Why Have You Forsaken Me?
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For the director of music. To the tune of “The Doe of the Morning.” A psalm of David.
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me,
so far from my cries of anguish?
My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,
by night, but I find no rest.
Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One;
you are the one Israel praises.
In you our ancestors put their trust;
they trusted and you delivered them.
To you they cried out and were saved;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.
But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by everyone, despised by the people.
All who see me mock me;
they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
“He trusts in the Lord,” they say,
“let the Lord rescue him.
Let him deliver him,
since he delights in him.”
Yet you brought me out of the womb;
you made me trust in you, even at my mother’s breast.
From birth I was cast on you;
from my mother’s womb you have been my God.
Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near
and there is no one to help.
Many bulls surround me;
strong bulls of Bashan encircle me.
Roaring lions that tear their prey
open their mouths wide against me.
I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint.
My heart has turned to wax;
it has melted within me.
My mouth is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
you lay me in the dust of death.
Dogs surround me,
a pack of villains encircles me;
they pierce my hands and my feet.
All my bones are on display;
people stare and gloat over me.
They divide my clothes among them
and cast lots for my garment.
But you, Lord, do not be far from me.
You are my strength; come quickly to help me.
Deliver me from the sword,
my precious life from the power of the dogs.
Rescue me from the mouth of the lions;
save me from the horns of the wild oxen.
I will declare your name to my people;
in the assembly I will praise you.
You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.
From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly;
before those who fear you I will fulfill my vows.
The poor will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek the Lord will praise him—
may your hearts live forever!
All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him,
for dominion belongs to the Lord
and he rules over the nations.
All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.
Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
They will proclaim his righteousness,
declaring to a people yet unborn:
He has done it!
To the Tune of...
To the Tune of...
This poem was a song… A song written to a familiar contemporary tune. A song long remembered by God’s people. It’s a love song written to God, who seems to have turned away from his people. Music is a gift to us. It can find a rhythm with our longings. It can strike a chord with our heart’s deepest desires. Everyone isn’t skilled at singing, but almost everyone at least hums a tune every now and then. It’s part of how we make sense of our lives.
That’s why I can enjoy all kinds of music. New and old. I like traditional hymns because they remind me of God’s faithful actions in the past. I like newer songs because they remind me my faith has to keep growing today. I have to understand how my faith helps me make sense of what God is doing now, rather than reject everything new and miss what God is doing now. And that’s what even older songs were trying to do: help people make sense of their lives at that time.
Music helps us honor the past and experience the present. Some songs are upbeat and positive. Some songs are slow and peaceful. Some songs are sad. This is an epic song because it touches on almost every area.
Famous Lyrics
Famous Lyrics
You may recognize the first line of this song. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why write such words down? Well, the Psalms are first of all honest. Therefore our prayers and our songs must be honest. The problem with some church music is that it’s idealized. It’s cheesy. God’s people have left us clues about how to write great songs. How to pray great prayers. They aren’t all polished and perfect. These songs are messy. These prayers are a little messed up in places. That’s what makes them so awesome.
Before you decide these lyrics are scandalous remember where you’ve heard them before.
About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).
Jesus was hanging on the cross. Jesus was dying for our sins. Jesus was suffering beyond imagination. Jesus was singing a hit song. With his final breaths he was praying to the Father. To the casual observer it just sounds like a desperate dying man giving up. But I wonder if something more was going on...
Honesty means getting it all out
Honesty means getting it all out
Sometimes we may give the impression that having faith means having it all together. Nothing could be further from the truth. Biblical faith can admit to being broken.
Lord, I’m praying. I’m crying out but I’m getting the silent treatment! Lord, I’m so upset I can’t sleep at night. Where are you?
Lord, I’ve heard the stories. I know you’ve helped other people. God’s people all through history cried out to you and you delivered them. They weren’t disappointed, so why not me?
My so called friends make fun of me. People look at me and shake their heads Lord. They judge me before they even know the score.
Ever been there? The Psalmist has. Jesus has.
I’m surrounded by beasts, he says. They are about to tear me apart. My body is giving out. Everything hurts and I can’t go on. My heart is growing weak. My strength is gone. Might as well plan my funeral, Lord. It looks like you’ve as good as buried me.
No shiny happy churchy words there. No power of positive thinking. It’s the power of being honest before God. The power of pouring out your heart when it feels like you’re being poured out like water.
As long as we pretend we never get to what is real. Whenever our hearts grieve a loss we can pretend someone else is the cause or we can be honest about how it feels and begin to move forward.
Key Word:
Key Word:
When the psalmist was talking about the people of God in days gone by there was a key word.
To you they cried out and were saved;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.
In you they trusted… We can print it on the money. We can plaster it on our license plates. But it doesn’t really mean much until life puts us to the test. As we get older or face danger we have to deal with our mortality. Nothing like facing the reality of death to refocus us. Steve Jobs said that death was a gift that helps us focus on life.
Teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
“Show me, Lord, my life’s end
and the number of my days;
let me know how fleeting my life is.
You have made my days a mere handbreadth;
the span of my years is as nothing before you.
Everyone is but a breath,
even those who seem secure.
So being a finite being reminds us to make every day count. It also reminds us to prepare to meet our maker. These are good things.
There is an opportunity for IN GOD WE TRUST to be more than a slogan. It can be a beacon that lights up the valley of the shadow of death...
Faith is where the journey with God begins. But when faith means only belief in ideas things stay shallow. At the deep end of the pool are waters that can truly hold you up. Faith becomes trust as we journey through the challenging terrain. Even death won’t stop faith.
They trusted you and were not put to shame. They trusted you, Lord. By your grace. With your help. They trusted you and ignored the scorn of men. They trusted you. Can I trust you, Lord?
But you, Lord, do not be far from me.
You are my strength; come quickly to help me.
Something begins to turn. The Psalmist has cried out and been honest and painted a pretty bleak picture. But because he was crying out TO God and not ABOUT God, the conversation continues.
Now the Psalmist is finding some faith again. Being reminded of the value of trust. Asking again for God’s help in the midst of the pain.
I will declare your name to my people;
in the assembly I will praise you.
You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.
Suddenly faith comes shining through again! This time tested. This time mature. Friends I think this is a model for us as we walk through the darkest days. We can be honest with God. But we can also trust God. Once we get some things off our chest to God, we should keep going and find our way back to praise and thanks again. Don’t let your life become a curse. In time move beyond it to dancing once again...
Remember Jesus hanging on the cross, quoting this Psalm? Check this out:
Dogs surround me,
a pack of villains encircles me;
they pierce my hands and my feet.
All my bones are on display;
people stare and gloat over me.
They divide my clothes among them
and cast lots for my garment.
Wow. Literally what happened to him. Pierced his hands and feet. Divided his clothing and cast lots for his special garment. Look it up...
Jesus was suffering. Jesus was crying out. But Jesus knew the score. He knew what was really happening. Jesus knew it was worth it to go through the suffering to get to salvation...
It wasn’t just for him. It was for all the families of the earth, just like God promised to Abram.
Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
They will proclaim his righteousness,
declaring to a people yet unborn:
He has done it!
Yes, the Lord Jesus has done it! He saved the world. Now it’s possible for anyone to come to faith. He also made it through the suffering by beginning in honesty, getting to deep trust, then declaring boldly the faithfulness and future victory of God.
Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.
who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
We are not alone in our suffering. Jesus has been there. Jesus is with us now. We share in his sufferings at times and we discover the depth of his mercy and tender lovingkindness; his covenant faithfulness.
Now we can look forward to being a comfort to others once we are delivered. And so there is much purpose found even in our sufferings. Redemption. Healing. Hope.
Trust
Trust
It comes down to a word this morning. Trust. Begin with honesty. But keep going to get to the good stuff. You can trust God. If we ever doubted it just look to Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith. He was pointing us to this Psalm written many generations before his life on earth. It predicted both his suffering and his deliverance. In many ways it was his song. Have you learned that tune? I can’t promise you that you won’t suffer. You may. I can’t promise you won’t die. But I’m here to say even death is not the end! So keep on living in faith and trust.
Let’s pray...