April 7, 1999

EXPLORE THE BIBLE:
The trials of life are opportunities for renewal
___ Psalm 22:1-8, 16-19, 22-24, 26-27
___By Dillard Wilbanks
___Travis Avenue Baptist Church, Fort Worth
___This amazing Psalm is written in two distinct parts. The first is a sob (1-22), and the second a song (22-31). When we trust God we need not await actual deliverence to be assured of it, for his love is his bond.
___ God, I feel forsaken. (Psalm 22:1-8). The fact that David opens the prayer by addressing God so personally communicates an irony. Although he feels abandoned and those around him believe him abandoned, the lamp of faith is not extinquished in God's silence. Still he prays. To David he is still 'my God.'
___However, the sense of God's absence is real. Nothing is happening. He asks the question 'why?' The prayer of verse 1 was prayed by Jesus from the cross. Long before the crucifixion God prepared for his consolation in this psalm.
___David then remembers the character of God and his faithfulness in the past. Historically, God's people were not disappointed. They "trusted you" (became secure) and were delivered (v. 4). They prayed and received answers. Why not now? These memories of past deliverence increase the pain. God's seeming distance leads to human accusation in verses 6-8. Not only has he lost a sense of his own dignity and humanity, but his suffering makes his accusers laugh. They mock the sufferer's faith from the mistaken Jewish position that disease and suffering are a sign of God's judgment. Matthew makes the precise connection that this silence of God and the scorn of people also were experienced by Jesus on Calvary (Matthew 27:39, 43.)
___Most of us have learned that life is not fair. In times of suffering or tragedy we may experience doubts and even feel God-forsaken. Both David and our Lord Jesus found freedom to express those feelings to the Father without fear of recrimination. So can we.
___ God, enemies are all around (Psalm 22:16-19). In verse 16, David returns to the enemies about him and continues with a new metaphor--dogs. His body is pierced as he attempts to ward off their attacks. The discourse of the wicked assembly continues as he is stared at and his garments divided among those casting lots. Once again, the connection to Jesus' crucifixion is made in Matthew 7:35.
___Although feeling forsaken, David still prays. Verse 19 begins, "But you, O Lord." Here is a vivid Old Testament example of the truth Jesus taught his disciples, that at all times they ought to "pray and not lose heart" (Luke 18:1). As his disciples, so ought we!
___ God, you heard me (Psalm 22:22-24). God's silence is over and David's enemies are now silenced by the mighty acts of God. David declares that he will magnify or exalt the God of deliverence. He will publicly testify of his salvation in the congregation. He, then, calls for Israel to join him. What part do testimonies of what God has done in the lives of believers play in our worship settings today? When voiced, what is the congregational response?
___ God, I praise you. (Psalm 22:26-27). The conclusion to these acts of worship is again praise to the Lord since the consequences of bringing life out of death for David embrace the whole earth. This will result in a national renouncing of sin and and surrender (kneel before) to God who is King, ruling over the nations.

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