Wounds

"Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever," Psalm 136:2.

The psalm repeats the line above a lot of times. It intersperses the line with almost as many memories of God's varied creative actions in the world. And saving actions for ancient Israel, too. So, because of God's great mercy we give thanks. As we read the psalm, we also find remembrances of God's strong judgment against the nations. For example, it brings to mind the destruction of armies in the Red Sea, for which mercies we give thanks. But also it brings up troubling memories, God's striking down of Egypt's first-born children, due also to God's mercies. And we may learn as Egypt's king did, one should not trifle with God. His truly great mercies have a context: the world has been weighed in the balances (of justice) and found lacking. So we give thanks to Jesus whose wounds heal us.

While we visit today with a brother or sister, we give humble thanks to God. And the healthy fear gripping our hearts moves us into grateful confidence in the sacrifice of Jesus; his blood makes us stand tall at the mercy seat of God's glory.