Psalm 2
The Reign of the LORD’s Anointed
1 Why do the nations rage [a]and the peoples plot in vain?
2The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together,
against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying,
3"Let us burst their bonds apart
and cast away their cords from us."
4He who sits in the heavens laughs;
the Lord holds them in derision.
5Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
and terrify them in his fury, saying,
6"As for me, I have set my King
on Zion, my holy hill."
7I will tell of the decree:The LORD said to me, "You are my Son;
today I have begotten you.
8Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession.
9You shall break [b] them with a rod of iron
and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel."
10Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
be warned, O rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear,
and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son,
lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
The challenge of holding onto joy is tied up in understanding God's wrath. Connecting with God's wrath involves looking honestly at my lack of love, dishonesty, selfishness, impatience, anger, and underlying twistedness. Looking honestly at those things is death to the part of me that wants to be independent (the greatest rebellion). God's character is directly opposed to all of the bad and ugly things that spring from my heart and his wrath is against those things. Jesus has taken all the wrath that I deserve and has paid for it completely in his death. Additionally he gave me his complete righteousness so I am forgiven and righteous - legally nothing remains undone. I am now free to die to my desire to think of myself as ok or worthy and accept fully Christ's complete salvation. Joy is found through death. If you want to save your life loose it. God's spirit leads us in this process - it is his promise to perfect us. I must look honestly at sin and its absolute wrath inducing offense to God in order to understand the magnitude of his grace and the significance of my salvation.
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