Crucified

In the days of slavery in the United States, southern slaves were living under brutal conditions. They composed some deeply moving songs with haunting melodies, rich with emotion. These ‘spirituals’ were songs of hope and anticipation. They were the soul-cry of the slave longing for freedom. They embraced Jesus as their Saviour and *Lord* and, in the midst of almost unbearable suffering, they experienced his grace, peace and hope for the future. From this relationship they were able to sing: Were you there when they crucified my Lord? In the New Testament passage for today, we see the background to the extraordinary claim of the New Testament that the one ‘*they crucified*’ is in fact *my Lord*. God is described in the Old Testament as ‘*The Lord’*. The original Hebrew word for ‘Lord’ (YHWH) had no vowels and was not vocalised. It was considered too sacred to pronounce. For that reason, when vowels were added to the original Hebrew texts they weren’t added to ‘the name’ (YHWH). There has been much debate in modern times as to what vowels should be used – it used to be thought it should be ‘Jehovah’, but most scholars now think ‘Yahweh’ is more accurate. In the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, this sacred name (YHWH) is translated *Kyrios* (Lord). It really is quite extraordinary, therefore, that the New Testament writers (who were Jewish monotheists) made this fundamental Christian affirmation that ‘*Jesus is Lord’* (*Kyrios*) (Romans 10:9; 2 Corinthians 4:5; Acts 2:36) and that *our Lord* has been *crucified for us*

Psalm 31:19-24

Love the Lord

David urges, ‘Love the Lord, all his faithful people!’ (v.23a). To love the Lord is the first commandment. This is a two-way relationship of love. We love because he first loved us (1 John 4:19). Our love is a response to his love.

David writes, ‘Praise be to the Lord, for he showed his wonderful love to me’ (Psalm 31:21a). Meditate on how much God loves you. ‘What a stack of blessing you have piled up for those who worship you’ (v.19, MSG).

He hides you in the ‘shelter of [his] presence’ (v.20a), he keeps you safe in his dwelling (v.20b). He protects you from ‘accusing tongues’ (v.20b). He hears your ‘cryfor mercy’ when you call ‘for help’ (v.22b). ‘God takes care of all who stay close to him’ (v.23, MSG). Therefore, you can ‘be strong and take heart’ (v.24a), even when things seem difficult. ‘Be brave. Be strong. Don’t give up’ (v.24, MSG).