Rooted with Rachel

Invite Him In

Grief has a way of winding itself around our hearts doesn’t it? What if instead of fighting those feelings, we invite Jesus into them? He doesn’t ask you to walk around the grief, instead, he walks through it with you. Even though I walk THROUGH the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for YOU are with me. - Psalm 23:4a #grief #jesus #christianencouragement This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rootedwithrachel.substack.com [https://rootedwithrachel.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Journey Toward the Cross - Psalm 22:27-31

Today is Good Friday and perhaps you're wondering, why is it called Good Friday? Because by all worldly standards, it would seem like it's a very bad thing that this perfect man is being murdered. But it's good. Number one, because God is a good God and he sent his perfect Son to die for undeserving sinners. Then, number two, it's a good Friday because the cross was our only way to be made right with a holy God. Psalm 22:27-31, the last part of the Psalm, moves out to the nations. In the previous verses, we see David referring to his people — Israel — the congregation. Now we move out to a bigger picture of the nations and how the nations will come and bow before him. They will serve him, the ruling and reigning King. All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations. All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, even the one who could not keep himself alive. Posterity shall serve him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation; they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it. - Psalm 22:27-31 All Will Bow The psalmist says, “Before him, all will bow down.” It says, “Those who bow down in the dust”. In other words, those who will die, which is all of us. Even those who could not keep themselves alive. This is us. We could not keep ourselves alive. When we think Good Friday, we realize we cannot rescue ourselves. We cannot keep ourselves alive. We need the cross. We need to sit with Good Friday before we can appreciate Holy Saturday and Resurrection Sunday. The last couple of verses in this psalm to me are just a perfect and beautiful summary of Christ's sufferings and his subsequent glories. Listen to what it says here in the last couple of verses. It says, “Posterity shall serve him. It shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation. They shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it.” Finished I love that last line: he has done it. What is so amazing about this final phrase, “He has done it.” is it’s the same word in the Hebrew that is used in Genesis 2:1-2. He finished the work he completed at creation. Fast forward to the cross and we see Jesus finishing it. It is finished. He completed what we could not do. We could not keep ourselves alive. God did it for us in his Son, Jesus Christ. That is why it's called Good Fridaу. Think about this, as we come into this weekend, Holy Saturday, and we sit in this pain and this uncertainty that the disciples experienced. On Holy Saturday all is silent, he remains in the grave. A lot is going on, but he remains in the grave and they are confused. They don't know where to turn. They're scared. So we also sit with Holy Saturday in the silence. Soon we will experience resurrection morning and a new creation because it is finished and he has done it. So tomorrow, take time to sit in that silence. Reflect on what the disciples must have felt—the confusion, the sorrow, the waiting. In many ways, we sit there with them in the quiet, in the waiting, in the unknown. We cannot fully appreciate the joy of the resurrection unless we first sit in the stillness of Holy Saturday. Thank you so much for listening and following along on this journey toward the cross through Psalm 22. I hope you've enjoyed this series during Holy Week. I hope it has been something that ministered to your heart and has helped you fix your eyes on Christ as you approach Easter. May Resurrection Sunday be all the more sweeter. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rootedwithrachel.substack.com [https://rootedwithrachel.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Journey Toward the Cross - Psalm 22:22-26

Today is Holy Thursday, also called Maundy Thursday, the day when Jesus gave the new commandment: to love one another just as He has loved us (John 13:34). As we continue in Psalm 22, remember that this psalm is beautifully divided into two main sections. Verses 1–21 focus on the sufferings of Christ, while verses 22 through the end shift to the subsequent glories. In the first section, we saw the deep, inward suffering of Christ. When we read the Gospels, we often see the outward events of the crucifixion, as if we are standing there as spectators. But in Psalm 22, we are invited into the inner experience of that suffering — the anguish, the weight, the spiritual agony. Now, as we move into verses 22–26, there is a dramatic turning point. I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you: You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him, and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel! For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him. From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will perform before those who fear him. The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord! May your hearts live forever! - Psalm 22:22-26 Verse 22 begins:“I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.” It’s as if David suddenly bursts into praise. What’s striking is that his circumstances have not visibly changed—and yet, everything has changed. There is a shift from suffering to confident praise. In verse 23, he calls on Israel, the people of God, to fear the Lord, to stand in awe of him, and to glorify him. And in verse 24, he gives the reason: “For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted,and he has not hidden his face from him,but has heard when he cried to him.” This is crucial. Earlier in the psalm, we heard the cry, “Why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:1). But now we see the fuller reality: God did not ultimately turn away. He heard. He answered. This points us directly to the cross. Yes, we were the afflicted ones—broken by sin and in need of rescue. But even more, Christ became the afflicted One for us. He bore the full weight of sin—past, present, and future. He suffered in obedience to the Father and out of love for His people. And yet, the story does not end in suffering. Psalm 22 moves us toward resurrection hope. God did not abandon his Son to death. As Hebrews 5:7 tells us, Jesus “offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears… and he was heard because of his reverence.” That hearing is ultimately seen in the resurrection. The Father answered the Son, not by sparing him from death, but by raising him through it. So when Psalm 22 says that God “has not hidden his face,” we understand this in light of the full redemptive story: the cross and the empty tomb. Now in verses 22–26, the tone is not just personal—it’s communal. Praise spreads outward. The afflicted are invited in: “The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord.May your hearts live forever!” This is the language of restoration, provision, and eternal life. It echoes the voice of a victorious, risen King. Because Christ was afflicted for us, we who were afflicted are now invited to be satisfied in him, to live forever. This is the glory of the cross: * Suffering that leads to salvation * Death that leads to life * Affliction that leads to eternal satisfaction We glory not only in the cross, but in the resurrection and in the promise of what is still to come. As we move toward Good Friday, we’ll continue to see how this psalm ultimately points us to the finished work of Christ in its fullness. Today is Holy Thursday, also known as Maundy Thursday, and this is when Jesus gives the new commandment to love one another as he had loved them. Remember Psalm 22 is split right down the middle into two sections. The first section is verses 1 through 21, and it focuses on the sufferings of Christ. We saw the inward suffering that he experienced. Remember, when we look at the Gospels and we see Christ in the Gospels, it's as if we're spectators looking on, seeing what's happening outwardly. But when we read Psalm 22, we see what's going on the inside. So the first section is the sufferings of Christ. Now we move into the second section, which is verses 22 through the end of the chapter. This is the subsequent glory. As we read Psalm 22:22-26 you will see this change in verse 22. It's pretty significant. It's as if David just bursts out in praise yet nothing has changed in his circumstances. Remember, this is still going on, but there's a turning here. We see that when he starts to say, “I will tell of your name to my brothers.” He talks about the people of Israel and the nation of Israel. He's exalting in him and standing in awe of him, then encourages others to praise him. In verse 24, he tells them why they should praise him. He says, “for he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted. And he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard when he cried to him.” So he continues to talk about praising God because of this, because he has heard and he has not abhorred the affliction of the afflicted. David focuses in this section on the fact that we praise him. Because he did not hide his face from us. He heard. This is the picture of the cross. We were the afflicted ones. We needed rescuing. God came to our rescue and sent his son to die to suffer horribly and to feel the full weight and to experience the full weight and punishment of our sin — past, present, and future. All of it. Because he loved the Father and because he wanted to obey the Father completely and because he loved his children. This is such a beautiful picture of the glory of the cross. Not only were we the afflicted ones, but Christ was afflicted for us. God raised him from the dead. He was risen. He did not hide his face from him. He listened and he heard his cry and he rose from the grave. This is the joy that we have, the glories of Christ in the cross, the resurrection and his second coming. In Hebrews 5:7, it says, He offered up offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. We see this fulfilled in the resurrection. Even in Psalm 22, as we look at us being the afflicted ones, but also Christ being the one that was afflicted and God heard his petition, not only for himself, but his petition for us, how he intercedes for us right now. He interceded on the cross for us and he intercedes for us even now, at the right hand of the father. Then in this section in verse 22 through 26, where he's calling on his brothers to praise the Lord because he has not abhorred the affliction of the afflicted. He ends in verse 26 by saying, “the afflicted shall eat and be satisfied.” Those who seek him shall praise the Lord. May your hearts live forever. Is this not a call of a resurrected King? May your hearts live forever. I love how this Psalm focuses on the sufferings of Christ and then it turns and focuses on the glories of Christ, the subsequent glories. We glory in the cross. We glory in the resurrection. Because he did not abhor the affliction of the afflicted. We the afflicted will eat and be satisfied and live forever. He is eternal life there. Tomorrow is Good Friday and we will look at the final section of this Psalm. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rootedwithrachel.substack.com [https://rootedwithrachel.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Journey Toward the Cross - Psalm 22:12-21

Today is Holy Wednesday, also known as Spy Wednesday, and we are reading Psalm 22:12-21. It is called Spy Wednesday because this is the day we remember Christ’s betrayal by Judas Iscariot. According to Matthew 26:14-15, Judas went to the chief priests and made a deal to expose and hand Jesus over to them for thirty pieces of silver. Thirty pieces of silver in that day was the price of the accidental death of a slave (Exodus 21:32). This would have been the lowest legal human value. Judas betrayed Jesus at the lowest price for a human life. Today, we catch a glimpse into the inner workings of betrayal and suffering. Perhaps we might see our own suffering or moments of betrayal in the psalmist’s lament. Many commentators say that when we see Christ in the Gospels, it’s as if we are spectators looking on, seeing what’s happening from the outside. But when we read Psalm 22, it’s like we get a glimpse of the agony that Christ experienced on the inside. Keep this in mind as we read (and write) today’s verses: Many bulls encompass me; strong bulls of Bashan surround me; they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet I can count all my bones— they stare and gloat over me; they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots. But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid! Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dog! Save me from the mouth of the lion! You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen! - Psalm 22:12-21 Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, David wrote these words which many years later would be fulfilled in Christ. We see Christ experience all of this on the cross and today, in Psalm 22, we witness his inner turmoil as God’s redemption plan unfolded. The structure of this psalm is in two parts and verse 21 is the turning point of the entire psalm. The first part, verses 1-21, is known as the Sufferings of Christ and then verses 22 to the end of the psalm is known as the Subsequent Glory. I want you to notice that in verses 12-21 we have a structure — known as a chiastic structure — that points us to a central turning point and then moves out mirroring the previous section. Here is the chiastic structure in Psalm 12-21: A. Surrounded by enemies (vv. 12-13) B. Physical suffering & weakness (vv. 14-15) C. Piercing & exposure (vv.16-17) D. Garments divided (v. 18) - Matthew 27:35 C’. Continued attack & threat (vv. 19-20) B’. Cry for rescue from deadly danger (v. 21a) A’. Delivered/Answered (v. 21b) Surrounded First, we see David is surrounded. He is talking about bulls encompassing him. The word “encompass” and “encircle” just mean that he is surrounded. He doesn’t see a way out. This idea appears a couple times here. When we think of Christ’s agony on the cross and we remember how the religious leaders were there mocking him and how the crowd and even the soldiers were mocking him. He is surrounded and in this moment he feels it. The vivid words used paint a picture of the pain he is experiencing inside. Maybe you’ve felt something similar when you were surrounded by evil or your circumstances were unimaginable and you didn’t even know how you were going to get out. You felt like there was no one to help. Yesterday, in verse 11 we see the confession that there is none to help. But here in this passage, he says, but YOU are my help. He turns and realizes there is no one physically that can help, BUT God is his help. I think we sometimes experience this turning to God in those times when we feel surrounded by evil, knowing that our enemy, the devil is like a roaring lion seeking to devour. Thank goodness we have a Hero who not only faced the forces of hell himself, but lives to intercede for us. Internal Suffering David goes on in detail to describe how he’s feeling on the inside. We see this mirrored in Christ’s agony on the cross as he describes his pain in images of being poured out like water, bones out of joint, heart melting like wax, strength being dried up like a broken piece of pottery, unquenchable thirst. His life feels fragile in this moment. He senses the approach of death in every fiber of his being. We see all of this fulfilled in the Gospels. Can you imagine as David, inspired by the Holy Spirit to write these words, as his quill hits the papyrus, he marvels at the meaning of these words? He owns this agony, but wonders at the words being given him. And then we, on the other side of the revelation of Christ, witness these words being acted out in Jesus’s suffering. We can experience this agony physically in our lives. We might feel like our circumstances are overwhelming, but we know that Jesus physically experienced all these things. We see a vivid timeline of his physical sufferings acted out on the stage in the Gospels: his hands and feet being pierced and all of his bones can be counted. In John 19, we see his garments divided. All of this is prophetic and no detail is left behind in the Gospels. The Only Help In verse 19 of Psalm 22, we see the transition word, “but”. We’ve seen several transition words used in this psalm. But and yet. Here we witness a turning point, “But you, O LORD, do not be far off, oh you, my help come quickly to my aid!” He calls the LORD his help. In verse 11, he states there is NO ONE to help and here he turns to God as the ONLY ONE who can help. He is our only hope. Notice how every sentence in this section ends with an exclamation point. He is shouting. Help me! Deliver my soul from the sword! Deliver my precious life from the power of the dog! Save me from the mouth of the lion! You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen! I love how David continuously comes back to who God is. He’s feeling many emotions. He’s surrounded, but yet he keeps coming back to God as his only help. I think that’s something we can learn from David’s transition here, even though nothing has changed about his circumstances, he recognizes God as his only help and he cries out to him. As we look toward Easter and the cross, it’s good for us to remind ourselves that it was our sin that put him on the cross. It was our sin that caused him to be in agony like this. It was our sin that caused him to feel like his strength was dried up, that his bones were out of joint and his heart was melted like wax. He was physically thirsty for us and they cast lots for his garments, sealing the fact that he would die. All of these things were describing his experience in detail; he did this for us. Verse 21 ends the Sufferings of Christ section in this psalm and tomorrow we will move into the Subsequent Glory. I think it’s important to keep in mind that when we see Christ in the Gospels it’s as if we’re bystanders or spectators, but in Psalm 22 we are getting a peek into the agony he experienced on the inside. The pain he experienced should cause us to reflect on the WHY of the cross and the WHY of the Resurrection. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rootedwithrachel.substack.com [https://rootedwithrachel.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Journey Toward the Cross - Psalm 22:6-11

Today is Holy Tuesday and we're reading in Psalm 22:6-11. I cannot wait to share with you what I came across a few years back when I studied this psalm, about that word “worm” in the psalm and it's fascinating. I'm going to share it with you in just a minute, but first, let’s look over this entire section. But I am a worm and not a man,scorned by mankind and despised by the people.All who see me mock me;they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;“He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;let him rescue him, for he delights in him!” Yet you are he who took me from the womb;you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts.On you was I cast from my birth,and from my mother’s womb you have been my God.Be not far from me, for trouble is near,and there is none to help. - Psalm 22:6-11 The passage begins by David saying, “I am a worm and not a man despised by mankind and the people”. In contrast to his focus on God’s holiness in verse three, we see David’s realization of his own condition before a holy God. He talks about how they're saying things like “Well, if he trusts God, let God deliver him, let God rescue him.” We hear this echoed in the gospels in Jesus’s life. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows (Isaiah 53:3). We saw yesterday in the first five verses he mentions three times the word trust. He goes back and he remembers how God led his people out and rescued his people. He talks about his fathers trusting in him and that he puts his trust in him as well. We see this on the cross when Jesus exclaims, “Into your hands I commit my spirit” (Luke 23:46). Yet This is that tension we sometimes feel. We're battling where we're at currently in our circumstances and how that makes us see things as we struggle with our view of God in the midst of feeling forsaken. We see him again in this section, go back to that word “yet”. “Yet you brought me forth from my mother's womb,” he says, and “you made me trust in you.” We also see that word “trust” come up again and we feel that tension, don't we? We're wrestling with our circumstances and what we know to be true about God and what we're feeling and all these hard things that create so much tension. In the midst of this struggle, he's recognizing that God made him trust in him from birth, from his mother’s womb. He ordained each day. And then he says this, “but trouble is near, trouble is near and there is none to help.” Think back on Jesus's life and remember the garden of Gethsemane, where he wrestled with the circumstances and the burden that was placed on him, but he willingly yielded to the Father’s will and went to the cross. It says he did this, “for the joy that was set before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame and he's seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2) What we see in this psalm is a picture of Jesus’s suffering mirrored in David’s suffering. Now we come back to that word, “worm”. I just love how God uses creation to paint a picture of the gospel for us! When I first came across this, I thought it was strange. And I thought, “Well, he could just be saying I'm nothing.” You know, I'm a worm and not a man. But the word typically used for “worm” in Scripture is “maggot”, like an everyday maggot. But this word, this word in this verse is totally different. It is a specific type of worm. A Worm Follow me here, the scientific word for this worm is Coccus ilicis. It is a crimson worm or a scarlet worm. Let that sink in for a minute. Actually, they used these worms, particularly the substance that came out of these worms, for dyeing fabric red. So here you have this worm and when they're ready to have offspring, they will attach themselves to a piece of wood, like a tree or a post. They are so attached, they are so committed, that in order for them to come off of it, you would have to rip the worm apart. So they attach themselves to this tree and then they have offspring and the offspring are hidden underneath their body. When the offspring hatch, they begin to eat the flesh of the worm. When that happens, the worm then releases a substance that stains the offspring red. It stains them crimson red. Then the worm will die and fall off of the tree and it turns white. Is your mind blown yet? There are so many connections as we think about this and what Christ accomplished on the cross. He was committed. He was not going to come down off of that cross. He was committed to following through in order to fulfill everything. But not only that, his blood cleanses us and we are stained by his blood, washed by his blood, because he sacrificed himself and died in our place. Isn’t it amazing how God uses created things to illustrate a picture of what Christ accomplished on the cross? I was so excited to be able to share this with you today. I just love this picture of how Jesus was fully committed to the cross in order to fulfill God’s plan to appease and absorb God's wrath on the cross. Because we could never, we could never do that for ourselves. What a beautiful picture! I just love it when God reveals little nuggets like that. I’m in awe of how God uses things in creation to illustrate what Christ accomplished on the cross. Meditate on this truth today: Christ was committed to the cross and he was committed to the will of the Father FOR US because we couldn't do it for ourselves. We couldn't rescue ourselves and we needed him to give his life for us, to appease the wrath of God for us so that we could be justified, so that we could be clean and washed by his blood that is poured out for us. When trouble is near, the only one who can help is the One who makes us trust in him. We rely on his work on the cross through his Beloved Son. Even in the face of scorn and mocking, he is worthy of our trust and he is the only one who CAN help. Be not far from me, O God, for there is none to help but you. You’re all I’ve got! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rootedwithrachel.substack.com [https://rootedwithrachel.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]