Psalm 22: When David saw Jesus

Psalm 22

I've been looking at the connection between David and Jesus, and Psalm 22 is a pretty massive connection!

It's a psalm which David wrote, and it clearly prophesies about Jesus' death on the cross, an event which would not take place for hundreds of years.

On the cross, Jesus cried out v1: 'My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?' This showed that at that point in time, the Trinity was ripped apart as God the Father poured out His wrath for sin on His Son, the innocent and perfect atoning sacrifice.

But Jesus' quote also pointed His observers to what was happening. The psalm contines in v3-5 to talk of God's sovereignty, and the way He has always saved those who trust in Him. Those watching Jesus die see Him as one rejected by God, and their words virtually repeat v8: 'He trusts in the Lord; let the Lord rescue Him.'

The people could not see that Jesus was enduring the shame of the cross so that they could be saved if they believed.

Jesus also quoted the psalm to show how prophecy was being fulfilled. Being poured out like water, being parched, being pierced in hands and feet, having garments divided- all these details came to pass.

Ultimately Jesus quoted this psalm to remind Himself of the promises of God-
'He has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one' (24);
'The poor will eat and be satisfied' (26);
'All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord' (27). 'They will proclaim His righteousness to a people yet unborn- for He has done it.' (31)

On the cross, Jesus thought of us. When He proclaimed, 'It is finished', He died knowing He would be raised... and so would all those who died in faith.

David could not have known this, but God's Spirit rested on him, and in this psalm, he had a glimpse of Jesus. How much more privileged are we, to have the full picture in the New Testament!

What is the connection between David and Jesus?

I've been posting recently about the lessons we can learn from David's life- through the narrative in 1 & 2 Samuel and his prayers and songs in Psalms. We have seen how David went through many trials, and his prayers can be a great help to us when we are going through tough times too.

But having just read Graeme Goldsworthy's 'Gospel and Kingdom', I've been reminded of the importance of David's connection with Jesus, and the dangers of misapplying David's experiences to our own lives. For example, Goldsworthy writes that to apply David to ourselves in the story of David vs Goliath is probably not that helpful, because in that incident, David was acting as God's anointed one to save His people. I still think David is an example of faith to us, as I wrote in my blog-post, but I think Goldsworthy's point is very important. We can identify a lot more with the stunned and ecstatic people of Israel than with the giant-slayer! After all, the gospel is all about what God has done FOR us in Jesus Christ:
- Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience for us
- Jesus died taking our punishment for us

Jesus was pre-figured in David, because David was a king after God's heart. David was not a perfect king. But Jesus is! David points us towards Jesus as the ultimate King, the ultimate One anointed by God to save His people. David, in 2 Samuel 5-6, leads Israel to victory (as their king), and defeats the Philistines through God's power. David saves the people from the Philistines. Jesus, however, saves God's people from their sins -past, present and future. It's a whole different scale!

Later in 2 Samuel we will see God's promise to David that his descendant will reign for ever- a prophecy that sees fulfilment in Jesus. Seeing how Jesus is the culmination of all God's promises is a fantastic spur to worship Him more whole-heartedly, I've found this week.

Psalms 13-14: Dealing with depression

Lessons from David- Psalms 13-14

The Psalms cover every aspect of human experience, and Ps 13 focusses on times of depression and despair. It would be unrealistic of us as Christians to be surprised when we encounter these emotions. The Bible never promises that life will be easy. We could be going through tough times- we could even be medically diagnosed with depression as an illness. It is very hard to stay joyful when the chemicals in your brain aren't allowing you to get out of the trough of despair.

But God is faithful through good times and bad. As a Christian, the important thing is to follow David's example and keep trusting in God's 'unfailing love' and rejoicing in His salvation. This doesn't necessarily mean being happy, but it means that you can be assured that God has done everything to solve your biggest problem: separation from Him because of sin.

Ps 14 particularly cuts to the heart of the human condition. 'All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no-one who does good, not even one.'

But God has planned for salvation and made provision for it in the cross of Jesus Christ- that is the thing we can always reflect on to make us glad.

Going the extra mile

Lessons from David- 1 Samuel 23

What do you do when you see someone in trouble? Do you deliberately ignore them? Do you actively help them? Or are you too obsessed with your own problems to even notice?

In this chapter, we see two very different responses to a troubled situation. Keilah, evidently a walled city and a vulnerable population, is being looted by the Philistines. David's reaction is to ask God what to do. Saul's reaction is to make a plan to besiege David at Keilah.

God gives victory to David, as He promised, and answers David's prayers concerning Saul's plans. It is in a sense a hollow victory, because God tells David that the people he saved would give him up to Saul.

From the highpoint of victory, David is forced into the desert hills to hide from his pursuer. Saul is so obsessed with finding David and killing him that he ignores everything else- at the end of the chapter he is forced to face a Philistine attack. Saul is so deluded he even thinks he can bless people in God's Name for giving him the information he wants. He has followed his obsession and become so far steeped into his sin, that he has lost the ability to see what's plainly in front of him: he is being a rubbish king and a rubbish believer.

It's only when we depend on God for victory that we can be truly successful. And successful in Bible terms does not always mean luxury comforts (David wasn't getting any of those), but a close intimacy with God. That's what we should all crave and aspire to.