Christian Reflection and Prayer

Read Psalm 6.

TEXT: I can count all my bones -- they stare
and gloat over me (Psalm 22:17).

One of the most painful aspects of crucifixion was having
your entire weight hanging from your hands. Your whole
body was stretched by the weight, which shot intense pain
through every joint, muscle and bone. The stretching also
caused the bones to stand out, which is why Jesus is able
to count all of them.
 
As David couples together Jesus' ability to see and count
all His bones, with His enemies staring and gloating over
Him we are reminded that crucified criminals were hung
naked. This removal of clothing served the purpose of
making crucifixion as great a deterrent as possible by
adding the shame of public nudity to the excruciating pain.
In Jesus' case, His enemies look on Him in hatred, and
take great pleasure in seeing His protruding bones and
watching Him writhe in agony.
 
What incredible love our Savior shows! He well might pray
for His Father to strike down such evildoers who take
pleasure in seeing their Lord and Christ suffering. Instead,
He prays "Father, forgive them, for they know not what
they do." Even though to forgive them, He is taking their
punishment upon Himself.

That also brings us back to the prayer that echoes over
and over again throughout this psalm: "My God, My God,
why have You forsaken Me." Repeatedly, Jesus points out
His enemies' cruelty and savagery, their shameless
mockery, ridicule and torment. He asks His Father how
long He will continue to forsake Him, and pour out upon
Him such wrath and fury.

THE PRAYER:

Lord Jesus Christ, Your love and grace is impossible to
measure. You endured such scorn and agony out of love
for the whole human race. Help me share that love with
everyone I meet. Amen.

(Lenten Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries)

Read Zechariah 12:1-13:1.

TEXT: They have pierced my hands and feet
(see Psalm 22:16).

King David knew nothing of crucifixion in his day, but
he prophesied it in exacting detail in Psalm 22. In
yesterday's devotion he compared Jesus' enemies to
a pack of wild dogs, encircling its prey. It paints a vivid
picture of Jesus' crucifixion. His hands and feet are
pierced as the Roman soldiers nail Him to the cross.
His enemies encircle Him to taunt and ridicule Him,
as if they were barking loudly against Him. No wonder
He cries out, "My God, My God, why have You
forsaken Me?"

Aside from the Gospel accounts where Jesus is
nailed to the cross, this nail piercing of our Savior is
mentioned in two other places in Scripture. The first is
in the prophet Zechariah, "And I will pour out on the
house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit
of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look
on Me, on Him whom they have pierced, they shall
mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only child, and
weep bitterly over Him, as one weeps over a firstborn"
(Zechariah 12:10).

The last book of the New Testament, Revelation,
includes these words in its first chapter, "Behold, He
is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him,
even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth
will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen."
(Revelation 1:7).
 
Today is the day to recognize it was our sins that led
Him to the cross, our curse He took upon Himself.
Today is the day to weep and mourn for how we
contributed to His sufferings. Today is the day to trust
in Him and rejoice that He willingly humbled Himself
and endured such suffering to save us from eternal death.

THE PRAYER:

Lord Jesus Christ, our sins are serious indeed. Thank
You for taking their terrible punishment upon Yourself to
save us all. Amen.

(Lenten Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries)

Read Psalm 59.

TEXT: For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers
encircles me (see Psalm 22:16).

King David's prophecy of Jesus' crucifixion returns to the
animal theme we saw several days ago. He wrote of bulls
and lions; now he writes of a pack of wild dogs. By itself,
a single dog may not be as powerful or intimidating as a
bull or lion. A pack of wild dogs, however, are relentless
predators that run down their prey. These dogs take turns
leading the pack, so there are always fresh dogs heading
up the chase. That's where the expression "to dog
someone" comes from, to keep nipping at their heels,
pursuing them until they grow weary and become
exhausted. This method allows a pack of dogs to bring
down prey animals much larger than themselves.

All kinds of Jewish officials dogged Jesus' steps throughout
His ministry. They spied on Him, challenged Him, countered
Him, accused Him, tried to interfere and turn the crowds
against Him.

When the single, exhausted animal stops to rest, the dogs
form a circle around it, and close in for the kill. David uses
a couplet to reveal the true identity of the "dogs"
encompassing Jesus: they are a company of evildoers
encircling His cross. It includes all those who have brought
Him to the cross: the Roman soldiers who nailed Him there,
Pontius Pilate who abandoned Him, the Jewish leaders who
engineered His destruction, and the mob that sought His life,
now standing, watching and mocking Him.

That company of evildoers includes Judas who betrayed Him,
Peter who denied Him, and the remainder of the Twelve who
abandoned Him. It also includes you and me-for He is
carrying our sins to the cross.

THE PRAYER:

Lord Jesus Christ, Your enemies showed the persistence of
a pack of wild dogs. Forgive my sin and protect me from all
harm and danger that I may remain in this faith and live with
You in Paradise. Amen.

(Lenten Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries)