My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?

Prayer

Please pray with me...

Almighty God, we beseech you graciously to behold this your family, for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed and given into the hands of sinners, and to suffer death upon the Cross; who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. [1]

Introduction

[Slide 1]

Brothers and sisters, this evening we have come together, not to celebrate but to remember. Good Friday is not a time of rejoicing but a time of mourning. We have been brought together, like any proper funeral, to remember the life and ministry of one man, Jesus of Nazareth.

Although his death took place nearly 2,000 years ago, tonight, we are not only invited to remember his life and his death, but we are also asked (nay, compelled!) to witness his execution in our minds’ eye.

We are witnesses, like the disciples who dined with him on Maundy Thursday so quickly betrayed him, fled from his side, and denied knowing him.

We are witnesses, like the crowds who just a few days earlier had cried, “… Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” (John 12:13). These same crowds will later scream “Crucify him!” and mock him. He was paraded before them, bloodied and beaten, with a crown on his head - not a royal crown of gold and jewels, but a bloody crown of thorns.

We are witnesses, like the women who so dearly loved him, standing upon that lonely, bloody hill - Γολγοθᾶ - to look up into the fading eyes of one who had given so much to so many. The hands that brought healing to others pierced through with iron nails. Those feet that journeyed mile after mile to spread the love of God bored through with a spike.

We are called to be witnesses, suffering alongside this man, this Jesus of Nazareth.

During this season of Lent, we have proclaimed Jesus as a guide through the wilderness. On this night, we realize that not only is he “A” guide through the wilderness but that he is “THE” guide through this wilderness of life. No matter what trial or disappointment we encounter in this life, we know that he has experienced them all. He has taken on the sins of all humanity and bore them in himself on the cross. All wretchedness and injustice and cruelty and divisiveness and murder and impurity were taken up on that cross with him and with his death, their power was vanquished in those who believe upon him.

On this, our final night of Lent, then, let us follow “THE” guide through the wilderness one more time as we remember that he walks beside us and bears our sins and trials when we cannot.

Psalm 22

Our Psalm for this evening rings out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” These words might sound familiar to us because they are words that have troubled our own minds, dogged our prayers, or escaped our lips at some point in our lives. We cannot avoid at times the sense that God has forsaken or abandoned us; that sometimes he appears so far and so distant and so uncaring of what troubles us. Perhaps, for you, these words came at the loss of a job, or the death of a loved one. Perhaps it was when a trusted friend betrayed you or in the depth of an addiction and despair. Perhaps it was simply that you really wanted something and prayed, and prayed, and prayed but there was no answer.

The gospels of Matthew and Mark also record these words coming from the mouth of Christ,

[Slide 2]

“ἠλί, ἠλί, λεμά σαβαχθάνι?” (“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”)

What was going through his mind as he said this?

We know that Jesus had immersed himself in Scripture throughout his life. This was common among the Rabbis of his time. Simply speaking the first sentence of a Psalm could evoke the entirety of it to his memory. He may have recited it by verse, or, more likely, sung along in his mind to the ancient tune that went with it. It came as easily as someone saying a line from a popular chorus or hook, the song flows quickly into our minds.

Of Jesus’ final seven (7) words he uttered upon that cross, to me, this one speaks most to the suffering Jesus underwent - the sense of desperation he must have felt as his life ebbed away with each stolen breath.

[Slide 3]

Derek Kidner, in his commentary, sees this

… not [as] a lapse of faith, nor a broken relationship, but a cry of disorientation as God’s familiar, protective presence is withdrawn ... and the enemy closes in. [2]

Re-Reading

Let’s look at this first section of Psalm 22 a little deeper. I’d like to read it again with you and try to understand Christ’s thoughts on that horrible final day:

[Slide 4]

Psalm 22:1–2 (ESV)

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.

From the time Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he knew that his death was approaching. With lightning speed (within just a few days) Jesus went from exalted hero to condemned prisoner. He had been glorified as a savior and king with cries of Hosanna! Yet by that Thursday evening, he had been betrayed and taken to the church elders and priests to be sentenced to death. That night in the garden, Jesus had prayed that this cup of suffering might pass from him. He prayed so passionately that sweat like blood poured from his forehead. His answer from God, even then, was that he would have to undergo this in order to rescue humanity from sin and death. He had accepted this fact and knew its importance, but it did not lessen the pain he knew he would endure.

[Slide 5]

Psalm 22:3–5 (ESV)

3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. 4 In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. 5 To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame.

Taken out of context, we might hear these words as praising God in his faithfulness. Yet, reading the psalm in its entirety, we realize that this is another part of Jesus’ plea. He reminds God of how he has been faithful to so many others. He might have well said, “God, you were faithful to deliver my ancestors, why will you not deliver me? I know you can rescue me, why won’t you? I trusted you more than they ever could, why won’t you save me?”

He continues in verse 6:

[Slide 6]

Psalm 22:6–8 (ESV)

6 But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people. 7 All who see me mock me; they [taunt] me; they wag their heads; 8 [They say,] “He trusts in the Lord; let [the Lord] deliver him; let [the Lord] rescue him, for [the Lord] delights in him!”

Jesus was taunted and mocked. They treated him like less than human, like a worm writhing in the dirt. He had trusted in the Lord and yet the Lord was not saving him. You can hear it in Matthew’s retelling as the chief priests mocked him, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” (Matthew 27:42–43)

Beginning with verse 9, he pleads his case - reminding God how he has been faithful and not worthy of this scorn:

[Slide 7]

Psalm 22:9–10 (ESV)

9 Yet you are he who took me from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts. 10 On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother’s womb you have been my God.

Again, he might reply, “I have always been faithful to you, Father! From the day I was born, ‘I’ have not abandoned you. Why do you abandon me?”

His final plea from our passage today comes in verse 11:

[Slide 8]

Psalm 22:11 (ESV)

11 Be not far from me, for trouble is near, and there is none to help.

Christ’s humanity and desire to live ring out in this final plea. His suffering almost overpowers his strength to complete the task that he (as God) had purposed.

This is the psalm that was on Jesus’ lips and hearts as he hung on the cross. Jesus’ flesh felt abandoned by God, even as we sometimes believe he has abandoned us.

Abandonment

Did God truly abandon Christ as he died? Did he turn his eyes away and ignore the pleas of his son?

John Goldingay addresses this so poignantly in his commentary as he writes:

[Slide 9]

Jesus was not abandoned by God in the sense that God was not present at his execution. God was there all right, as is implied by the fact that Jesus prays; you can’t address someone who has gone off.

[Slide 10]

God is watching steadfastly as Jesus is executed, suffering as profoundly in his spirit as Jesus is suffering in body and spirit. Indeed, it is hard to imagine the depth of the agony involved in watching your son be executed when you could stop it.

[Slide 11]

As some of the witnesses at the execution declare, it would be appropriate for God to rescue Jesus if Jesus is really God’s son. But God doesn’t do so.

[Slide 12]

God listens to Jesus asking, “Why have you abandoned me?” and does nothing. God’s abandonment lies not in going away but in being present and yet doing nothing. [3]

As a father, I truly cannot see myself in God’s place here. It is beyond my ability to imagine. If my daughter were in this situation, and I had the power to remove her from it, it wouldn’t be minutes or hours ... in seconds she would be safe and in my arms. And yet, God was there, looking upon his son and did not rescue him.

The Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit - all three persons of the Godhead had agreed upon this action. They knew what the stakes were. They understood the cost that had to be paid to restore creation and defeat the powers of sin and death. They knew what was coming. When it came time to fulfill the work God had set out to do, God’s entire nature could not have been more active and present.

The Father grieved as he watched his son suffering and in pain.

The Holy Spirit darkened the sky in mourning.

The Son wept as his flesh slowly failed.

Conclusion

In a few moments, we will be reliving this experience with Christ and his disciples. Not simply mourning Jesus’ death, but watching and partaking in his execution.

We will see Jesus betrayed in the garden and watch his disciples flee.

We will see Jesus brought before the chief priests and elders, beaten and reviled.

We will watch as Peter denies Christ and runs away weeping.

We will witness Jesus flogged and mocked by the Roman guards.

We will walk alongside our Lord as he carries his own cross to the place where he will die.

And, at the end, he will say, “It is finished.”

[Slide 13]

You might notice that tonight we did not read Psalm 22 in its entirety. Like a good novel, there is more that has been written. We are desperate to turn the page and read the next chapter. The journey we have walked with Jesus is not yet complete. And yet, for these few moments, I would invite you to live into this tension without turning the page just yet.

I do not want to leave you without hope tonight. That is not God’s desire for us. In our own trials and struggles, we might feel like Jesus did that day. And, unlike him, we may not even know why we are suffering this pain. We may feel that we have been abandoned.

Yet, there will come a day when we, like Christ, will say “It is finished” to our pain and suffering, however long it endures. It may be for a season. It may be for the rest of our life.

Know and understand this: God does not bring suffering into our lives, but, watching over us and directing us, he will use it for his glory and our good.

Let us quickly review what Scripture says about suffering:

In Romans, chapter 8, the Apostle Paul tells us:

Romans 8:18 (ESV)

18 ... I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

He continues ...

Romans 8:28 (ESV)

28 … [W]e know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Later, in chapter 5, he says:

Romans 5:3–5 (ESV)

3 … [W]e rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

John, the elder, then reminds us in Revelation 21:

Revelation 21:4 (ESV)

4 [God] will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

God does not abandon us any more than he did his son.

He has such amazing things he wants to do in and for you through your trials. Sometimes, like tonight, we must face the reality of our suffering and trust that THE guide through the wilderness walks alongside us in the midst of it.

As we conclude, I would encourage you this Holy Saturday to reflect on the remaining verses of Psalm 22. Read verses 1 through 21. Read it again and again and again. Put those words into the mouth of our savior and see his mind in your suffering. Live alongside him in that moment.

On Easter morning, I would invite you to read it one more time, in its entirety. However, between verses 21 and 22, I would invite you to insert these words: “It is finished.” Like a good storyteller, I will not spoil the ending for you, but perhaps you may find a new hope - the hope that inspired Christ at the end of his earthly life.

And now, let us embark upon this journey. Spend the next minutes listening and sanctifying your imagination. Ask God’s grace to speak to you through Scripture. Let us walk with Christ as he shows us how to walk with the Father - on the way to the cross.

Prayer

Please pray with me...

O Lord our God, whose blessed Son gave his back to be whipped and did not hide his face from shame and spitting: Give us grace to accept joyfully the sufferings of the present time, confident of the glory that shall be revealed; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. [4]

Endnotes

[1] Good Friday Collect from Anglican Church in North America, The Book of Common Prayer (2019) (Huntington Beach, CA: Anglican Liturgy Press, 2019), 608.

[2] Derek Kidner, Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 15 (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 123.

[3] John Goldingay, Psalms for Everyone, Part 1: Psalms 1–72 (Louisville, KY;London: Westminster John Knox Press;Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2013), 70.

[4] Collect for Tuesday of Holy Week from Anglican Church in North America, The Book of Common Prayer (2019) (Huntington Beach, CA: Anglican Liturgy Press, 2019), 607.