Brothers and sisters in Christ,
“My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?†So begins Psalm 22 and those words became forever a part of the Christian commemoration of Good Friday since Jesus uttered them and fulfilled them at the cross. Psalm 22 brings with it such a depth of messianic prophecy and fulfillment. From Christ’s words to His garments divided, Psalm 22 has foreshown those three hours of that dark Friday afternoon. In our current worship practices, Psalm 22 serves as the liturgical backdrop of the “stripping of the altar†on Good Friday.
Psalm 22 is not only deep with meaning but fairly lengthy at 31 verses. So I have divided the psalm into three lessons. The first lesson will serve as an introduction. The second lesson will cover the “complaints†portion of the psalm, 22:1-21. The third lesson will cover the worship/celebration section of the psalm, 22:22-31.
Today’s lesson is the introduction lesson of the psalm and includes how the psalm is messianic. It also gives the outline of the psalm and talks about the underlying anxiety of the psalm, is God near us?
In Christ’s name and service,
Pastor Robert Weller