Date: 14 Oct 2009 Comm: 0 comments

Why Good Things Happen to Bad People

One cannot ask why bad things happen to good people without also feeling the same tinge of injustice when we contemplate why good things happen to bad people. This is the question that anguished the Psalmist. He found himself in terrible distress and agony of soul. He says, "My feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold."

The Psalmist was experiencing a very old problem; one that is still with us today. He had begun to observe the prosperity of the wicked. He began to notice that the ungodly, the unregenerate, the un-repented people; those who had no need for God, who did not acknowledge God or believe in God; who did their own thing, lived for themselves, behaved as they pleased, seemed to be having a good time in this world. The unbelievers who made and lived by their own rules, played their own songs, and danced to their own music was enjoying all the wealth and pleasures of the world, whereas he himself, a godly man, was having a very difficult and hard time. He laments, "They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills." Nothing seemed to go wrong with the ungodly. It seemed as if by some special privilege they were exempt from the strains and struggles of daily living. They are always enjoying prosperity. But as for himself, he says, "Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning."

The Psalmist wondered why he was having so many problems and so much trouble in his life, while the ungodly were having none. So he began to think about it and ponder it until it became an obsession. He was on the verge of saying what many of us find ourselves asking, is there anything in religion? Is there any point in trying to live the Christian life? Is it worthwhile trying to live right and do right and walk right? Is there any purpose in trying to live the godly life?

The Psalmist, like all of us, was tempted by the Evil One. Satan wants us to reject Christ and all that He stands for. Envy is his deceptive tool which he uses to draw us away from the godly life. To envy is to desire what you do not have. It may be wealth, talent, good looks, intelligence, youthfulness and a thousand other things. Envy makes us mean and evil toward the ones we envy.

Matthew tells us that it was out of envy that the people handed Jesus over to Pilate and demanded that He be crucified. Jesus said envy comes from within and makes a person unclean. Paul said, love does not envy and those who envy will not inherit the kingdom of God. Paul told Titus (and us) "we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another." But when we found salvation; when we experienced the love of God our Savior, when we experienced His mercy and forgiveness, rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, all those old things passed away and all things became new. Envy passed away and was replaced by the love of God in Jesus Christ. James tells us, "If you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there."

If you find yourself experiencing feelings of envy, stop and do some serious self-talk. This is what the Psalmist did. He found himself on the slippery slopes of envy, but he began to talk to himself. He did not say a word to anybody but to himself he said, "Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart." The psalmist was saved from an awkward position. He was slipping to Satan's strategy but he talked to himself. He told himself, "Now

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