The Proof in the Pudding
I know, Lord, that Your judgments are righteous, and that You have afflicted me in faithfulness. Psalm 119:75 NASB
You have afflicted me – So you want to be a witness for the Lord. You want people to see you and recognize a person whose life reflects the Creator. You want your actions to speak louder than your words. You want others who fear God to look at you and be glad. Great. And now tell me, “What are you like when bad things happen to you?” The real test of voluntary submission to the will of the Father is not the display of His blessings but in the response to His afflictions. The most powerful word in the vocabulary of evangelism is ‘innîtā’nî (you afflicted me). The prime example of this spiritual fact is found in the statement, “Not mine will but Yours be done.” And, of course, we all know this theoretically. It’s one of those doctrinal pillars of the faith. But practically, well, that’s another matter.
We’ve see this theme before (v. 71), but we didn’t comment on the deeper meaning of ‘innîtā’nî. Now is a good time to note that this is more than humbling, more than oppression. ‘innîtā’nî carries the sense of “causing pain.” That makes the statement even stronger. How many of us recognize the handiwork of God in our pain? Maybe Hebrew theology follows the bodybuilders’ motto: no pain, no gain—but we don’t like to think that God is the one behind those painful days, do we?
Not many of us rise to the level of the psalmist when life turns ugly. Instead of praising God for the benefits of His affliction, we complain to high heaven that life isn’t fair and we deserve protection and grace. We never stop to think that the very things that befall us are in fact God’s invisible hand working toward our intended purpose. That’s why ‘innîtā’nîis such a terrifying term. It might not be so bad if it weren’t personal. We might be able to live with “Life afflicted me.” But the pronoun makes the idea psychologically paralyzing. God afflicts us! That’s not the kind of God we thought we needed. Affliction is bad. God is good. Therefore, affliction must be from the Devil or some other evil power—and it’s God’s job to get rid of it. For those of us who grew up in the dualism of Plato’s moral universe, spiritual warfare is our lot. We’re soldiers on God’s side, fighting the evil powers of this world. But for those of us who read the psalms carefully, a different kind of world emerges. It’s God’s world—beginning to end—and what He does or doesn’t do is up to Him, not the result of some celestial conflict between Good and Evil. That’s why Isaiah can say:
יוֹצֵ֥ר אוֹר֙ וּבוֹרֵ֣א חֹ֔שֶׁךְ עֹשֶׂ֥ה שָׁל֖וֹם וּב֣וֹרֵא רָ֑ע אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָ֖ה עֹשֶׂ֥ה כָל־אֵֽלֶּה
“Who forms light and creates darkness, Who makes peace and creates evil; I am the Lord, Who makes all these” (Isaiah 45:7 Chabad).
The psalmist lives in a single sovereign universe. He recognizes God’s engineering in all the elements of his life. That doesn’t mean he accepts it all without comment. He’s not a silent submissive. He remembers Moses’ arguments with God. He fights for his point of view. But in the end, he knows that God’s good sometimes means affliction, and with that in mind, he wants others to see the greatest testimony he can offer, that is, how he acts when things are bad. If you want to understand real faith, don’t look for the blessings. Look for the trials.
Topical Index: testimony, affliction, ‘innîtā’nî, evil, Isaiah 45:7, Psalm 119:75
“The psalmist lives in a single sovereign universe. He recognizes God’s engineering in all the elements of his life.” Emet!… and amen.
This has been my personal experience these past few days as I prepared and helped others prepare for the coming of hurricane Milton, predicted to make landfall in the “cone of uncertainty” across Florida, where I reside (in a what is termed a “manufactured” home). The preceding hurricane, Helene, just a couple of weeks ago inflicted significant damage upon others living in the path of that storm, and I was soundly and reasonably concerned for the safety of my wife, who has dementia, and our beloved Boston Terrier (who is quickly and thoroughly unnerved by Florida’s tropical summer storms with their characteristic torrential downpours accompanied by thunder, lightning, and high wind gusts). My preparations always include ongoing conversation/prayer with God as I seek wisdom, insight, physical stamina, courage, and protection in the labor that is involved, and willingness to leave for sturdier shelter if/when the mandate to evacuate is issued.
That mandate came early in the marked period of prolonged tracking and issued warnings, and I submitted to planning our evacuation to my son’s well-constructed home in central Florida which also lay within the frustrating uncertainty of the “cone of uncertainty” of the storm’s likely path. We secured our house and property, took items deemed essential with us, and began the trip with concerns that we would encounter tediously slow traffic on the way.
Thanks be to God! We never encountered much traffic… making the trip safely and in record time. We also never lost power throughout the event, wind effects were remarkably minimal (despite numerous sightings of tornadoes throughout the area), and it provided opportunity for a long-awaited visit with my son and daughter-in-law and their “doggie” (a longtime beloved personal friend of mine). When we arrived back at our own home we found we had power, no damage to our home, minimal wind effects (small branches and wind-blown debris), and we faced minimal cleanup. We are so appreciative of God’s gracious and merciful engineered protection!
On the other hand, the two recent hurricanes have left many across our country with circumstances of genuine affliction. I pray that they, too, are recipients of God’s delight in being merciful; nevertheless, we know that there are many of “these many” who are grieving the loss of loved ones, are without homes and the basic necessities for life and survival in some cases, and are perhaps also without knowing any comfort in the midst of their extreme affliction. Please join me alongside many others who are praying, hurting in their affliction (perhaps by helping to substantially meet some of their many needs), and asking that “these many” would experience benefit by being made able to recognize God’s engineering in all the elements of their lives.
I am glad to hear of your safety. And I’m distressed over the tragedy of so many. I make contributions on behalf of all my readers to an aid charity that will help them.
Thank you, Skip… and thanks be to God!
Richard, thanks for this update on your situation after the storms. Thank the Lord for all that worked out favorably for your family.
I hope the Father’s mercy is experienced by all who have been afflicted by these horrific events.