The One Who Will Never Disappoint

Day 19 - Images of the second advent

“Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God. He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them— he remains faithful forever. He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free, the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked. The Lord reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations.”

-Psalm 146:3-10

(Photo by Chad Madden on Unsplash)

I admit that I am quite excited about today’s passage! By now in our Embracing Hope Advent series, you will recognize the familiar call to set our gaze on Jesus and His second advent, the time when He will return in glory as King and ruler. This passage from Psalm 146 really speaks to us about what kind of God we serve and what kind of King Jesus will be.

Verse 3 is such a clarion call to the Christian Church of this generation, saying in no uncertain terms that our hope cannot be in mortal human leaders. In these difficult days with so many challenges, both domestic and global, the Church must put their trust and hope in Jesus, our King. We see that God promises to bless “those whose hope is in the Lord their God”.

The Psalmist declares that the plans of human leaders will “come to nothing” (Ps. 146:3) but “the plans of the Lord stand firm forever” (Ps. 33:11). We are reminded that He is the One who made the heavens, the earth and all that is in them and He is faithful forever to all creation.

In Day 17 I asked the question: what should we expect when Jesus returns as rightful King? What will his values be? Read over v. 7-9 and hear again what Jesus will do: He will see that all who are oppressed will find justice, that those who are hungry will be fed and clothed; healing will break out and touch broken bodies and tormented minds. The lowly and the marginalized will no longer be overlooked, but lifted up and God’s righteousness will sustain the foreigners and those who are lonely and neglected.

In Day 12 we looked at Zephaniah 3:17 where it says, “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save”. Jesus has promised that He will return, and that at the time of His second advent He will come as rightful King. God will be in our midst and He is the mighty one who will save. We cannot know how He will do these things, but we can trust that He will be faithful forever to the values of His heart and of His coming Kingdom.

Here is a question for all of us to pray about: in what ways or areas of our life do we need to spend more time in meditation and reflection on the faithfulness of God and His leadership over this world and less time focused on the activity of human ‘princes’ who cannot save us?

“Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God.”