Blessed Good Friday 2023
Design: Blessed Ong
“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.”
Isaiah 53:5 ESV
“It is finished!” said Jesus as he breathed his last and gave up his spirit (John 19:30). This final act showed in stark relief how he willingly and unflinchingly took on the entire weight of all our sins upon himself as the sacrificial lamb of God after he had completed all the prophetic tasks required of him as the incarnate Christ.
Hear My Cry, O Lord
Photo: Guillaume de Germain. Design: Jonathan Yao
“Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;
be gracious to me and answer me!” (Psalm 27:7, ESV)
As David wrote Psalm 27, in verse 7, he pivoted from praise to prayer. There is a sense of plaintiff cry for help in verses 7 to 14. In the original language, verse 7 is succinct and direct: “Hear, O Lord; with my voice I call; pity me, and answer me” (Pulpit Commentary).
Know God, No Fear
Photo: Joshua Hibbert. Design: Jonathan Yao.
“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1, KJV)
This psalm of King David speaks of a personal YHWH who enlightens, guides, protects, and empowers the psalmist and freed him from the fear of others, of the known and the unknown. This ultimately causes him to seek God’s face and presence “all the days of his life” (Ps. 27:4). In poetic form, this three-part psalm consists of confident praise (vv. 1-6), plantiff prayer (vv. 7-12), and waiting hope (vv. 13-14) (Pulpit Commentary).
As children of God, we too know Him who is the way-maker, the truth-teller, and the life-giver. May we likewise pursue Christ with the constancy of heart, mind, and soul. Because He is my God, I need not fear. Shalom.
Alumnus’ Heart of the Father
An alumnus, Zoloo Tsedendamba Zoljargal, shared one of his most significant moments at EAST, that of leading his eldest child to Christ: “One evening he suddenly asked me many spiritual questions. I felt it was time to share the gospel with him.” That night he has had the joy of seeing his own child coming to know the Saviour.
Zoloo‘s reflection showed the heart of a father and who rejoiced in the salvific work of the Heavenly Father. He is a Master of Arts in Leadership (2020) graduate and a former Student Council President. His wife, Muugii, likewise graduates with a Partners-in-Ministry certificate (2020).
Artwork by Blessed Ong
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