The Gospels record seven last statements of Jesus. Luke and John record three each, but Matthew and Mark each tell us of only one statement Jesus made from the cross. Surely, Jesus said more than that … but for these two Gospel writers, this one statement was all that needed to be recorded. … For many, it is the most moving, disturbing, and powerfully haunting statement of the seven: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
These words reflect not only the darkness of this horrific experience Jesus endured, but also the darkness of the people who surrounded Jesus that day (excluding the handful that were there for him). Yet, as we study the psalm (song) Jesus was praying, we’ll discover that those words may just point to a deeper faith that we first suspect—a faith that sustained him through his suffering on the cross. Folks, let’s listen to the reality of Jesus on the cross, as told by the Gospel-writer Mark (Mark 15:29-36a, NLT)…
The people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery. “Ha! Look at you now!” they yelled at him. “You said you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days. 30 Well then, save yourself and come down from the cross!” 31 The leading priests and teachers of religious law also mocked Jesus. “He saved others,” they scoffed, “but he can’t save himself! 32 Let this Messiah, this King of Israel, come down from the cross so we can see it and believe him!” Even the men who were crucified with Jesus ridiculed him. 33 At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. 34 Then at three o’clock Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” 35 Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah. 36 One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, holding it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink….
Folks, before Jesus uttered his ‘cry of dereliction’ (cry of abandonment) as today’s phrase has come to be known, the Roman soldiers had already bullied him and beat him … to within an inch of his life. The crowd had mocked him. Passersby had taken their shots too. And, of course, the chief priests and scribes had insulted him beyond imagination, along with the two thieves hanging on the crosses beside him. And, as we get into this story and realize what was really taking place that day, we see that it wasn’t enough for all of these folks to crucify him; they wanted to crush him—to dehumanize him—in every way. It was what many would call a ‘mob mentality’ that took over that day! Are you familiar with that? Let me say something about that, as I begin today…
…in the form of a story: There was a young man whose name was … Richard. He was a year ahead of me in high school. And ‘the mob’ at our high school finally got the best of him.
There was primarily one bully who was at the heart of this particular situation. He was one of the ‘cool kids,’ though in hindsight he wasn’t acting very cool when it came to Richard. Richard, you see, desperately wanted to fit in somewhere in this small high school. He tried a variety of activities, including going out for football. Richard, however, wasn’t much of an athlete. Along with that … he was big in size—somewhat overweight, so easily picked on. And Richard got more than his share…
Things kind of blew up in a late-day weight room session where both Richard and this bully were present. I was also present, along with some other football players. The bully pushed and pushed and pushed … Richard’s buttons until Richard just couldn’t take it anymore. Richard, angrier than I’d ever seen him before, finally left … and the bully thought he’d won…
Football practice took place right after school was officially out for the day … and this day was no exception. I was usually one of the last ones suited up and out on the field for practice … and this day was no exception (and boy was I glad). As I came out of the locker room and went out the back doors of the school toward the football field, there was a commotion. It didn’t take me long to realize what was going on … and I stayed back in the school until the commotion was over. Richard had returned to the school, loaded 30-06 in hand, and looking for the bully. Long story short, the bully had run off the school property and into the nearby town park to hide, Richard was talked out of his rifle by the coaches, no one was physically hurt, and Richard was hauled off to get help…
Folks, I have to tell you that, even though Richard was the one who was carted off that day, he wasn’t the only one that needed help. You see, it wasn’t just one bully who drove Richard to do what he did. It was all of us—all of us who wanted to fit in with the ‘cool kids’ and follow the bully. I was one of those people on that day … who’d chimed in to drive Richard to the brink of insanity. And, like that second thief on the cross, I had to turn to Jesus after that and ask him to rescue me…
It’s been said that at the trial and crucifixion of Jesus, it wasn’t really Jesus who was on trial before the Romans or the Sanhedrin; it was humanity who was on trial before God! Who is it that’s guilty of the ‘mob mentality’? Who is it that was guilty of trying to dehumanize Jesus at the cross that day? All of us. We’re all prone to stooping this low … and Jesus, in his humanness, felt abandoned. I’m sure that Richard felt more than abandoned that day at the high school, too. But, you know what? God’s mercy and grace are there for even sinners like me … and like you…
ONCE WE SEE OURSELVES IN THE CROWD, THEN WE’RE PREPARED TO ACTUALLY HEAR THESE HAUNTING WORDS OF JESUS FROM THE CROSS: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Folks, here’s what you need to know today:
JESUS KNOWS WHAT ‘ABANDONED’ FEELS LIKE! The fact that Jesus felt abandoned on this day flies in the face of our understanding of the Trinity—that Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one …which may be why Luke and John didn’t include this in their Gospels. About all I can say is this, theologically: Jesus was both human and divine … at the same time. Could this have been Jesus, in his humanness, crying out to God the Father at this time? One thing’s for sure: In that moment, as Jesus prayed these words, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the World, felt abandoned or forsaken by God … and Matthew and Mark recorded that reality!
For Matthew and Mark, instead of the idea that this statement diminished the majesty or dignity of Jesus, I believe they both saw the majesty and dignity of Jesus in his prayer! For them, Jesus was experiencing that feeling of God-forsakenness that every one of us experience at some point in our lives. He knew what it was to feel that God, his Father, had abandoned him. He knew what it was like to feel hopelessness and despair!
And, as a pastor, I’m thankful that Jesus knows what ‘abandoned’ feels like! When parishioners are walking through dark times of life themselves, this is one of the scriptures I remind them of … and the fact that God understands too! He’s been there … in Jesus…
I absolutely love Jesus for going through this horrific experience, for it tells me that he identifies with, understands, and has compassion on each of us when we walk through dark and difficult times of our lives… Next, I need you to see that…
JESUS TEACHES US ABOUT SUFFERING/SACRIFICE FOR OTHERS. Folks, Jesus words to us today reveal to me … true sacrificial LOVE! Jesus’ death was not painless or without suffering … in case you weren’t aware of that! A part of the reason he came to this earth was to offer the gift of suffering for us. He died so that the world might live! He suffered for sin … so that we wouldn’t have to! And, here, Jesus shows us what sacrificial, redemptive LOVE looks like…
Purposeful sacrifice to save others is costly—not only in time and money, but also in the emotional and spiritual suffering that comes when we give ourselves for others! I’m reminded of these words from one of the most powerful hymns of the cross, entitled: “What Wondrous Love Is This”…
What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul.
I can’t help but think of our youth & adults who do summer mission trips. They’re a great example of following Jesus in this way—suffering/sacrificing for the sake of others! As followers of Christ, we need to be ready to do what’s inconvenient, uncomfortable, sacrificial, and even risky in order to be a part of his redemptive work in the world. It’s Jesus who taught us that on the cross; he is our supreme example! And finally…
JESUS TEACHES US HOW TO HANDLE TOUGH TIMES FOR OURSELVES. Folks, I want you to notice how Jesus handled these particular moments in his life when he felt abandoned and forsaken by God. He chose to PRAY … for the ‘cry of dereliction’ is actually the first verse of a psalm that Jesus would have known by heart … and was singing and praying from the cross! And, let me suggest, that Jesus was doing more than praying; he was actually WORSHIPING! Look at Psalm 22 with me for a moment: It begins…
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?
O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;
and by night, but find no rest (vv. 1-2).
It would’ve been kind of like this: You hear me singing to myself, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound…” and in your mind, at least, you’re already saying to yourself, “…who saved a wretch like me.” This is what would’ve been going on at the cross that day. Jesus was singing the first line … but his audience would have been very familiar with the rest… The hymn goes on to talk about a time when King David was suffering at the hands of his enemies. But, the psalmist doesn’t end there—thank heavens! Just as many of us are familiar with the JOY of the last verse of ‘Amazing Grace,’ so Jesus audience would have been familiar with how Psalm 22 ends, too! Here it is:
For he did not despise or abhor
the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me,
but heard when I cried to him (v. 24).
Could it be that Jesus chose to pray the opening words of Psalm 22 as he suffered on the cross to point not only to his pain and despair, but also to his trust that God had, in fact, heard him and would deliver him? I think, as Paul Harvey would say, ‘that’s the rest of the story’…
Three things that should be take-aways from Jesus’ words to us from the cross today would be these:
We’re meant to find ourselves in the crowd—sinners all of us, and not above stooping a level lower than Jesus would want, if we’re not careful…
We’re meant to see the costliness of God’s grace—Jesus’ pain and feeling of abandonment being very real—our best example of sacrificial LOVE…
And, finally, we need to remember that the One to whom we pray in our darkest hour knew firsthand the feelings of hopelessness, doubt, and despair…
Do you see the LOVE, folks? I hope so… Just as the feelings of abandonment and God-forsakenness, and even death itself, would not be the end of Jesus’ story … neither will suffering and death be the end of our story either. God will have a very different final word for those of us who believe…
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