Many people today face trouble with the same attitude of unbelief as Asaph because they are not really familiar with God as He has revealed Himself in
His Word. Let’s look at what Asaph said from Psalm 77:
“Will the Lord cast off forever? And will He be favorable no more? Has His mercy ceased forever? Has His promise failed forevermore? Has God forgotten
to be gracious? Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies?” (vv. 7-9 NKJV).
Now let’s look at how God answers each of these questions:
“Will the Lord cast off forever?” Jesus said, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out” (John
6:37 NKJV).
“Will He be favorable no more?” Proverbs 8:35 says, “For whoever finds me finds life, and obtains favor from the Lord” (NKJV). Also Proverbs 12:2
says, “A good man obtains favor from the Lord…” (NKJV).
“Has His mercy ceased forever?” Psalm 89:28 says, “My mercy I will keep for him forever, and My covenant shall stand firm with him” (NKJV). Psalm
136 makes the statement, “His mercy endures forever,” 26 times.
“Has His promise failed forevermore?” First Kings 8:56 says, “There has not failed one word of all His good promises, which He promised through His servant
Moses” (NKJV). Again, in Psalm 89:34 it says, “My covenant I will not break, nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips” (NKJV).
“Has God forgotten to be gracious?” Psalm 84:11 says, “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He
withhold from those who walk uprightly” (NKJV).
“Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies?” Psalm 117:2 says, “For His merciful kindness is great toward us, and the truth of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord” (NKJV).
Each of the questions that Asaph asked points to God as the source of his problems. None of them make even one suggestion to the possibility of Asaph needing
to change at all. Whenever we face problems we can be assured that God is not the source.
James 1:17 says, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow
of turning” (NKJV). Yet one reason we fail to receive the help we need is that we point to God as the source of our trouble. God is our helper,
not our source of trouble.
