Look Upon the Face of Your Messiah
10/1 Reading Portions: 1 Kings 3; Ephesians 1; Ezekiel 34; Psalms 83-84
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10/1 Reading Portions: 1 Kings 3; Ephesians 1; Ezekiel 34; Psalms 83-84
Psalm 84:9
Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of Your anointed!
SHIELD
In his famous Treasury of David, Mr. Spurgeon rightly points out that this verse is the nation’s prayer for their anointed king, David; while he also points out its more important prophetic reflection of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we see the word, “shield,” in our readings, many of us indeed consider God’s armor and the blessed…
…shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one. Ephesians 6:16
While the shield in our protective armor is certainly our faith to trust in the Lord Jesus for salvation, sanctification, and ultimately glorification in that Day, God’s Word through the sons of Korah tells us that our shield of faith is much more; that it is the Lord Jesus, Himself. Because of Christ’s righteousness placed upon our account through His perfect life lived, our prayer is not that our God look upon us directly, seeing our sins, our faults, and our foibles, but upon Christ, our Shield; upon Christ, our Refuge; upon Christ, our High Tower. Our desire is that the LORD God look on the face of [His Anointed]; which is in the original Hebrew, quite literally, “Your Messiah.” Yes, indeed, what a refuge we have in the pierced hands and extended arms of our crucified Lord! What a shield we have in the bosom of the spear-pierced side of God’s Messiah, who has laid down His life for His sheep (Ezek 34:23-24; John 10:11). The more we find refuge in the face of our Christ, the more our countenance transforms to become like His. The more we take up the shield of our crucified and risen Savior, the more His face shines upon ours, causing us to increase in glory increasingly until that Day when Christ Jesus returns and we see Him face to face. Hallelujah! What a protecting Savior. Hallelujah! What a Savior!
“Behold our shield,” we pray to God,
For blessings in Christ Jesus;
While we, His sheep, walk on this sod,
Through Christ is how God sees us.