The breaking news in Ottawa on Friday was Prime Minister Trudeau taking the knee during a demonstration in support of “Black Lives Matter” and in honour of George Floyd.
"Is He Worthy" on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMWrAqMWhWs
We’ve seen police officers join with protestors in a number of cities and kneel in respect of George Floyd was pinned to the ground with a knee to his neck for 8+ minutes. There are pictures of senators in the United States Senate also kneeling and remembering in solidarity with all those who have suffered the painful effects of racial discrimination.
It is gratifying to see this kind of gesture offered in reflection and respect for one another. It’s also a wonderful reminder that the expression of respect for ultimate truth is the bending of our knee to Jesus Christ, our Creator, our Saviour, our ruling King. Because of His living a sinless life and offering that life on the cross in payment for our sins:
God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name
above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue
declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:9-11
So with gratitude for those who are bending their knee in support of a just cause and for the one who is worthy of every knee bowing, let’s come to God today in prayer:
Heavenly Father, with the writer of this Psalm we come to You in worship and gratitude for who You are and all You do for us. You are the mighty God who created the heavens and the earth and You are the very personal God who came to earth, put on human flesh, and died for our sins. You are a pure and holy God and also full of mercy and justice. There’s no one like You. The amazing beauty of it all is that You have made a way for us to become pure and full of life and live out the amazing plan You had before the foundation of the world to create us in love.
We are horrified by the many expressions of cruelty and hatred and devaluing that we see expressed in racial prejudice, and in every kind of prejudice, actually. How it must break Your heart when You poured so much of Yourself into every human life. You so carefully and wonderfully created each of us in Your own beautiful image. We are each a marvelous work of art.
You are the one who put me together inside my mother’s body,
and I praise you because of the wonderful way you created me. Everything you do is marvelous! Of this I have no doubt.
Psalm 139:13-14
And so, with this in mind, with the billions down through the ages who have knelt before You in worship and love, we come and join our hearts in worship before You, our Lord and our creator.
Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Psalm 95:6
We want to be part of what is really real. So many things going on around us are temporary and will fade away but God, who You are and the life You have given us through Jesus is strong and real and lasts forever. The central act of really living is simply worshipping You. We know that even now in heaven a great choir is singing you and worshipping You and we join our hearts with theirs and proclaim:
I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands
upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled
the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they
were saying:
“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and
wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”
And with that amazing choir that Jesus you showed to the Apostle John in a vision – every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea and all that is in them – with all of those we too bow before You and say:
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the
earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”
Revelation 5:11-13
Amen
Doesn’t it do your heart good just for even a few seconds to lift your heart is worship.
There’s another wonderful song circulating in social media “Is he Worthy” and it’s worth the 4 minutes of your time to give it a look and affirm with those who are singing that Jesus is worthy of all honour and glory and praise. I like this particular version of it because my long time friends Peter and Elsbeth Turner were part of the mass choir in this recording.
You’ll find it on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMWrAqMWhWs
Recent Hope For Today
Giving Hope
Partners in Hope is supported wholly by our friends and community. We are thankful to everyone who partners with us to help bring hope to the discouraged, hurting, and hopeless.