verseoftheweek

This Week's Verse of the Week (it's actually a chapter, but hey, you have a week to cover it:))

When I was feeling very weak and desperate, I looked for comfort from the famous psalm that says 'The Lord is my shepherd...He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.' So I couldn't remember the number of that psalm and mistakenly turned to this one, which was exactly where i needed to be. Read below the verses for more personal commentary.

Psalm 22

To the Chief Musician. Set to The Deer of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.
1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning?
2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear;
And in the night season, and am not silent.
3 But You are holy,
Enthroned in the praises of Israel.
4 Our fathers trusted in You;
They trusted, and You delivered them.
5 They cried to You, and were delivered;
They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.
6 But I am a worm, and no man;
A reproach of men, and despised by the people.
7 All those who see Me ridicule Me;
They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8 “He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him;
Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”
9 But You are He who took Me out of the womb;
You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts.
10 I was cast upon You from birth.
From My mother’s womb
You have been My God.
11 Be not far from Me,
For trouble is near;
For there is none to help.
12 Many bulls have surrounded Me;
Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me.
13 They gape at Me with their mouths,
Like a raging and roaring lion.
14 I am poured out like water,
And all My bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax;
It has melted within Me.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And My tongue clings to My jaws;
You have brought Me to the dust of death.
16 For dogs have surrounded Me;
The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.
They pierced My hands and My feet;
17 I can count all My bones.
They look and stare at Me.
18 They divide My garments among them,
And for My clothing they cast lots.
19 But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me;
O My Strength, hasten to help Me!
20 Deliver Me from the sword,
My precious life from the power of the dog.
21 Save Me from the lion’s mouth
And from the horns of the wild oxen!
You have answered Me.
22 I will declare Your name to My brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.
23 You who fear the Lord, praise Him!
All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
Nor has He hidden His face from Him;
But when He cried to Him, He heard.
25 My praise shall be of You in the great assembly;
I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.
26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise the Lord.
Let your heart live forever!
27 All the ends of the world
Shall remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the nations
Shall worship before You.
28 For the kingdom is the Lord’s,
And He rules over the nations.
29 All the prosperous of the earth
Shall eat and worship;
All those who go down to the dust
Shall bow before Him,
Even he who cannot keep himself alive.
30 A posterity shall serve Him.
It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation,
31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born,
That He has done this.

After I read this, I realized that all of life is desperate and full of our human weakness. In the midst of this, God can be our strength and he will answer our prayers. Part of this Psalm, as it talks about in the new testament, is an allusion to Jesus, who went through the ultimate suffering. In next week's verses, I will look at Psalm 23 and 24 to show that in the midst of this desperation and weakness God has set up something truly glorious for us, and that this comes from a God that is the King of Glory.

Last Week's Verse of the Week
James 1:2-8:
2My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. 5If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

The only way we can "consider" our difficult circumstances a "pure joy" is through seeking to understand the purpose of our circumstances. Difficulties produce "perseverance" which enables God to finish his work in us so that we may be brought to maturity. When we have difficulty understanding the purpose of our trials and tribulations, we must ask God for wisdom while we are waiting on him.

Verse of the Week two weeks ago
Matthew 12:30 (from Jesus the Christ): "He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad." Are you with God? do you gather for Him or do you scatter abroad? there is no middle ground. you are either with Him or against Him, gathering for Him or scattering abroad. do you not want to believe this? then what does Christ mean when He says he who is not with me is against me and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad? your sinful nature and satan himself do not want you to accept Jesus and His principles and His authority in your life. it takes courage to step forward and accept Christ despite the challenge. thats what i encourage you to do. then his presence will be in your heart to deal with all of life's challenges, including the ones it takes to be a true Christian.