The Lord Has Not Despised the Afflicted One
"Crucifixion" by Titian Click here to listen to this sermon. “ You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him, all you offspring of Israel! For He has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and He has not hidden His face from Him, but has heard, when He cried to Him ” (Psalm 22:23-24). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Have you ever painted yourself into a corner? That’s how I feel tonight. My plan for our mid-week Lenten services was to use the appointed psalm for the week as the text for our sermon. Tonight’s psalm is the last part of the messianic psalm, Psalm 22, that provides many prophetic details of Christ’s suffering and death. But our appointed text is only verses 23-31, in which the psalmist calls all people to praise the Lord for His faithfulness: “You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him...