“But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” James 1:14-15

All sin begins with desire. Seemingly benign desires may be perverted; the desire to eat may become the sin of gluttony, and the desire to procreate may become fornication, adultery, etc. Desires are complicated in that they lead to other desires. The desire of hunger produces a desire to seek food and go to the bakery where I desire to eat a donut; one donut turns into six, and now I have desires about what to do about eating those six donuts. This is just a small sampling of the many desires we have. We have desires related to work, family, government, church, other individuals, etc. Being overwhelmed with desires produces great stress and leads to the desire to sooth the stress, but this does not satisfy.

What is needed is contentment: being satisfied with who we are. Contentment is not trying to be something that we are not. Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 6:6-7, “But godliness with contentment is great gain, For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we carry nothing out. But if we have food and raiment let us be therewith content.” Focusing on Jesus and who He is helps us to be content because He is all we really need; He is the standard for who we were created to be and what we truly are. This is godliness, and being satisfied with that delivers us from a world of our own destructive desires.

It is an age-old problem that becomes a stumbling block to so many people. A person observes those who appear to be healthy and successful as they live in willful sin in rebellion against God. He also observes the struggles and apparent lack of success of those striving to live righteous lives. The false conclusion is quickly drawn that the “end really does justify the means” and that God is failing to bless the righteous. The Bible warns against making rash, quick judgments without all the facts (Matt. 7:1) and based only on outward appearances. A classic example is God choosing a king for Israel from among Jesse’s sons and Samuel thinking that surely Eliab will be the one who is chosen. “But Jehovah said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have rejected him: for Jehovah seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but Jehovah looketh on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

Making judgments based upon outward appearances caused the Psalmist to say, “But as for me, my feet were almost gone; My steps had well nigh slipped” (Psa. 73:2). One must fight the temptation to be envious of the arrogant upon seeing the “prosperity of the wicked” (73:3). Let us learn from the 73rd Psalm that our faith and trust is to be rooted and grounded in Jehovah and not in the glamour and glitter of this present world.

The Problem to Overcome:
(1) “The prosperity of the wicked” (Psalms 73:3) – their boastfulness that was apparently justified by their security and success.

(2) The wicked had “no pangs in their death” (v. 4) – that is, they died easy without fear or pain with no apparent mental or physical struggles.

(3) The wicked were not “in trouble” and “plagued like other men” (v. 5) – in normal life poverty and disease affect the poor while the wealthy appear to be living in luxury.

(4) They are characterized by “pride” and “violence” (v.6).

(5) They possess more than a heart could wish for (v.7).

(6) They scoff and set their mouths against the heavens (v. 8).

(7) They are willfully ignorant of God, blasphemous and haughty in attitude (v. 11).

The Psalmist then notes the wicked being at ease and increasing in riches and exclaims, “Surely in vain have I cleansed my heart, and washed my hands in innocency; For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning” (73:13-14). People today wrestle with the same thoughts. Does it matter what a man does? Will righteousness be victorious over unrighteousness? Does it pay great dividends to be wicked and God-defiant?

The Solution to The Problem:
The realization that the wicked do indeed prosper and enjoy this life is often quite painful to the one striving to live a righteous life. But when one considers and accepts God’s eternal truths, earthly things are then seen in their true perspective. Temporal prosperity takes on an entirely new character when seen in the light of eternity.

(1) The Psalmist saw that the feet of the wicked were set “in slippery places” and that they were cast “down to destruction” (v. 18).

(2) A day is coming when the wicked will become “a desolation in a moment” and they will be “utterly consumed with terrors”(v. 19).

(3) In the Day of Judgment when all accounts are made right, God will despise the image of the wicked (v. 20).

Understanding and accepting God’s revelation (the Scriptures) disposes quickly one’s envy of the wicked. Who in his proper mind would covet the position of one who is rich and famous in this world but wretched and lost throughout eternity? Physical prosperity will never be able to overcome spiritual bankruptcy!

The Destiny of the Righteous:
(1) He has fellowship with Jehovah God (v. 23).

(2) He is guided by divine counsel (Word of God) that will lead to eternal glory (v.24).

(3) He realizes that nothing upon earth can compare with God and His eternal blessings (v. 25).

(4) He knows that the flesh and heart will fail, but that God is his source of strength and refuge (v. 26).

(5) He understands it is always good for man to draw near to God, and he places his complete trust in God (v. 28).

Let us realize that “God’s thoughts are not our thoughts and neither are His ways our ways” (Isa. 55:8-9). May we see as God sees, and cherish the blessings that come from God more than the prosperity that comes through the world!