Weekly Devotional
This devotional is part of a series of weekly devotionals posted each Wednesday that correlates to the Bible Reading Plan of the month. This month, the devotionals are all about Freedom.
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He remains faithful forever, executing justice for the exploited and giving food to the hungry. The Lord frees prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord raises up those who are oppressed. The Lord loves the righteous.
Psalm 146:6-8
He is forever faithful
The verses we’re looking at in today’s devotional are such life-giving verses. Not only does it bring peace to my soul to read about the Lord’s faithfulness and goodness, but to hear of Him bringing justice and raising up the oppressed brings such a ray of hope to those facing injustice and oppression around the world.
Where I live, I’m blessed to live out my confession of faith without fear of brutal persecution. The worst I can face is harsh words and criticism from others. I’m certainly not facing the magnitude of Christian persecution our brothers and sisters are enduring in less religious-tolerant nations. These verses speak to God’s faithfulness and brings reassurance that justice and righteousness will prevail.
The Lord frees prisoners
Our great Lord frees prisoners, both in a literal and metaphorical captivity. For those who are being held captive by things such as spiritual darkness, fear, or even by their own pursuit of self-righteousness, God is more than able to overcome and bring freedom.
We can give thanks to Him for His rescue in our everyday lives. Unfortunately, many believers in less-religious tolerant nations face the reality of physical captivity and jail cells. Many believers in nations with Christian persecution are a part of an underground church and face serious consequences if they are discovered.
Jesus promised that we will face trials and persecution in this life (John 15:19-20) but to take hope because He has overcome the world and we are promised blessings when we are persecuted for righteousness’ sake (Matthew 5:10-12). I pray that God will work to free those around the world who are wrongfully imprisoned for their profession of faith in God or jailed for bringing the good news of His name to others.
The Lord loves the righteous and raises up the oppressed
Fairness and justice are of utmost importance to God. All through the Psalms and Proverbs are Scriptures that speak to the Lord’s character of upholding justice and righteousness. And we are called to do the same.
The Bible says that those who uphold justice, who practice righteousness at all times, are characterized by happiness (Psalm 106:3). The verses we’re looking at today tell us that God executes justice for the exploited and gives food to the hungry. He will not forget the needy, nor will He let the hope of the oppressed perish (Psalm 9:18). God righteously and mercifully reaches out to those in need.
Let’s follow in our Father’s footsteps and also reach out and help those who are poor and hungry, who are oppressed and desperate for justice, love, and care. As lights of the world, it’s our responsibility to stand up for those in need.
He opens the eyes of the blind.
We can be grateful that the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. When we’re spiritually blind to our sin, we can’t fathom our need for Christ and His saving work of the cross.
Thankfully, God opens our eyes to understand His Word and His grace, so we can see the depth of His love for us and our need to accept His rescue as our Savior. When we fall into sin, God loves us too much to let us continue in our wrongdoing. Through the Holy Spirit we can be convicted of our mistakes and return to the Lord in true repentance (John 16:7-11).
God also can open the eyes of unrighteous rulers, causing them to see their evil deeds and creating in them a heart of repentance (2 Samuel Ch. 12). Let’s remember to pray that the Lord will convict us of sin so we can repent and grow to be more like Christ, and let’s also pray for those nations that have leaders living in spiritual darkness, who consequently rule unjustly, that God will convict them and open their eyes to their wrongdoing.
Before you go
I hope that these verses will reach those who need to hear encouragement and need hope to grasp onto as they face oppression and the harsh reality of persecution.
Let’s give thanks to God today for His faithfulness, praising Him for His love, justice, and mercy. Let’s also pray for those that are facing exploitation, oppression, and injustice, that God will act swiftly to bring their deliverance and vindication, and that He will makes us courageous to join Him in fighting for righteousness.
Pray that He will open the eyes of blind, unjust rulers who care more about power than they do about the people they lead. And pray that He will bring freedom to those living in spiritual darkness.
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