Monday, September 22, 2025
Psalm 146:5-8 – Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever; who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.
Earlier in this psalm we are warned against placing our trust in earthly rulers. God commands us to obey the governing authorities and to respect and honor them, but we are not to place our ultimate trust in them. Earthly princes do not always keep the promises they make. These rulers are mortal and, when they die (or leave office), very often their plans die with them. Our help and our hope are in God, who created all things. Unlike earthly rulers, who often fail to keep their promises and care for the people they serve, our God “keeps faith forever.” He will never fail or forsake us. He keeps His promises.
Throughout the Old Testament, the prophets repeated God’s promise to send the Savior. God kept faith with Israel and, at the right time, Jesus the Messiah was born among them. The Son of God came to earth to give His life as a ransom, to suffer and die to bring us forgiveness for our sins and peace with God. Jesus Himself “kept faith.” He obeyed His Father’s will and took up His path to the cross, condemned to die by earthly rulers. The plans of those rulers died with them, but when Jesus died on the cross, the plan of God for our salvation did not die with the Savior. His death was, in fact, the plan. That saving plan continued to unfold as Jesus was raised from death on the first Easter morning. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, the plan of God, a plan in place from all eternity, was fulfilled.
God our King keeps faith forever. He loved the world and sent His Son to be the world’s Savior. Now the plan of the Lord continues as He works through us to send the good news of His saving work into the world. As the body of Christ on earth, we help those who are oppressed, feed the hungry, and bring the good news of freedom in Christ to those who are imprisoned, whether in earthly prisons or in the spiritual chains of sin. We seek to serve those who are afflicted with physical blindness. As we share the Good News of Jesus, the Holy Spirit is at work to open the eyes of those still lost in the spiritual darkness of sin. When people are weighed down with grief, worry, and sin, we share with them the plan of God, who loves them and sent His Son to be their Savior, the God who keeps faith forever.
WE PRAY: Lord God, keep me in the one true faith until I live in Your presence. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Carol Geisler.
Reflection Questions: