THE RISE AND FALL

Songs of the Heart:

WHEN YOU FEEL CRUCIFIED…

Psalm 22:1-5, 23-24

Trust in the Lord through all your trials.

A sermon pr= eached by

Dr. William= O. (Bud) Reeves

First Unite= d Methodist Church

Hot Springs, Arkansas

July 26, 20= 09

One of = the scariest moments in our experience as parents happened in the “happiest place = in the world”—Disney World. We took our boys down there, and the MGM part of Disney World had recently opened. One of the attractions was based on the movie, “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.” There were giant insects, doughnuts, tin cans, and foliage that the kids could crawl on, in,= and through. Karen and I didnR= 17;t care to do much of that, but Jeremy and John wanted to go explore. The whole structure was enclosed b= y a fence, so we let them go, with a promise to stay together. (That’s right; we were quite= young then.)

The pla= ce looked like an anthill with all the kids crawling all over. And in a few minutes, Jeremy, our oldest, who was about 8 at the time, came running up with a look of panic on his face. He had lost John, o= r John had lost him! So we all set o= ut to find our missing child. We we= re relatively sure he was OK somewhere, but you never know in a strange place. There are lots of cree= py people around. Even more, we = were worried that John would be upset at being lost.

After a= few panic-stricken minutes, we found John, calmly sitting on a giant mushroom, without a care in the world. = We rushed up to make sure he was OK, and we discovered that his preschool teac= her had told him if he ever got lost, just to stay in one place, and he would be found. I don’t remember= his exact words, but it was something like, “I knew you would come looking for me.”

Life has it’s scary moments, doesn’t it? We are not strangers to the feelin= g of being lost. Many times we do = not have the trust of a four-year-old to know that we will be found.= = [1]

Maybe it’s an illness or the loss of a loved one. Maybe you’re going through a divorce. Maybe you’ve l= ost a job or are looking for one. M= aybe your enemies are attacking you, and they are winning. Maybe your life is just out of wha= ck for any number of reasons. ItR= 17;s just not fair. It’s jus= t not fun! You almost feel like you’re being crucified.

The Boo= k of Psalms understands these negative feelings. As you read through the Psalms, you’ll find the full spectrum of human emotions: joy, exultation, lov= e, and devotion on one hand, anger, bitterness, fear, self-pity and hatred on = the other. The Psalms understand = and reflect the human condition, and it’s not always pretty. And the Psalmist, whoever it might= be, is honest enough in his (or her) relationship with God to bring those emoti= ons to the table and lay them out before the Lord. Sometimes the first step in overco= ming the negative parts of our lives is to be honest enough to acknowledge them.=

Psalm 22 contains one of the greatest cries of desperation in all of God’s Wor= d: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” [2] If we’re honest, sometimes t= hings get so bad we have to wonder. Has God forsaken us? Has the Lord abandoned us or forgotten us? Is there a God at all, and does he even care for us?

This ve= rse in Psalm 22 is even more famous because Jesus said these words from the cross. As he was being crucif= ied, experiencing the most intense pain imaginable, struggling with all his might for each and every breath, he cried out in anguish, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani!” which is the Aramaic translation of Psalm 22:1, “M= y God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” I don’t believe there are an= y more heart-breaking words in all of Scripture than these that come from the lips= of the Son of God. What can this= mean?

Over th= e years, scholars have debated the meaning of Jesus quoting these words on the cross. Had God really abandon= ed him? Did God withdraw his Spi= rit from Jesus and literally leave him hanging in his hour of need? I don’t think so. I believe Jesus was following the = Jewish custom of quoting the first line of a psalm or scripture text as a way of calling to mind the whole passage for the hearers, since many of them knew = the Scripture by heart.[3] If he had had more breath, he migh= t have said, “Turn in your Bibles to Psalm 22, and apply that Scripture to t= his situation.” The wonderf= ul thing is, when you read all of Psalm 22, it is not a psalm of abandonment or despair at all. There are fee= lings of persecution, and a graphic description of the triumph of the enemies. But the rest of the psalm is a gre= at hymn of trust. For the Psalmi= st going through a time of tremendous trial, there is restoration. There is healing. There is deliverance. The faithful one triumphs in the end. Jesus never lost his fai= th, and Jesus never lost his God!

So let&= #8217;s look at three ways today that Psalm 22 teaches us to deal with the difficult times in our lives.

First o= f all, MAINTAIN YOUR PERSONAL INTEGRITY.= Keep your character above question= , and you will withstand any trouble that comes your way. Integrity is a congruence between = your inner beliefs and your outer actions, a life that is one piece (integrated) inside and out. Jesus maintai= ned his personal integrity all the way to the cross, never compromising GodR= 17;s message and mission, never giving in to temptation, never taking the selfish way. This is the first ingred= ient to a life that is victorious.

Dr. Bil= ly Graham is one evangelist whose character has never been questioned in a long life = in ministry. He once said, “Integrity is the glue that holds our way of life together. We must constantly strive to keep = our integrity intact. When wealth= is lost, nothing is lost. When health is lost, something is lost. When character is lost, everything= is lost.”[4] The kind of personal integrity tha= t we see in Billy Graham gives us strength to withstand and overcome the enemy.<= /p>

Tony Du= ngy is also known as a man of great personal integrity and Christian character. He is the first African-American football coach to take his team, the Indianapolis Colts, to a victory in the Super Bowl. That was a great victory and the culmination of a long journey. That journey included Tony Dungy g= etting fired from one team as head coach, resigning from another, and the suicide = of his son James. Through the tr= ials, he said, “it was hard to remember God's promise from Romans 8:28, that all things work together for good to those who love him. But I also tried to remember the pr= omise in 2 Corinthians 4:8–9—that despite all of our troubles, God wi= ll never abandon us. What we oft= en see as defeat is frequently the stage being set for a comeback."

Tony Dungy’s comeback came on February 4, 2007, when the Indianapolis Colts became the world champions of professional football. Reflecting on his son’s deat= h and then the Super Bowl victory a year later, Dungy said, “Both of these events have given me the opportunity to grow in my faith. I have been touched by so many peo= ple who have reached out to me to express their own experiences, their triumphs= as well as their tragedies. And because of my experiences, I have been able to help them. I can tell them in no uncerta= in terms that despite these ups and downs, God is with us. God is for us. He won't ever abandon us.”= = [5] To win the victory over your enemi= es, maintain your personal integrity.

Secondl= y, when you feel crucified, TRUST THE LORD= FOR YOUR STRENGTH. If all we = have to rely on is our own resources, we are in deep trouble. But the good news is, we have a So= urce bigger and higher and deeper and wider than any trouble in the world, and G= od is here for us, no matter what.

The pro= blem with problems is that they wear us out.&nb= sp; Trouble tires us. Tria= ls sap our strength. Tribulations su= ck the wind out of our sails and leave us with an incredible soul-weariness that leaves us broken and weak and near despair.

The Psa= lmist draws strength as he remembers the faithful ones of the past. They depended on God, and God brou= ght them through their trial. = 220;In you our ancestors trusted; they tru= sted, and you delivered them. To yo= u they cried, and were saved; in you they trusted, and were not put to shame.&= #8221;= = [6]

The Psalmist’s own experience is the same. Despite the enemies, despite the suffering, despite the feelings of doubt and abandonment, God has delivered him: “For he did not despise = or abhor the affliction of the afflicted; he did not hide his face from me, but heard when I cried to him.”[7] The message is clear for us today. Don’t give up. Don’t despair. W= hen you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on! God will not forget you. God will take care of you. Trust in the Lord for yo= ur strength.

One of = the most beloved hymns from the great gospel era is “It Is Well With My Soul.” It was written b= y a man named Horatio Spafford in a moment when he needed God’s strength desperately. Mr. Spafford was= a highly successful lawyer in Ch= icago in the years following the civil war. He was also a dedicated Christian layman. But in his forties, his life turned suddenly disastrous. His only= son died unexpectedly. He lost a fortune in real estate in the great Chicago fire of 1871. By 1873, he had recovered enough to take his family on a trip to Eur= ope. He was going to assist Dwight L. M= oody, the evangelist, in a revival campaign in England.

Just be= fore his family was to leave, some business matters came up that Spafford had to deal with. So he sent his wife and= four daughters ahead, and he would catch up.&nb= sp; On November 22, 1873, the ship carrying his wife and daughters was struck by another ship at sea and sank in twelve minutes. When the survivors landed in Wales, Spafford’s wife sent her husband a two-word telegram, “Saved alone.”

As quic= kly as he could, Horatio Spafford booked passage to join his bereaved wife. As the ship passed the point in the ocean, the captain pointed out to Horatio that somewhere near that spot, on= the bottom of the sea, lay the ship that had carried all four of his daughters = to a watery grave. For a long time= , this heartbroken father leaned over the rail and looked into the deep, deep water. Then, without a word, = he turned and walked to his cabin, took up his pen, and let these words flow o= ut of the depths of a grieving heart:

When peace, like a river, attendeth my= way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll,

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me t= o say,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.= = [8]<= o:p>

How is = it with your soul today? Can you find strength to live, whatever your lot might be?

Those h= ymn words remind me of one of my favorite verses of Scripture. In Philippians, Paul says, “= I have learned to be content with what= ever I have. I know what it is to ha= ve little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I hav= e learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of b= eing in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”[9] Paul found strength; Horatio Spaff= ord found strength; the Psalmist found strength by trusting in the Lord. Sounds like a plan to me!

Finally= , when you feel crucified, you can overcome your troubles and live victoriously if= you HAVE FAITH IN GOD’S ULTIMATE JUSTICE. Let’s face= it; sometimes the good guys don’t win.&n= bsp; Enemies seem to rule the day. The wicked prosper. Ju= stice doesn’t seem to happen in this world. But there’s the key. Maybe things don’t always wo= rk out in this life, but this life is not all there is to life. God has a bigger scope, a larger perspective, an infinity of time and space to work with. We are playing on a very large fie= ld, and no matter what we experience or perceive in our little world, we know by faith that God will ultimately have the victory.

There&#= 8217;s a cute story about a child who was sitting on her father’s lap as they watched the movie “Peter Pan” on TV. There are some frightening parts t= o that wonderful and exciting story. Captain Hook and the crocodile are rather scary characters. At one p= oint in the drama the father became anxious that maybe his little girl might be = afraid. So he asked her if she wanted him = to change the channel. Without t= aking her eyes off the screen, the child answered, “No, Daddy, I know how it’s going to end. I= 217;m not afraid.”

We know= how God’s story ends as well, so we are not afraid today. The final scene is celebration and= joy and homecoming in the Kin= gdom of God. We believe in God’s ultimate justice. Evil will be destroy= ed, and good will triumph. That i= s our hope. We draw strength for to= day because we know what will happen tomorrow.

In Psal= m 22, the Psalmist finishes the song with an ascending spiral of praise. Starting with verse 22 and going t= hrough the end, he celebrates the deliverance he has experienced. First he’s going to tell his friends and family, then he’s going to share the go= od news with the congregation at the T= emple. Then the whole world will begin to praise the Lord, and not only this world but the world of the dead as well. Even future generations= yet unborn will join in the mighty chorus of praise to a God who delivers us fr= om trouble. Hallelujah!

So are = you feeling crucified today? Are = there situations with your health, your family, your job, your relationships that make you think maybe God has forgotten to look out for you lately? If that is your emotional state to= day, let me remind you of the One who really was crucified. After he cried out, “My God,= my God, why have you forsaken me?” his last words from the cross were “Father, into your hands I co= mmit my spirit.”[10]

If you&= #8217;re feeling crucified today, commit your spirit to God. Trust in him. He will not abandon you. This trial will pass. Maintain your personal integrity.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Turn to the Lord for strength. Have faith in his final victory. And you will live to praise God ag= ain. Amen!

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