Blessings from the Risen Messiah

New Guest: Like this one, most posts are devotional; those related to CAR BIZ can be found by searching for that title. You might start with 'Welcome,' the first post in the archives, dated November 12, 2008, where I introduce myself and the blog.

Friday, October 16, 2009
Ps 16, 17, 22; Jer 38:14-28; 1 Cor 15:1-11; Mt 11:1-6

Lord preserve me, for I take my refuge in You alone. I delight in Your saints; and I pray for those who pursue other gods; I will not partake in their worship or in their sorrows. YHWH is my chosen Portion; I have a good heritage. I bless YHWH Who gives me counsel; my heart is glad and my soul rejoices in God my Savior; because He is with me, I shall not be moved. Lord, let my vindication come from You; protect me from the evil spirits and wicked people around me. Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me under Your favor. My enemies are arrogant and pitiless; I commend them to Your care and judgment. I will see You and rejoice. Jesus experienced God’s absence when He bore my sins on the cross; He was mocked and spat upon, nailed to the cross and abandoned by His closest human associates. He was mocked and speared, pierced hands and feet; they took His clothing and gambled over it. By His wounds I am healed. He has worked protection for people not yet born.

King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and met him in secret at the third entrance to the Jerusalem temple. He promised safe conduct in exchange for God’s word. Jeremiah told him: ‘If you surrender to the king of Babylon, your life will be spared and the city will not be burned, and your household shall survive. If not, you will not escape, the city will be burned, and your relatives will be killed or exiled.’ Zedekiah expressed anxiety that he would fall into the hands of expatriate Jews in the Babylonian empire; but Jeremiah assured him that would not happen. Zedekiah told Jeremiah to keep their discussion to himself. And that was how the two of them handled the situation.

Paul’s first Corinthian letter comes to its climax in chapter 15, with discussion of the resurrection of the Messiah: ‘Brothers and sister, let me remind you of the gospel you believed, by which you stand. The Messiah died for our sins, just as the scriptures foretold. And He was buried; and on the third day He was raised, again, just as the scriptures had said. He appeared after His resurrection to Cephas, to some apostles, to more than five hundred in one place—most of them are still alive today, though some have died. Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as though to one born by miscarriage or abortion yet surviving, the risen Messiah also appeared to me—the least of apostles, unworthy of the name, since I persecuted God’s church. Yet by God’s grace, I am what I am—His apostle. And His grace has had remarkable results: I worked harder than any of the others, by God’s grace with me. And this is the story you have heard from all who preach; this is the story on which your faith rests.’

After Jesus taught His twelve closest disciples, He went on to teach and preach in the cities. John the Baptizer, now in Herod’s prison, heard of the deeds of the Messiah, and sent disciples. They questioned Jesus: ‘Are You He Who is to come, or shall we look for another?’ Jesus answered, ‘Go tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers and cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news in preached to the poor. Blessed is he who takes no offense at Me.’