The world would have us to believe that the “good” guys always finish last. Some of us know someone who appears to personify that saying. Through their cheating or unlawful deeds, they seem to get ahead in life first.
That’s why it is vital that Christians believe God’s way is always the best way. Those who stand firm in this conviction can remain grounded even when they see the ungodly prosper. “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes,” the psalmist writes (Psalm 37:7, NIV).
The psalmist touches on a reality for many genuine believers. They wrestle with the question, how can it be that some who cheat the system and who have no fear of God have more in this world than those who love the Lord? Perhaps you know someone who has abandoned his or her faith to go after the things of this world because it seems that the way of the world is the best way to get ahead.
Why does the Word of God advise us to not fret? Because for the scenario addressed in the verse above, a normal tendency is to fret. For instance, how would you feel about your colleague who drinks coffee and hangs out with the boss all day, but gets paid the same as you do? At the same time, his negligence makes you have to work harder to get the work done.
Or how about this one? You’ve just finished preparing your taxes. You owe money to the IRS. You tell your friend about how much you have to pay back. And he boasts about how he cheats on his taxes each year, resulting in exorbitant tax refunds.
This is the way of the world we live in. We should not fret over the things we cannot change.
Why Christians Don’t Always Choose God’s Way
If God’s way is the best way, why do Christians not always choose His way? How about these for reasons? God’s way is seldom the fastest way to see results. His way is not always the easiest way. It is never the most popular way. That’s why we must walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Only faith that transcends these apparent benefits of going another way will persuade us to consistently embrace God’s way.
Let me explain what I mean by God’s way. The psalmist sums it up well when he writes, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105, NASB). The Word of God is the sole means by which we can know God’s way.
When you are faced with a challenge in life, you may have several options on how to move forward. But the question is, what is the biblical prescription for how you should move forward? That is God’s way.
But knowing God’s way does not always result in going God’s way. Let us not be fazed by the ways of the wicked. God’s way is always the best way. No comparison exists between the gains of ungodliness and the rewards that come through faithfully obeying the Lord. Our soul must be anchored in this conviction, if we are to remain steadfast–even when we see the wicked prosper.
Copyright © 2023 by Frank King. All rights reserved.
