UPDATED Today’s Spiritual Food for Thought, prepared by Pastor Jason Sato who is currently serving in Japan as a missionary, is an updated version of his blog first posted on December 15, 2013. Jason is a graduate of University of California, San Diego (BS) and Westminster Theological Seminary (M.Div.).
Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend
“Freedom from Oppression”
Psalm 129:1-8
“Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth”—let Israel now say—2 “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth, yet they have not prevailed against me. 3 The plowers plowed upon my back; they made long their furrows.” 4 The Lord is righteous; he has cut the cords of the wicked. 5 May all who hate Zion be put to shame and turned backward! 6 Let them be like the grass on the housetops, which withers before it grows up, 7 with which the reaper does not fill his hand nor the binder of sheaves his arms, 8 nor do those who pass by say, “The blessing of the Lord be upon you! We bless you in the name of the Lord
Have you ever been oppressed, not psychological but politically? Those who grew up in other countries may have but I doubt whether any of us who was born and raised in U.S. can say “yes” with a straight face. But the nation of Israel was very familiar with oppression: first, Israel suffered as slaves in Egypt; and later, in the days of the judges, she was repeatedly oppressed by the surrounding pagan nations (i.e., the Canaanites). Eventually, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Persians, the Greeks and finally the Roman Empire took turns in crushing this nation.
Yet in the midst of affliction, the Psalmist exudes hope. While the common saying is, “Greatly they have afflicted me from my youth,” he adds, “yet they have not prevailed against me.” The hope stems from his belief that the justice and blessings of God are still to come; the plowers have plowed his back but the righteous Lord will not abandon his people.
What about us? While very few of us have experienced political or material oppression, we are certainly familiar with slavery to sin. Sin is a hard master, for it intends to inflict harm, causing misery (e.g., unfruitful life) and death (e.g., eternal separation from God). But in Christ Jesus, we have been delivered from the domain of darkness and transferred to the Kingdom of the Son of God. Now, as we cooperate with the ministry of the Holy Spirit, we can gain tangible freedom from those things, such as selfishness, insecurity or addictions that makes us miserable and unbearable to others.
Thank God for your freedom won by the body and blood of Christ. Pray for and rejoice in the coming day when sin and death will be utterly destroyed. Therefore, we who are in Christ can be joyful while leading a meaningful life—even in the midst of oppression or, in our case, pandemic. Thank you, Lord.
Prayer: Father, my heart is often heavy in this world ruined by sin. At times, suffering and disappointment are overwhelming. I thank You that death does not get the last word. I thank You that You stand by me and prevent sin from prevailing against me. I trust in Your righteousness. You will make all things right. Mercy and life are coming soon. In Jesus’s name I pray. Amen.
Bible Reading for Today: Isaiah 38-39
Upon examining this morning’s Psalm, it would be rather easy to focus on the cry of the psalmist, who is troubled by an unjust world that seemingly points to an indifferent and partial God.
In order for us to cultivate a God-centered perspective and a greater ability to hear God that can powerfully affect our everyday living, adoration is the key, which is remembering and magnifying God all throughout the day.
During the Easter season, I spent time reading through the Gospel of Luke and am now making my way through Acts as we prepare for Pentecost. Taking another look at the life and teachings of Jesus in Luke and the presence and work of the Spirit in Acts has been especially helpful for me, as we all do the hard work of reevaluating and reimagining during our present season of upheaval.
“God is authoring a revolution through a series of holy interruptions.”
To my surprise, the pervasive sentiment I’m noticing in myself in this season is discontentment. And when I talk to others, I sense discontentment in them as well (even though some describe it as boredom). The luxury of routine and ample provision can leave us thinking, “There must be more than this!” Others express it as frustration with the brokenness we sense in ourselves and the world. Still others express it as confusion and uncertainty about our purpose, worth, and life path. And while I imagine some of these feelings were present before this pandemic, they seem harder to ignore nowadays.
Do you sense things being shaken in your life or in the world around you in this season? In what specific ways? How have you responded? How might God be inviting you into holy discontentment and deeper hunger for the Kingdom of God?
One thing that has been made very clear amid the pandemic is this: The most secure foundation upon which we can build our lives is not our careers or being fit; rather, it’s God alone and the worship of Him.
As this day ends, reflect the way that you have spent today.
As a first-generation Christian in my family, I have been praying for the salvation of my family members for a long time. And I am so grateful to experience firsthand how God has used the intercessory prayers of the body of Christ to bring salvation to my beloved mother.
How is your spirituality, that is, your walk with the Lord while being stuck at home for weeks on end during the ongoing pandemic?
In an earlier blog, I talked about how God felt about Zerubbabel’s temple, built by Jewish returnees from Persia, some 70 years after the Babylonians had destroyed Solomon’s temple.
Slavery.
Think about a time in your life when you were filled with gratitude and joy.
“We ought to give thanks for all fortune: if it is good, because it is good, if bad, because is works in us patience, humility and the contempt of this world and the hope of our eternal country.”