Lent: "Dominion"

Psalm 22

27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD; and all the       families of the nations shall worship before him.

28 For dominion belongs to the LORD, and he rules over the nations.

29 To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down; before him shall bow       all who go down to the dust, and I shall live for him.

I am always fascinated by this passage of Scripture.  Most people who know the Crucifixion story know the first verse of Psalm 22-- "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"-- sounding about as hopeless as can be.  However, most people often forget the mastery of the Scriptures that Jesus had.  He knew it with an amazing mastery, and used it strategically.  He quotes from this passage to begin with.  That is recorded.  My pet theory, and I take full blame for this one if it needs it, is that these were the words in Jesus' mind in his final moments.  Read the whole chapter as it speaks of being humiliated and beaten.   Prophecy?  Strategic use of Scripture?  Both?

The passage above speaks to the rule of the Lord over the earth.  There is a powerful word there, dominion.  It is not domination.  It is a role of stewardship and ensuring order and safety.  In Genesis, humanity is given dominion over the environment and all creatures.  Those that love God should be in the fore on Environmental stewardship, but rarely do Christians even recognize Earth Day.  Dominion is about loving care, and this is the role of God for us--individually and collectively.  In the passage, all dead and all bound to die (all of us) will bow down before him.  The last phrase should be our call, daily.  The words are so easy, the enactment is so hard.  "And I shall live for him."  Is that my cry today?

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[Heath Benton]

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