Read Psalm 20. 1May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! 2May he send you help from the sanctuary and give you support from Zion! 3May he remember all your offerings and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! 4May he grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans! 5May we shout for joy over your salvation, and in the name of our God set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions! 6Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed; he will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving might of his right hand. 7Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. 8They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. 9O Lord, save the king! May he answer us when we call.
Psalm 20 is a pre-battle psalm (the day of trouble). In the first five verses the people are praying for the king, the Lord’s anointed. In verse six the king responds with great assurance from the people’s prayers. In verses 7-9 the congregation’s prayers for help turn into declarations of trust in the Lord.
For those in Christ, the time of trouble can also become our time of ever deepening trust. How? By remembering Christ’s victory in the greatest battle of all time. Jesus’ day of trouble on the cross appeared to be day of loss, of defeat, of forsakenness. But the resurrection proved otherwise. God did protect. He did send help. He did remember. The cross was Christ’s desire; death was his plan. Now we know that the Lord saves his anointed. The empty grave proves it!
Today we reject the salvation of our chariots and horses.
Today we choose to trust in the name of Jesus.
Today we rise and stand upright before God and before every spiritual force of darkness, for they will collapse and fall.
To live is Christ is to face every battle with great faith and confidence knowing that the Lord’s Anointed has already won the war.
Prayer. Jesus, God did save the king when he raised you from the dead. Dying was your plan to save me, your desire. May you become the greatest desire of my heart today too. Amen.
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To Live is Christ 