February 3, 2013 Blessed in Jesus' Suffering

Read Psalm 22 Blessed in Jesus’ Suffering Psalms 22:1-5 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, and am not silent. 3 Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the praise of Israel. 4 In you our fathers put their trust; they trusted and you delivered them. 5 They cried to you and were saved; in you they trusted and were not disappointed.” YESTERDAY’S devotion on Psalm 20 focused on the prayer of blessing, and seeking the Lord in time of need. The psalm celebrated God’s blessings to you from Heaven. But then look at this prayer of distress. You can hear great pain in the psalmist’s voice, and this is just the start. Go ahead. Read the rest of this psalm, and you will actually see a picture of Jesus’ agonizing death on the cross. The great misery of life culminates in the excruciating details of the Lord of Life suffering in death’s grip as he hangs in torment on the cross. Where is the blessing from Heaven now? Is it gone? No. Look and see. The blessing is the reality that to give you help through your suffering, whether it be days, months or years, God sent his Son to suffer death that you will know he knows your suffering. If you or your loved one is suffering in some way today, God’s Word in essence says, “I’ve been there. I know how bad it is. I know the pain. And I know you. I love you. Focus on me, and I’ll get you through this.” It’s True! Jesus’ suffering is your blessing.