Pastor Jim continued his Lenten series on the Seven Last Words of Christ from the cross by looking at the statement: “My God, my God! Why have You forsaken me?”
Click the “play” button below to start the recording, then scroll down and follow along…
The scripture was from Isaiah 41:10 and Matthew 27:45-49. Open the following drop down box to follow along…
Scripture
Isaiah 41:10
10 Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
Matthew 27:45-49
45 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
47 Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!”
48 Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.
49 The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.”
NKJV
Have You Ever Been Lonely???
Have you ever felt totally alone, wondering if God even knows you exist? Did you feel so helpless and hopeless that you asked “Where are You God?” A Nazarene preacher has said, “If we don’t see the anguish of sin, we can’t appreciate the awe of salvation.”
John 1:11 tells us that Jesus came into the world for all of us, but all of us put Him on the cross. We rejected Him. We pulled Him away from all human dignity…
- When He spoke these words, He had been hanging on the cross for 3 hours.
- He had been awake for possibly more than 24 hours.
- He hadn’t had any food or water that we know of for at least 15 hours.
- He endured a series of “trials” which were totally a sham.
- He had been flogged.
- He was forced to carry His own cross.
- He endured the public humiliation of being too weak to carry the cross.
Throughout all of this, the verbal and emotional abuse continued, and Jesus felt rejected by His Father. Can we blame Him?
God, Where Are You???
Have you ever felt that way? Jesus has too.
Jesus Became Sin…
What’s going on here? How could the Son of God- who was with God at the beginning of time- How could HE feel rejected? Here’s how Eugene Peterson paraphrases 2 Corinthians 5:21 in The Message…
….God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God.
This verse literally translates as “He became Sin.” Jesus- the perfect Son of God- BECAME Sin. God then, turns His back NOT on the Son He loved, but on the sin that he had become. THIS is what left Jesus hanging in “the great alone.” In other words, God did forsake Jesus judicially because He was bearing all the sins of all men for all time and God cannot look on sin. God didn’t turn His back on His Son, He turned His back on the sin that He was bearing.
“My God, My God! Why Have You Forsaken Me?
Jesus’ words echo the question penned by David in Psalm 22… a psalm which parallels the suffering of David with that of Christ. The psalm begins with despair but ends its closing verses with renewed trust in God.
By using these words, Jesus was pointing to the reality that even though He sensed judicial separation from the Father, He knew it was temporary and that His relationship with the Father was strong and it would be restored.
“God forsaking God? Who can understand that!”
Charles Spurgeon:
“I think I can understand the words ‘My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?’ as they are spoken by David in Psalm 22. But how they came to be uttered by Christ on the cross I will never comprehend.
Perhaps it might help if we remember the dual nature of Jesus. He is true God. Through Him all things were made (John 1:3, Colossians 1:15-16, and Hebrews 1:3). But as we recall each Christmas, God in Jesus took on human nature.
Of course Jesus knew why He was on the cross. He knew all along that this was His Father’s will. he had been prepping His disciples for months, telling them that “He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” (Matthew 16:21).
Jesus understood the purpose for His death: “The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28).
But- What does this mean for you and me?
In expressing His anguish with these words, Jesus is teaching us two things…
1: Even when it doesn’t seem like it, God is Near…
In times of trial, we want answers right away. We want God to answer our prayers before we say “amen.” And yet, Jesus hung on the cross- suspended between earth and eternity- for six long hours; even after praying, “if it’s possible take this cup away from me.” But six hours paled in comparison to the salvation of all who will ever turn to Him. When we suffer for a while, we start wondering why God hasn’t intervened. We begin questioning ourselves. What Have I done to deserve this and then we begin to question whether or not God even cared. We feel as though God has abandoned us and that He is nowhere to be found. We feel alone and isolated from God.
We’re not the first ones in history to feel that way…
David, in Psalm 13:1 cried out and said, “How long O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will you hide Your face from me?”
Job lost everything in his life; home, family, wealth, and health. He felt alone and isolated from God. Even his wife advised him to “curse God and die.” But he trusted in God’s promises instead of his feelings. It reminds us that we need to be committed to the scriptures and to being devoted to God.
And so Jesus is showing us a real-life human experience that we all can relate to.
David remained faithful. Job continued to seek God (see Job 23:1-9). Jesus remained and continues to remain faithful to the Father.
The Bible tells us that God is present even when He seems far away! Even when God seems 1000 miles away and uninterested in our affairs, He is with us step-by-step during difficult times.
“As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them.”
These men, who were most certainly experiencing emotional and spiritual pain because of Jesus’ death, did not know that Jesus was walking right along with them the whole time. During their time of anguish, Jesus was next to their side.
If we are faithful, God is walking right along with us especially during our times of suffering, even when we feel isolated from Him. He has not abandoned us, just like God didn’t abandon Jesus relationally on the cross. We are His children and He loves us and cares for us.
So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
Psalm 55:22
Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.
When we suffer, we may feel isolated from God, but the reality is that God is with us step by step and many times He is carrying us through our difficult times.
2: Even during times of Challenge, Remain Faithful…
Although on the cross, Jesus felt isolation and abandonment from God, He didn’t give up on His faith or on His mission to save mankind from their sins. Jesus didn’t give up. He could have called legions of angels to free Him from the cross. But He didn’t; He loves us that much! He didn’t curse God and blame Him for His circumstances. Instead, Jesus trusted in God and remained faithful to Him.
He certainly didn’t follow “Mrs. Job’s” advice and “curse God and die” Instead He followed Job’s example by holding on to His faith in God even though his life was full of pain and agony.
Faith is important to God. Hebrews 11:6 reminds us…
And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. NLT
In Revelation 2:10, John writes…
Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The devil will throw some of you into prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days. But if you remain faithful even when facing death, I will give you the crown of life. NLT
God will not forsake us. Check out the following passages (all quotations are from the NLT):
We may never be able to understand the “how” of the miracle of God the Father forsaking God the Son. But let us never forget the “why”- Jesus was forsaken so that you and I and all those who repent and turn to the Lord in faith may never be forsaken by God, but kept safe in his loving arms forever.
We were on His mind while He was on the cross. Psalm 22 begins with the words, “My God Why have You forsaken me?” But here’s how it ends:
A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation, they will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, that He has done this. NKJV
And in verse 22 it says:
I will declare Your name to My brethren; in the midst of the assembly I will praise You. NKJV
David begins by foretelling God’s forsaking of the sin on His Son. David describes the horror of the crucifixion. But before it’s over, David lifts God’s praise. Yes the crucifixion was dark! But Jesus kept the focus on His mission to seek and save the lost. “I’m going to continue to praise Your name, so that they will never be forsaken.” Jesus went through this, thinking of us! When we turn to Him, We Will Never Be Forsaken!
Just as in the popular poem, Footprints in the Sand, God remains with us even if we don’t immediately see His presence.
He was forsaken that we might be forgiven!
Jesus was left alone on the cross so you and I can stand “where no one stands alone.”
Quiz Time!
As you reflect on what you’ve just heard/read, give this quiz a try. If you don’t understand an answer (or if you disagree with the “correct” answer, post a comment)…
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As always, a great synopsis of the message! You do a great job, Chuck!