Psalm 22

My husband and I went up to his folks for Easter on Sunday. After church we drove up to Shelbyville, Illinois and spent some time with his family. Monday I had a meeting with my Seminary adviser in regards to my vocational endeavors. Before I met with him we went through Decatur and saw an old friend who I had interned with my Senior year of college. We spoke of our passion for the church and the challenges that we all were facing. It was very encouraging to see a brother in Christ. As we were leaving Dan hugged me and told me "Don't lose your faith!"

After my meeting we caught up with a college professor who was very influential in my husband's life. We sat and talked with him for a couple of hours about our losses and our wins within ministry. As we left he continued to say, 'pray and God will answer your prayers, be encouraged, be faithful'.

Through our rich conversations we were reminded that we are not alone in this work. We were reminded that God had worked within the lives of these men in their past ministries and He was continuing to work.

These Christian fathers encouraged us to keep the faith, and to continue to seek God, and to continue to study, and to continue to serve. Through their lives, they had seen God do wonderful things, and they continued to believe that God was still at work.

These catch up conversations reminded me of Psalm 22. Waylon preached on Psalm 22 on Sunday in reflection of the resurrection. Psalm 22 was written by David and has some prophetic inkling to the crucifixion of Christ. The first verse in the Psalm is "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" This famous statement that Jesus makes on the Cross was not a question driven by Theodicy, but rather was a prayer. Jesus was praying Psalm 22 on the cross.

Psalm 22 is a Psalm written by David within his despair. David is feeling abandoned and alone. Not only is David feeling this way about his God, he is also feeling this way about his community. As the Psalm goes on he is describing in detail, his spiritual and physical despair.

David is longing for deliverance, and God is no where to be seen.

However, even though God is not immediately delivering David, David still remembers the presence of God within his people's history. David remembers the deliverance God provides his people from the Egyptians. David remembers that God has been ever present within David's own life. As David is wallowing in his despair he is continually encouraged, because as God delivered his chosen people within the past, David can trust that God will continue to deliver him in the future.

As God has worked his redemption out within our history, he will continue to work his redemption out within our future.

Even when God does not deliver us in our present despair, we can trust that God will continue to deliver us within the future.

Jesus prays this Psalm on the cross. While, Jesus is in utter despair, he knows the plan. Because of Jesus' humanity the despair is very real and very painful, however, because Jesus is fully divine, he knows that deliverance will be given to all humanity through his Resurrection.

Just as my older brothers in Christ can look back on their lives and see the deliverance and redemption of God the father, they can look forward and trust in the ultimate deliverance that was given to us through the cross and resurrection.
This ultimate deliverance will free us entirely to be complete human beings.

Kingdom people will no longer be enslaved by their chains, but will be free in the despair and the deliverance of Christ.