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| Christ Healing - Carl Heinrich Bloch |
TO CHEW ON: "… the God of Jacob …. Who executes justice for the oppressed,
Who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners.
The Lord opens the eyes of the blind;
The Lord raises those who are bowed down;
The Lord loves the righteous." Psalm 146:5, 7-8
Jesus made sure the oppressed got justice.
When the scribes and Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery to Him, he made the self-righteous men aware that none of them was sinless. Then, without condemning the woman, Jesus sent her away, though not before naming her act sin and telling her to sin no more - John 8:3-11.
Jesus gave food to the hungry.
He fed at least two crowds, one of 5,000 (Mark 6:30-44) and another of 4,000 (Mark 8:1-9).
Jesus gave freedom to prisoners.
Numerous times He loosed people from control by demonic spirits—in the synagogue (Mark 1:21-28), in the hills (Mark 5:1-20), giving a man the ability to speak once more (Matthew 9:32-34), and freeing a man's dear son from seizures (Mark 9:14-29).
Jesus opened the eyes of the blind.
He did it for two blind buddies (Matthew 9:27-31); He did it with spit and mud (Mark 8:22-26); and He restored the sight of beggar Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52).
Jesus raised those who were bowed down.
He healed a paralyzed man (Mark 2:1-12), and straightened a woman who had been bent over for eighteen years (Luke 13:10-17).
Jesus loved the righteous.
He loved the rich young ruler who had lived an upright life (Mark 10:17-31).
Jesus watched over strangers.
He talked at length to the Samaritan woman about her heart thirst (John 4:5-42).
Jesus relieved the fatherless and widows.
He raised a widow's son from the dead (Luke 7:11-17).
Jesus also turned the way of the wicked upside-down.
He did it twice, cleansing the temple of greedy merchandisers, pouring out the changers' money and overturning tables at the beginning of His ministry (John 2:13-22) and again at the end (Mark 11:15-17).
Though we can interpret "the God of Jacob" and "the Lord" as the psalmist referring to God the Father, isn't it noteworthy that Jesus, in His ministry, demonstrated all these actions literally?
That's our God in action. For, as He told the disciples: "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" - John 14:9.
PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank You for the wonderful fulfilments of this prophetic psalm in Your life. I know You don't change. Please help me to trust You to be these things for me and for others in need. Amen.
MORE: "He Carries All of My Sorrow" - Philip & Brenda Janz
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. - Used with permission.
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