Wednesday, March 29, 2023

THE ROCK OF SALVATION

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 23-24

Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).

 

This is En Gedi where David hid from Saul among the rocks and in the caves.

GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.

Key Verses: 1 Samuel 23:14b, 23:26, 24:12

Saul sought him every day, but God did not deliver him into his hand…Then Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain. So David made haste to get away from Saul, for Saul and his men were encircling David and his men to take them…”Let the Lord judge between you and me, and let the Lord avenge me on you. But my hand shall not be against you.”

Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, David wrote Psalm 22. We might want to read that Psalm today. Hiding amongst the rocks and in the caves gave David lots of time to pray and compose songs which reflect his experience in God. Notice in today’s reading the similarities to Psalm 22, the Psalm of the Cross. One thousand years before the crucifixion of Jesus, at a time when crucifixion as a method of execution was unknown, David described the event in considerable detail.
David had many hiding places, and he knew that his true stronghold was in God. Psalm 18:2a tells us, “The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress, and my Deliverer.” Like David, we know that we are not saved because we are clever or strong. We are saved from death itself because God has acted on our behalf. David was protected. Jesus was not protected. David lived, and we live, because Jesus was captured, beaten severely, and killed. Jesus is our Stronghold, our “Rock of escaping” (23:28). Let us run into Him for safety.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord Jesus, You revealed to David an amazing knowledge of Your suffering and death by crucifixion. I pray that as I wait before You today, You will reveal Yourself to me. May I, by the work of Your Spirit, identify so closely with Your sufferings that I can say with Paul, “I am crucified with Christ,” and “Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I’m meditating often on the time leading up to Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection during these days leading up to Easter. Think about the following.

At the last meal shared by Jesus and the disciples, only three of the four cups of wine which normally accompany the Passover meal were served. Jesus prayed in the garden, “If it be Your will, let this cup pass from Me, nevertheless not My will but Your will be done.” That fourth cup was received by Jesus as He hung on the Cross. In John 19:29 we read, “Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.” “Hyssop” was used at the first passover in Egypt to put the blood of the sacrificial lamb on the lintels and door posts. At the very start of Jesus’ public ministry three years earlier, John the Baptist declared that Jesus is “the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). I’ll attach a worship song in my P.S. so that all of us can worship “The Lamb.” I just read Revelation 5:9-14.

Yours for a constant confidence that we, like King David, are in a secure hiding place in Christ, where no enemy can draw us from that ultimate safety,

David

P.S. Worship along with the Hillsong choir as they sing about The Lamb!  (click here for “Worthy is the Lamb”).

The view from the Garden Tomb area towards what many believe to be Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, where Jesus was crucified. This is the north side of the ancient quarry dug into Mount Moriah, the same mountain where Abraham, about to offer Isaac, was told, “God will provide a sacrifice.”  Stones were taken from here to build the Temple. A Muslim graveyard is on top of the hill.

GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.

6 thoughts on “Wednesday, March 29, 2023

    • Thank you for posting this song
      It’s one of my favorites
      May God richly bless you and thank you for all the comments posted above 🙏✝️

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