Skip to main content

Lent Day 29


Scripture Reading

Psalm 2, Mark 1:11


Psalm 2 is what scholars call a messianic psalm and a royal or kingly psalm. It is royal or kingly because it describes the reign of the Anointed One of the Lord. The psalm depicts a rather mighty, vengeful ruler who has no mercy upon those who oppose the Lord. One cannot read Psalm 2 without realizing the power, majesty, and terror that the Lord and his Anointed One evoke in the world. The psalm is written so that the reader gets a big view of God as the ruler of the universe. If we are to understand part of the grandness of God then we must affirm the kingly depiction of the Lord and his Anointed One. 


Psalm 2 is also a messianic psalm, which means that it refers to the messiah. Psalm 2 has been interpreted throughout the history of the church as a Psalm that describes the Messiah and his actions as he rules from on high. Messiah means "anointed one," and as we see in verse 2, the Anointed One is counted as one who rules with Yahweh, the Lord. This messianic psalm looks forward to the coming of the Son of God. Jesus is the subject of these verses because he is the Messiah. Jesus came to "proclaim the decree of the Lord." Jesus brought with him the message of God's judgment on sin and God's mercy on sinners. 


Jesus was the fulfillment of all of Israel's hopes, yet so many of them failed to recognize him for who he was. When he was baptized, Mark records a voice from heaven quoting Psalm 2. It was at his baptism that Jesus inaugurated his earthly ministry and his reign as the Anointed One of Yahweh. What was said to Jesus at his baptism is proof of his messiahship. He has fulfilled the prophecy of Psalm 2 and brought about the completion of the promise of God to David. 


Look again at verse 12 of Psalm 2. In it we see the directive given and the blessing that follows when one is obedient to what God has called us to do. We are told to kiss the son, an act of honor and worship to kings of ancient days. "Blessed are all who take refuge in him." Jesus as the Messiah is our refuge, a place we can go to in times of trouble and distress. He provides safety and security, a refuge. Jesus, the Messiah, the King of all Kings is our refuge in the good and bad times of life. 


Prayer: Yahweh, thank you for the Messiah. I praise you for crowning him as your King who provides for his people. I pray that I will live a life worthy of your name. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Lent Day 45 Good Friday

Scripture Reading John 19:23-30 Imagine that you were there. You are one of Christ's followers and you are there at the foot of the cross. Can you hear the crying, the moans of Christ's pain? Can you see him as he gasps for air and struggles to speak? Do you see his mother weeping and the crowds around her cheering his death? The stench of hatred and death are around you and the one that you love and believe to be the Messiah is hanging on a cross before you? Now...someone tells you that this is "good." It seems unreal that anything good could come from what is around you. You want to believe, but how can it be good?  The Christian life at times is hard for us to understand. Throughout scripture we are told things that on the surface do not make sense. If we give up our lives, we gain life. The poor in spirit will inherit the Kingdom of God. The meek will inherit the earth.  And the death of Christ is good. On that Friday, it must have been unimaginably difficult to b...
Post a Comment
Read more

Lent Day 24

  Scripture Reading Jeremiah 23:5-6 One of our professors in seminary would always tell us, "context, context, context...those are the three most important principles of properly interpreting a biblical text." This is certainly true with this passage. Jeremiah was a prophet who constantly reminded the Israelites of the future hope of Yahweh that was contained in the promises of the Messiah.  The first four verses of Jeremiah 23 are Yahweh pronouncing his promise to gather his people back unto himself. It is important that we see the faithfulness of God in these verses. His purpose has always been to call a people to live in relationship with himself.. The Lord demonstrates his covenant commitment. Remember his covenant with Israel was always contingent on what he did, not what Israel did. So we also see in the context of this passage the overarching theme of God's faithfulness to his promises.  Bound to God's covenant promises to David was the promise of his descendan...
Post a Comment
Read more

Lent Day 31

Scripture Reading Matthew 2:1-6, Micah 5:2 The prophet Micah prophesied the coming of the Messiah, from Bethlehem out of the land of Judah, seven centuries prior to Jesus' birth. Again scripture is fulfilled and Jesus' Davidic background is brought to our attention. The Jews, although blind to the servant king that the Messiah would be, were very well versed with the prophet Micah's words which said that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem from the lineage of David. King Herod, appointed by the Roman government to rule Judea, Galilee, and other territories, was distraught over this question the magi from the east asked, "Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews?" To the reigning king, this must have been quite alarming. He asked the chief priests and teachers of the law what they knew about this king. The fulfillment of Micah's words shook Herod. He was a man known for his ruthlessness and vengeance. It is known that he murdered his wife, sons, a...
Post a Comment
Read more