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DEALING WITH THE ATHEIST (Psalm 14)

It was the Holy Spirit, and not the Bible writers themselves, who determined what is in the pages of Holy Scripture and what is left out. We believe in Holy Spirit-inspired selection, which means that where God spoke, He intended to say something. Likewise, where He is silent, we should not try to fill in the gaps.

As we study through these psalms, many of them have a historical context that is known. Sometimes there is an indication of time or place in the title or an explicit reference to an event. But many of the psalms have no such context. Why is that significant?

I believe that if God has declined to give us such information, there is a reason for it. With that in mind, I also believe that Psalm 14 points to every nation and every generation.

If you are not careful, you can look at a certain portion of scripture and think that it was only intended for a certain family or group of people. But in Psalm 14, the Holy Spirit is revealing the sinful heart of all humanity — Jew and Gentile, ancient and modern. He revealed that, regardless of religious leanings, every heart is desperately wicked.

Verse 1 begins, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” We love to quote this verse when referring to the atheists of our day who refuse to believe that God exists in any form. But look at the context and you will see that it does not refer solely to atheists. This passage is talking about what I like to call “practical atheists,” people who live as if there is no God at all. They are described in more detail from the remainder of verse 1 through verse 6.

“They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good. The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord. There were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the righteous. Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge.”

These verses clearly describe a group of people who are alive today. There are many who deny the existence of God, and He has word for them: fools. It is utterly foolish to deny obvious truth. To be an atheist is to totally reject the life God has given to man.

But throughout Psalm 14, it is easy to recognize all sinners who live their lives as though there is no God. Frequently the words “all” and “none” are used in this passage.

There is a portion of scripture in the New Testament which sounds very similar. Read Romans 3:10-12. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”

A few verses after this passage is verse 23, which we all know by heart: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.“

Whether a professing atheist or a practicing one, any man who lives his life without giving any regard to God is a foolish man. In this regard, Psalm 14 points to all past, present, and future generations that live apart from God.

If it just pointed to man, it would be fairly negative and depressing. But it also points us to God. How does it do this?

First of all, He is the One who “looked down from heaven” in verse 2. When we turn away from Him, He still has His eye on us. When Peter turned away from the Lord in a fit of cursing, Jesus was watching him all along. The moment Peter turned and looked, he found that Jesus was already looking at him. The Lord sees our hearts and knows us.

He is also evident in verse 5: “for God is in the generation of the righteous.” You can deny Him all you like, but God is very present. You can proclaim that there is no God, but that does not make Him go away. In this very verse, the people who previously denied God’s existence literally trembled before Him.

That is exactly what will happen to people in today’s world. They may deny Him now, but one day “every knee should bow … every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11).

I love what follows in verse 6. The Lord is the refuge of His people. When the darts are being hurled at you — from the atheists who mock you and the so-called intellectuals who want to debate you — and you need to find peace, run to the Lord.

There is a reason I have yet to read verse 7, the final verse in the chapter. It deserves its own attention. “Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! when the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.”

This may help us unlock something of the historical context. Most likely it was written to help the people who were being carried away into captivity. The point being made here is that there is hope in the end. The word “shall” used twice in the final phrase gives it a most definite tone.

As we were minded in the previous psalm, we are not just to look behind us or around us. We should always be looking ahead. For the believer, there is always hope. All of the criticism and skepticism of our age is not the end of the story for those who have trusted in Christ.

Do not be discouraged by all of the atheism around you. Your God is very real; He is with you and will be your refuge today.

Do not let the heart of practical atheism slip into your own life. Decide that you will not live today without giving regard to God in every aspect of your life. It would be very foolish of you to live that way because every one of us needs God.

Perhaps an appropriate counterpoint to the beginning of verse 1 would be that the wise person says, “Yes, God.” It is an affirmation to seek after Him and trust Him in everything.

Do the opposite of the atheist today; say, “Yes, God.” When you do that, you will see Him work in your life as only He can.