Alba 4-28-2024
THE REAL SUPER HERO
Psalm 110
Today, we are going to look at Psalm 110. It is a Messianic Psalm, meaning that it refers to the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ. It is a Psalm of David and here is what it says:
1 The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” 2 The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies! 3 Your people shall be volunteers In the day of Your power; In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth. 4 The Lord has sworn And will not relent, “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at Your right hand; He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath. 6 He shall judge among the nations, He shall fill the places with dead bodies, He shall execute the heads of many countries. 7 He shall drink of the brook by the wayside; Therefore He shall lift up the head.
Do you know what today is? Yes it is Sunday. And it is April 28th. But like most days, today has a special designation. It is considered a holiday. “What holiday” you ask? You may or may not have ever heard of it. This National Superhero Day! In 1995 Marvel Comics' employees created National Superhero Day, and it is celebrated on this date.
Each year on April 28th, National Superhero Day honors superheroes, both real and fictional. On the website, nationaldaycalendar.com it says, “Batman, Superman, Captain America, Wonder Woman, Iron Man, Hulk, and Spiderman are just some of the superheroes whose names we recognize. Even though they are fictional, these superheroes provide role models for our children. They serve and protect while fighting evil.”
Then the website asks, “Have you ever been rescued from a risky situation or saved from injury or death? Those who come to our aid are called heroes. Some heroes happen to be in the right place at the right time. Others choose to be a hero as a career (though they wouldn't call themselves heroes.)
“Our real-life superheroes may not have superpowers or wear capes. However, just like fictional superheroes, children also look up to them as role models. They serve and protect their communities. These real-life superheroes also dedicate their lives to helping others or saving lives. Military personnel, police officers, and firefighters, are just a few of the heroes who protect us on a daily basis.”
You may have someone in mind that you consider a superhero because of what they did, or the influence they were to you which made a big difference in your life. Or perhaps, you have faced situations where you felt it would have been nice to have a superhero to rescue you or change some circumstance you were facing.
Well, let me tell you about a superhero who is available to help you. He didn't wear a cape, just sandals and a long robe. And the description we are given in Isaiah 53:2 says, “There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him.” (NLT) But still, He is the greatest superhero the world has ever known.
If you are a Christian, you know who it is. Because, you have a superhero, and His name is Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. A superhero is one who can defeat evil enemies and protect those who need it. That describes what Jesus has done for us when He died in our place on the cross and then showed His power by rising from the dead. Psalm 110 prophesied that He would come as a superhero.
The first verse of this Psalm is found a number of places in the New Testament. Even Jesus quoted it in Matthew 22:44. In an effort to instruct the Pharisees as to how the Messiah could be more than just an earthy king, He had this discussion:
Matthew 22:41-45: While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “The Son of David.” He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool” ’? If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?” And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.
Of course the answer to the question Jesus put before them is that, yes, the Messiah would come as a descendant of King David. But also he would be more than just a man. He would be someone that even King David would call his Lord.
Another place this verse is quoted is in Acts chapter two. Peter is preaching on the Day of Pentecost, using the keys to the kingdom to open up salvation to the people that day. He spoke of Jesus and the resurrection asserting in Acts 2:32-36..
“This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.
For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
The response to this message was immediate. Verses 37-39 tell us: Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
When Peter was preaching that day, he quoted Psalm 110:1 as proof that Jesus is the Lord who will have the final victory. Peter called people to turn from their sins. Three thousand people responded that day, put their faith in Jesus and were baptized.
That was the beginning of the devil losing ground and the enemies of our Lord losing the battle. That day, 3,000 people were taken out of the clutches of Satan and translated in the Kingdom of God's dear Son. There is victory in Jesus!
When it says, “The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool,” it speaks of victory and judgment. There will be the final victory of the righteousness of Christ.
But there will also be judgment for those who oppose the things of God. When that time comes, the enemies of God will be a footstool, placed...
1. Under Jesus' Feet
This vivid picture underscores the absolute and unrivaled power of the Messiah. In the ancient world, when a king was defeated, he was brought before the victorious king. He was laid out on the floor, and the victorious king would use the defeated king as a footstool, and put his feet on the defeated king's neck.
This act was done to show the defeated king was in total submission to the victorious king. It was a demonstration of the subjection to which they were reduced. It was also a way to make clear their total loss of power.
This vivid picture underscores the absolute and unrivaled power of the Messiah, our superhero. This imagery of making enemies a footstool is the idea of a total and undeniable defeat of all opposition.
So, prophetically this not only speaks to the Lord's ultimate victory, but also to the nature and extent of His power. It is not merely a victory but a demonstration of dominion, where enemies are not just beaten but placed in a position of complete conquest under the feet of the Lord.
It signifies that the Messiah has been granted authority over heaven and earth, wielding power over creation, providence, and redemption. This authority encompasses all realms: physical and spiritual, temporal and eternal. It means that all powers, dominions, principalities, and authorities are subject to Him.
This Psalm tells us that Jesus would come in great power as King and Priest according to the order of Melchizedek and as a Judge of all nations. That is a big order for anyone. It would have to be a superhero! The victory we have in Jesus is mentioned again and again in Scripture. Evil will be conquered. God will judge the world by His righteousness.
Some people like to think that God will not judge anyone. They believe that God, as a god of love, could never condemn any person or action of people. They forget that while God is love, He is also righteous. And as such He must judge righteously, separating good and evil.
When verse six says that He will judge the nations, I wonder about our country at this time. There are many ways I believe we are under the judgment of God. Thankfully we still have some blessings that He gives, but there are all too many things that deserve His judgment.
If we celebrate the things God has condemned, how could it be otherwise? I shared something Wednesday night in our study of the book of Exodus that says it all to well. “It is Christian civilization and morality that has discouraged and condemned fornication, adultery, pedophilia, polygamy, prostitution, homosexuality, gender confusion and the like. As Christian civilization and morality are increasingly mocked and rejected, it is no surprise that all of these sexual practices are increasingly practiced, supported and encouraged.” (David Guzik, Enduring Word Commentary)
And, as a nation and in our institutions of higher learning, there is outright hostility to the people God chose through whom to bring us our Savior. In an ethnic sense, Jesus was a Jew. And just as the people called for Him to be crucified, people today are calling for the extermination of all Jews.
When it comes to God and His ways, there are many enemies. But the ultimate victory will be His. May it come soon! I don't want to be one of those who are under the feet of Jesus. I much prefer to be one of those who, instead of “under” Jesus feet, to be...
2. At the Feet of Jesus
"At Jesus’ feet..." That is a phrase we hear a number of times in the gospels. A man named Jairus fell down at Jesus’ feet to plead with him to heal his daughter who was dying. There was an unnamed woman who did the same thing as she begged Jesus to heal her daughter who was demon-possessed.
Luke’s gospel tells us about a demon-possessed man on the east side of the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Gerasenes who fell at Jesus’ feet in submission to his power and authority. And after Jesus drove the demon out of that man, he sat down at Jesus’ feet out of love and respect, and to show his readiness to serve his Savior.
Then there was the time that Jesus healed ten men of leprosy. One of them, a Samaritan, returned and threw himself down at Jesus’ feet to give Him thanks. Mary, from Bethany, sat at Jesus’ feet to listen to Him teach. One woman who had been healed of her internal bleeding when she touched Jesus’ cloak fell at His feet in fear and love and thanksgiving as Jesus scanned the crowd for her.
We should not forget those two Mary’s (Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James) who hugged Jesus’ feet when they saw Him alive on Resurrection morning and worshiped him.
So many people placed themselves at Jesus’ feet for so many reasons. There were those who fell at His feet to ask Him for something. We can do that.
Others threw themselves at His feet in love, or in thanksgiving, or in excitement, or in worship, or to honor Him. We can do that.
There were people who placed themselves at Jesus’ feet to submit to Him and to turn over their lives in service to Him. We can do that.
There will be that time when all of God's enemies will be nothing more than a footstool for our Lord, under His feet. That's not where I want to be.
At Jesus’ feet. There is no better place for us to be. What a privilege it is that we today, and every day of our lives, can sit at the feet of Jesus! May we fall at His feet today so that we will not be under His feet in judgment.
At Jesus’ feet let us lay our sins in repentance.
At Jesus’ feet let us seek the forgiveness only He can give.
At Jesus’ feet, let us place ourselves in His service.
CLOSE:
If you ever had the opportunity to watch the Superman shows years ago on television, you may remember what was said at the beginning of the show. “Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superman!”
And the narrator would then say, “Yes, it's Superman, strange visitor from another planet who came to earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men.” Once again, some of that begins to sound like Jesus, our superhero!
There is the story about a Wycliffe translator named Doug Meland. When he and his wife moved into a village of Brazil’s Fulnio Indians, he was referred to simply as "the white man". The term was by no means complimentary, since other white men had exploited them, burned their homes, and robbed them of their lands.
But after the Melands learned the Fulnio language; and began to help the people with medicine and in other ways, they began calling Doug "the respectable white man". When the Melands began adopting the customs of the people, the Fulnio gave them greater acceptance and spoke of Doug as "the white Indian".
Then one day, as Doug was washing the dirty, blood caked foot of an injured Fulnio boy, he overheard a bystander say to another: "Whoever heard of a white man washing an Indian’s foot before? Certainly this man is from God!" From that day on, whenever Doug would go into an Indian home, it would be announced: "Here comes the man God sent us."
In every sense, Psalm 110 is about "the man God sent us." And aren't you glad He did! He is our superhero!
