Odds-on

Psalm 22:1My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning?2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; And in the night season, and am not silent.3 But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel. 4 Our fathers trusted in You; They trusted, and You delivered them. 5 They cried to You, and were delivered; They trusted in You, and were not ashamed. 6 But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. 7All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 8 "He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!" 9 But You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother's breasts. 10 I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother's womb You have been My God. 11 Be not far from Me, For trouble is near; For there is none to help. 12 Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. 13 They gape at Me with their mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death. 16 For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; 17 I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. 18 They divide My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots. 19 But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me; O My Strength, hasten to help Me!

If you correctly predicted the outcome of last Sunday’s Super Bowl, raise your right hand! (And – I’m not just talking about picking the winner - anyone could have done that! After all, you had a 50-50 chance.)

No, what I’m talking about is picking the exact final score. (That narrows the field a bit, doesn’t it?) Or – how about picking the exact sequence of plays, exactly as they played out? Do you know anyone who could have pulled off that feat? Do you know anyone that knew beforehand the Saints would begin the second half with an on-side kick? Do you know anyone that predicted the game-ending interception before it happened - or were all on pins-and-needles as the Colts drove down the field for the apparent game-tying score?

You had an “odds-on” chance to pick any of this stuff in advance. How well would you have done? Even the betting experts in Las Vegas had the outcome of the game wrong, having installed the Colts as “odds-on” favorites to win the game.

Can you imagine not just picking all the exact results of all these events before the game, but picking the exact results of all the events of the game a thousand years before the game? (And - 800 years before the game of football even existed?) God did that pertaining to the events surrounding the crucifixion of Christ. Simply amazing is ALL you can say about Psalm 22. Simply amazing.

-  Pastor Bill