Rescue!
Scripture Reading — Psalm 22
He has not despised … the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.
Psalm 22:24
When Christ cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46), he was quoting Psalm 22:1. This psalm, though it begins with an exclamation of pain, turns into an expression of faith and thanksgiving in the end. The first half of the psalm foreshadows much of what Jesus experienced on the cross: mocking, insults, thirst, the piercing of his hands and feet, even the casting of lots for his clothing. But further into the psalm, as our verse for today says, God “has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.”
While it seemed Christ had been forever abandoned, God wasn’t through with him. Jesus’ body would be placed in a grave, but he would be raised from the dead, the Lord of life!
He would be crowned with the name that is above every name (see Phil. 2:9-11).
Hebrews 5:7 says that while Jesus lived on earth, “he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.”
He was heard! It seemed for a time that he was not, but God did hear, and Jesus was assured that he could rest in his Father’s hands (see Luke 23:46). Then on the third day he rose from the grave!
Gracious God, you heard Jesus even in those darkest moments, and we can trust that you will never abandon us, for his sake. Thank you, Father! Amen.
About the author — Shawn Brix
Rev. Shawn Brix has served as pastor in several Ontario churches. He and his wife, Jenny, have three children.
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