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Isaiah 53:2-11 2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. 6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. 9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. 11 After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
Matthew 27:45-46 45 From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 46 And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? This cry from the cross shakes us to our very core. This phrase is only four words in the original Aramaic yet it raises many questions that can shake our faith. The biggest being how could God abandon his own son? Some feminist theologians have even accused God of divine child abuse. They say fathers are to love their children, protect them not abandon them, not allow them to die. It also raises a question we are afraid to ask. If God could abandon his own son how can I trust God not to abandon me? (pause)
Many have wrestled with this word from the cross throughout the years. It is said that 16th c. theologian Martin Luther once sat in his study for hours to meditate on this passage. For hours he sat oblivious to the world around him. Finally, someone heard him say, “God forsaking God . . . no one can understand that” and he went on about his business.
The great 19th c. preacher, C.H. Spurgeon, preached a message on this passage and said, “I think I can understand the words, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” as they are written by David in the 22nd Psalm; but the same words, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” when uttered by Jesus on the cross, I cannot comprehend, so I shall not pretend to be able to explain them.”
If these great preachers cannot understand or comprehend this I certainly can’t expect to but I will do my best to help us gain something from them.
This is one of the most difficult passages of Scripture, yet it is one that, when viewed a little more deeply, should offer us hope. (pick this up again)
What is it like to be forsaken? Have you ever felt forsaken? Deserted, abandoned, alone? To be forsaken is to be without hope, without a future. It’s a pretty awful place to be.
Our passage begins, “From noon on, darkness came over the whole land”. Each gospel tells us of that darkness. Some have suggested that these hours of darkness were when the Father literally turned his back on the scene and the sun was no longer able to stay lit without the radiance of God’s glory. Some have called it the shadow of God’s back.
It was high noon but the sun refused to shine. Some say to show God’s displeasure; some say the whole cosmos joined in grief.
Into this darkness we hear Jesus’ cry and we are able to catch a glimpse into the depth of Christ’s suffering on the cross. His physical pain was torturous. Emotionally he was worn out. But spiritually was where the totality of pain and suffering were. The spiritual agony of taking on the sin of the world was more than anyone should have to endure.
At this moment, Christ was not the beloved Son in whom the Father was well-pleased , but instead he was now the object of God’s wrath. At this moment Jesus was becoming the atonement, the payment for our sin.
We’ve heard Jesus’ cry from the cross. Was Jesus forsaken on the cross? Was Jesus abandoned by God at the cross? Left to suffer alone by His Father? Did God the Father turn His back on God the Son?
Some say yes, God abandoned Jesus on the cross. C.H. Spurgeon said, “It is hard to understand how God the Father could abandon his only begotten Son, but “the only solution of the mystery is this, Jesus Christ was forsaken of God because we deserved to be forsaken of God.” Jesus was paying the high price—his own blood—for my sins, for your sins, for the sins of the world.
Those that believe Jesus was forsaken say that when Jesus bore the weight of all the sin in the world God turned away because God cannot look upon sin. That explanation has never sat right with me. First, it limits God when it says God cannot look on sin. God is God and God can do whatever God wants. Also, it also doesn’t say much about God as Father if we think He would abandon His Son at His hour of greatest need.
Then there is the issue of the Trinity, one of the cornerstones of our faith. Father, Son and Holy Sprit in full communion with each other, three and yet one. If Jesus was abandoned at the cross was the unity of the Trinity broken? No! If God is One, united always, then God cannot turn from Jesus without breaking the unity of the Trinity which cannot happen.
What was Jesus actually saying when he said, My God, My God why have you forsaken me? Some have said that Jesus said the entire psalm but only the first line was recorded. The psalm is 31 verses long. I think it would be impossible to speak that long while hanging on the cross. So let’s forget this explanation.
Some scholars say Jesus was quoting just the beginning of Psalm 22. This makes sense when we consider how scriptures were referred to back then. The books of scripture did not have the names we now use and there were no chapters and verses. In the Hebrew bible each book is named by the words it begins with. The book of Genesis in Hebrew is called Bereishith, which means “In the beginning,” that’s how it starts. The book of Exodus begins with, “These are the names” so it is called Shemoth, names.
We do this ourselves when we remember a book, movie or TV show by a line from it. Let’s try it. I will say something and you tell me where it’s from. First literature. “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.” (A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens) Now a movie. “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.” (Star Wars) Finally, an old TV show. “To the moon, Alice.” The Honeymooners. Let’s try some scriptural ones. If I say, “The Lord is my shepherd” what am I quoting? (23rd Psalm). Finish this quote for me. “For God so love the world” (that He gave His only son, John 3:16)
Now we can understand why Jesus often said, “It is written” or “You have heard it said.” He didn’t say, “Deuteronomy 8:3.” No, he said, “It is written, ‘Man does not live by bread alone.'” That’s how scripture was referenced then.
So, what Jesus is saying on the cross when he says, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me” is, “Psalm 22” He expected his hearers to realize He was quoting scripture and He expected them to remember the entire psalm.
Psalm 22 begins just as Jesus cried out, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” His hearers would have realized then how much of it applied to Jesus at that moment. Listen to some of what it says. “I am scorned by others, despised by the people, mocked. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax. … My mouth is dried up … my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death. … All my bones are on display; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.” We have heard how Jesus was mocked and derided. Hanging on the cross many of His bones were dislocated. His heart would have increasing trouble beating from blood loss. Crucifixion causes horrible thirst so His mouth was dried up and His tongue stuck to the roof of His mouth. Everyone was staring and many were gloating. Matthew, Luke and John reported that the soldiers at the foot of the cross had gambled for his garment. Psalm 22 was being fulfilled before their eyes. So is Jesus saying “I have been forsaken by God”? Not really. He’s declaring, “Remember Psalm 22! It’s talking about me. My death is fulfilling this psalm.”
This is not the first time Jesus has said He fulfills scripture. After Jesus was baptized and tempted in the wilderness Luke tells us that He went to the synagogue in Nazareth, took up the scroll and read from the book of Isaiah saying, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then Jesus told them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” So when Jesus says, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” he’s saying, “Remember Psalm 22. Today Psalm 22 is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Psalm 22 starts out as a lament but it has a pivot point, a time when it turns from lament to confidence in God’s deliverance. Listen to the 24th verse. “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.” If this psalm is about Jesus then the Father did not turn his face away. Jesus is not saying God has forsaken Him. He is saying the exact opposite. God is with Him. Have confidence in God’s deliverance.
Jesus is declaring: Right now, you are witnessing Psalm 22. I seem forsaken right now, but my death is not the end of the story. God has not despised my suffering. The Lord has heard my cry. Because death is not the end. The final verses of the psalm say “Future generations will be told about the Lord. They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it!” Jesus did it! Jesus defeated sin and death on the cross. God vindicated Him by raising Him from the dead.
When we interpret Jesus’ words this way the Trinity remains unbroken. At the cross God did not kill His Son. Rather, God in Christ defeated the enemy of sin and death. Jesus and the Father and the Holy Spirit are eternally one and together they disarmed the powers of evil through the cross. Father, Son and Holy Spirit, always united in divine purpose and love.
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me. It is difficult to understand in what sense Jesus was “forsaken” by God. It is certain that God approved His work. It is certain that Jesus was innocent. He had done nothing to forfeit the favor of God. As God’s own Son—holy, harmless, undefiled, and obedient—God still loved Him. In none of these senses could God have forsaken Him.
Jesus was forsaken in that He bore the weight of sin and experienced the wrath of God. But the Trinity remained unbroken. Jesus, in His humanness feels forsaken. Who wouldn’t feel this way in a moment of extreme anguish. Who hasn’t felt this in their own lifetime. The agony of feeling completely alone, abandoned by all. Jesus wasn’t alone, He wasn’t forsaken. But, He FELT that way.
Our first reading was from Isaiah 53, long considered a Messianic psalm. It also predicts what happens to Jesus here on the cross. He was despised and rejected, a man of suffering. He was accounted stricken, struck down by God and afflicted. What is most important though is that it refers to why Jesus endured the cross. “5But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Jesus went to the cross for us. Jesus endured the agony and the shame for us. Jesus bore the weight of all our sin on the cross for us.
Let me read the last verse of our reading of Isaiah 53 from the New Living Translation. “When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.” Jesus is the righteous servant. He is satisfied with His accomplishment. He has made it possible for us to be counted righteous because He bore our sins on the cross.
Galatians tells us Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us (Galatians 3:13). He was made a sin-offering, and He died in our place, on our account, that He might bring us near to God. It was this, doubtless, that intensified His sufferings and part of why Jesus said, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” It was the manifestation of God’s hatred of sin, in some unexplained way, that Jesus experienced in that terrible hour. The suffering He endured was due to us, and it is that suffering by which we can be saved from eternal death.
In those awful moments Jesus expressed His feelings of abandonment. God placed the sins of the world on His Son, and Jesus for a time felt the desolation of being unaware of His Father’s presence. It was at this time that “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God”
God did not forsake Jesus on the cross. That does not take away from the pain and agony that Jesus endured for us. We can never know what it felt like to bear the sin of all the world. There is deep mystery here at the cross. We can never fully understand what happened but what we do know is that by the death of Jesus we are free. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:21 For God made Christ, who never sinned to be the offering for our sin so that we could be made right with God through Christ. God allowed His beloved Son to die and Jesus went willingly to His death for us so we could be reconciled to God.
As the hymn says, what wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss to bear the dreadful curse for my soul. What happened at the cross was the greatest demonstration of love that the world has ever seen.
No, God did not forsake His Son, and He proved it three days later when He raised Him from the dead. Neither does God ever forsake us. I asked at the beginning if you have ever felt forsaken. If you ever even begin to feel this way remember that you are never alone, God does not forsake His children and that is who we all are. God’s beloved children, precious in His sight. Hold on to that truth.
Let us pray. What wondrous Love is this: O my soul, that Jesus would take our place on the cross, experiencing the curse, the abandonment, the God-forsakenness warranted by our sin. Thank you, Lord, that Jesus experienced God-forsakenness for us so that we will never be forsaken by God but will always enjoy God’s nearness and blessing. In the name of our precious Redeemer, Amen.