You who fear the LORD, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel! For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help. Psalm 22:23-24 In yesterday’s devotion, we heard our Savior cry out the words of Psalm 22:1 from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” We recalled that God the Father cursed his Son on the cross, causing him to endure separation from all of God’s love and blessings, all so that we could receive his eternal blessings instead. But would the Son of God really remain forsaken by God the Father for eternity? In verse 24 of the psalm, we finally get our answer: “For [God] has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.” Even as God’s Son faced the full force of the punishment for our sins, the Father was not about to despise his Son nor hide his face from him for all eternity. God’s love for his Son and the redeeming work which his Son accomplished through his life and death led the Father to deliver him. We see that deliverance expressed no more clearly than when God the Father raised Jesus from death on Easter Sunday morning. That was the Father’s stamp of approval on his Son’s work. What’s more, it was certain proof to us that our sins really have been forgiven, that death really has been defeated, that the devil’s power over us really has been destroyed! Trusting in Christ’s work on our behalf, our God will never despise us nor will he ever turn his face from us. What else could our reaction to such good news be than to do what the psalmist commands: “Praise him! Honor him! Revere him!” Empowered by his love for us, our entire lives are now songs of praise and honor and reverence to the God who has delivered us. What opportunities lie before you to praise his name today? Prayer: Heavenly Father, though I am a sinner, you have not despised me. Through the death and resurrection of your Son, you have welcomed me into your holy family as your child. Enable me to live like it today. Amen.
Posted on: Fri, 28 Jun 2013 08:04:21 +0000
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