Refuge in the King
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Psalm 2:12
As we enter Holy Week, Christians around the world will be remembering the last week on earth for Jesus that culminates with an Easter celebration next Sunday. Psalm 2 goes to great lengths pointing to Jesus as Messiah, King and Son of God (verse 2, 6, 7). When Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey as the Gospels tell us, there are echoes there of Psalm 2 that point to a Davidic king who will come and rescue God’s people from tyranny and despair.
Verse 12 closes the Psalm by inviting God’s people to take refuge in this king. King Jesus not only demands our total commitment, he provides a place of rest for the weary. This commitment to have Jesus rule my life begins with and is sustained by taking refuge in this good and powerful king.
Personally, my wife and I are entering a season of mourning as we anticipate the passing of her mother soon from Parkinson’s dementia. It is a bittersweet Easter week with colorful plastic eggs lined up in our hallway while we make airline reservations to say goodbye to her and make funeral preparations. I’m guessing there are readers experiencing some form of pain, disappointment or tiredness even as we head toward the Easter celebration.
So as we move toward Easter and the celebration of our great and victorious King Jesus, let us not forget that that our own losses and struggles are a connecting point to the themes of Holy Week, just as much as triumph and victory are. We can take refuge in Jesus, casting our burdens upon him, and expect him to comfort us because he is a good king who cares. Jesus was betrayed, abused, abandoned and crucified before he triumphed. He can perfectly empathize with the pain and sadness we might be enduring right now.
Something to Think About:
The hymn What a Friend We Have In Jesus was written from a place of great despair and loss that the author was going through. Even after the song was written and became popularized, personal tragedy followed this believer. A poignant stanza in the song asks:
Are we weak and heavy laden,
cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge;
take it to the Lord in prayer.
Something to Do:
Share with Jesus a burden you are carrying.
Share with a friend that you could use support in this season.
Email us at the De Pree Center if we can pray for you in a specific way.
Prayer:
“Eternal God, the refuge of all Your children, in our weakness You are our strength, in our darkness our light, in our sorrow our comfort and peace. May we always live in Your presence, and serve You in our daily lives, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” – Boniface (675-754)
Explore more at The High Calling archive, hosted by the Theology of Work Project:
Kiss the Son!?
Rev. Tim Yee
Contributor Emeritus & Pastor
Rev. Tim Yee is Pastor of Union Church of Los Angeles, a 100-year-old church in downtown L.A.’s Little Tokyo District where he serves a diverse church of professionals, internment camp survivors, artists and homeless. He serves on the Board of Union Rescue Mission where he leads the P...