I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living. Wait for the LORD;
Be strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the LORD. (Psalm 27:13-14 NAS95)
The walk of faith in the God of truth, who has revealed Himself both in the Old and New Testaments, has always been the hardest way of life that any human being has ever decided to walk on. There are many reasons for this to be so. The first reason I find is the fact that all humans, with the only exception of the Son of Man, are conceived in sin (Psalm 51:5) and are born sinful and sinning (Romans 3:23); therefore, it is always easier to follow the way of unrighteousness like Cain than to follow the way of faith like his brother, Abel. The other major reason is that true believers have always been the minority in this planet, surrounded by a big sea of unbelief and swimming against the current of lies and deceptions; due to this, believers are often persecuted, mistreated, isolated and/or mocked by unbelievers. Another big factor is the war saints have to wage against satan and his angels (Ephesians 6:12); these are phenomenal spiritual beings, who hate humanity and specifically believers with an evil passion and have formidable power of temptation and deceit, and that if it were not by the ministration of the Holy Spirit, no saint would even be able to overcome them. Despite the power of our fallen flesh, the persecution of the unbeliever world and the hate of the satanic forces, the one aspect that makes the life of faith the most challenging way of life of all the alternatives that are offered at mankind is the Lord of glory Himself, Jesus the Messiah.
Life is hard. That’s without dispute. Nevertheless, the Christian experience is even more difficult, and it is the Owner of that life, Christ Jesus Himself, who makes it so hard. The following is what I am trying to say: it is one thing to fight against one’s own sinful desires; it is one thing to spiritually fight against the corrupt world and the evil hosts that are the enemies of the cross of Christ; it is something completely different when it is you own Lord and Master, the One whom you love with you entire soul, the same One who is attacking you, hurting you, destroying your world. At least, that’s what one feels when the Lord is disciplining and chastening the one He loves (Hebrews 12:4-8). This is the reason and the time for true, saving faith to kick in. All throughout the Bible we get these calls to persevere in the faith, to be courageous waiting upon the Lord, as the title Psalm indicates. Even Peter, the least patient apostle of all (as far as the Bible revealed), is the same one to command us to add perseverance to a mix of godly virtues, such as moral excellence and self-control in 2 Peter 1:5-8. The commandment is clear and simple: to persevere; the examples are numerous and encouraging: that great cloud of saints who endured hard lives while living out their faith in the One, True God (Hebrews 12:1). But how painful it is going through the process itself! How discouraging it can be when one cries day and night, but the God of one’s hope and trust does not answer! (Psalm 22:2) What a grueling experience when one feels that the Savior of the world does not save, the Deliverer from Zion does not deliver, the Divine Physician does not heal, the Omnipotent Provider does not provide, the Wonderful Counselor does not counsel, the Prince of peace does not grant the same, the Mighty God does not show power! That is part of the Christian life that all believers must go through, but it is the hardest component of the life of faith, nonetheless.
When one is in the process of denying one’s self, taking up one’s cross, following Him to lose one’s life for His sake (Matthew 16:24-25) and is being disciplined by the Lord at the same time (Revelation 3:19), believers must do one thing and one thing only: “trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6 NAS95). It is the Holy Spirit who empowers believers to trust the Lord, but it is the Written Word that reveals to us who the Lord truly is. In referencing back to the title, David knew that his Lord was good, that no matter how painful life could become, the goodness of his God would always be manifested in the land of the living upon those who love and fear His Name. Therefore, David could call on others and on himself to take courage waiting upon the Lord and His perfect will.
I join my voice and soul to the Psalmist: I WILL SEE HIS GOODNESS UPON ME IN THE LAND IN THE LIVING. AMEN!
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