*SPECIAL* Easter Edition: Knowing the answers and failing the test

Jesus, the hope of our hearts, was murdered yesterday and today we mourn and attempt to hold on to the glimmer of hope we found in His Words when He said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19). The following Psalm describes perfectly that dark period between Jesus' death and Jesus' resurrection. If He is not raised, we are doomed! We long for His promises to be made sight. He was the one we had waited for and now He is in a tomb. It all comes down to this:

Was Jesus Who He said He was?

Psalm 130:1-8

1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD!
2 O Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my pleas for mercy!

3 If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness,
that you may be feared.

5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
6 my soul waits for the Lord
more than watchmen for the morning,
more than watchmen for the morning.

7 O Israel, hope in the LORD!
For with the LORD there is steadfast love,
and with him is plentiful redemption.
8 And he will redeem Israel
from all his iniquities.

If the LORD were to grade our tests who could pass? It is rhetorical in nature when the Psalmist asks this provactive question. No one. The answer is "no one could stand, pass the test, earn their keep, make the grade, get the blue ribbon." We all fail. We all fall short.

God is gracious and offers forgiveness in Jesus. He does this that He might be feared. Not feared like a horror movie, but feared like the size of the universe. It's awe, inspiration, fear, and elation all wrapped up.

Hope in His Word. He has the resources to redeem you, the power to save you, the mercy to forgive you, and the patience to uphold you. Wait for Him. Imagine the watchmen staked out in the cold of the night. Everything else is asleep. You have nothing but your thoughts and the fear that you may see a light appear in the distance of a foreign army coming to attack. You are cold, tired, desperate, and anxiously awaiting the sun peeking over the horizon. You long for it, yearn for it, desire it, can hardly wait for it. It holds respite in its arrival. It promises freedom, safety, warmth, and rest.

The Psalmist believes that God will fulfill His promise to redeem him from his sin and he waits for the Lord with baited breathe

More than the watchmen for the morning
More than the watchmen for the morning