Satisfaction
Arise, O LORD. Deliver me...
from men
of the world whose portion is in this life.
You fill
their belly with treasure;
they are
satisfied with children,
And they
leave their abundance to their infants.
As for
me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;
when I
awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness. —Psalm 17:13-15
I heard
a story years ago about a funeral at which a man was being buried in a solid
gold Cadillac. “Man!” someone murmured, “that’s living.”
The rich
and famous have “the good life,” or so they say. Don’t they know that someday
they’ll die and leave everything to others? Chuck Swindoll observes, "I've
never seen a U-Haul behind a hearse."
"As
for me," David says, (in contrast to those who cannot see beyond this
world) “I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake (from the “sleep”
of death) I shall be satisfied with your likeness." Then, in contrast to
those who are satisfied (17:14) with what they have in this life, he
will be satisfied (17:15) with God Himself and His love. This the answer
to David’s prayer, “Show us the miracle of steadfast love” (17:7).
Augustine
imagines an occasion on which God appears and offers this deal: “l will give
you anything and everything you ever wanted in this life—beauty, strength,
fame, wealth, power, health, a powerful intellect in a perfect body… But you
will never see My face again.”
Would I
take up this offer? Would you? Jesus asks, “What will it profit a man if he
gains the whole world and forfeits his own soul?” (Matthew 16:26).
Good question.
David
Roper
7.21.17
