit of giving lip service to God regarding their loyalty to Him as the One True Living God. They were prone to worship false gods (idols) alongside their worship of the Lord (78:58).
o Are we insincere? Do we really mean it when we profess our willingness to repent of our sinful behavior or are we just indulging in lip service?
· Asaph described God’s merciful responses to the people of Israel in five brief statements. Four of the five appear in 78:38. The word “Yet” or “But” (KJV), tells us that God’s responses stand in stark contrast to the Israelite’s persistent ungodly behavior.
· God’s first response provides a basis for all the other responses – compassion. This one of God’s attributes (Ex. 34:6; Deut. 4:31). What is “compassion”? Since com in Latin means “with,” and pati means “to bear, to suffer,” then compassion is really patience taken to the next level.
o We can show patience toward someone from a distance, but compassion? That’s far more personal, more involved, deeper, more …passionate.
· Because of His compassionate nature, God “forgives [atones for] our iniquity”. God wants us to be closer to Him. The problem is we’re full of disgusting iniquity which He can’t tolerate. So, He provided a way of atonement in the law when He established the Day of Atonement sacrifice (Lev. 16). That ritual however, only foreshadowed the perfect atonement sacrifice God would make for all people.
· Although the people’s destruction was justified by their ungodly behavior, God “did not destroy them”. The obvious question is why. He loved them. Why didn’t Hosea dump Gomer? He loved her. Why does God keep putting up with us? He loves us.
· Many times, God “turned His anger away and did not stir up His wrath”. Sinful behavior provokes God to anger. It really ticks Him off. But, unlike us, when we’re wronged, God can control His anger.
· God “remembered” the people’s weak nature being “only flesh”. This doesn’t mean that God excused, ignored, or overlooked the people’s sin. Rather, He knew that people could never really defeat the sin that kept them in bondage. Just as they couldn’t free themselves from 400 years of slavery in Egypt on their own, they couldn’t free themselves from the bondage of their sinful nature.
o Only God can deliver us from the penalty of our sin – spiritual death. Just as Jesus said, “Without Me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
Supplementing Your Faith Class 6-11-17 Page 1