Hold Fast to that Confession

Who was this Jesus who died on a cross? Who was He really? It is quite easy for a thinking person to accept that there is a God in the world who made all that we see. There are four main arguments proffered by many that make believing in God the most logical outcome for the human mind contemplating such things. I recently attended the Passion conference with the young adults from our church. We heard Cliff Knechtle, a well known apologist, argue that we can look around us and see that something or someone, a divine architect, must exist to have created the complexities we see in the world around us. There is an order and design of the cosmos that demonstrates an intelligent mind behind all things. He further argued that there is a moral sense embedded in every human heart that recognizes injustice and wrongdoing. Concepts like “should” and other normative behavior dictate such an originator. Thirdly, the fact that we were made to love and be loved makes no evolutionary sense. We have affections and heart attitudes that mirror divine attitudes. And lastly, we have life, which comes with purpose. The argument is essentially that life comes from life. Life does not arise from non-life. There must be an origin of life itself. David summarizes this in saying, “The fool has said in his heart, 'there is no God.” (Psalms 14:1 WEB)

For me, the leap to believing in Jesus as the promised Messiah to save the world is bridged by the fulfillment of a multitude of specific prophecies. Many of those are in the lines of this chapter. John lists them with specificity. What happened to Jesus during his trial and crucifixion is described in detail in Psalms 22. My father used to attend services at a Jewish synagogue on occasion, and he told me that services would sometimes begin with everyone reading a passage in the Bible in silence before the rabbi spoke. Father told me that Jesus was no doubt reciting Psalms 22 in His mind on the cross, and it detailed His plight. This was written 1000 years before Jesus was born. Some of the connections include: Psalms 22:1 “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Psalms 22:7-8 describes the mocking that took place. “All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads. ‘He trusts the Lord, they say, ‘let the Lord rescue Him.” Then Psalms 22:16, 17, and 18 predict: “They pierce my hands and my feet.’ “I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.” The parallels are undeniable. What in the world was the Poet King David writing? How did any of this ever enter his mind?

And last but not least, the most beautiful words in the Bible were long foretold in this Psalm. From the cross, Jesus uttered the words “IT IS FINISHED.” This means it is done. The last line of Psalms 22 declares just that, “31 They shall come and shall declare his righteousness to a people that shall be born, for he has done it.” And dear reader, with those words, deep anguish ended, and triumph began. It all began with Jesus, and it all ends with Jesus. Yes, there is so much evidence that Peter’s confession is true. “16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:16 WEB) Do you hold fast to that confession as well?