Matt.27:46 – And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice saying ‘Eli, Eli lama sabachthani?’ that is to say, ‘My God, My God, Why have you forsaken me?’
This is one of the seven things that Jesus said while he was hanging on the cross in excruciating pain. These few, sacred statements from Jesus have proven to be a rich heritage of blessing, strength and comfort to us. Many sermons and books have been written about them and what a powerful and enlightening study it is.
This cry of Jesus has been called the cry of anguish or the cry of despair and it was indeed a haunting cry. A cry is something deeper than words; it is an expression of the heart which surpasses language. Every person on the earth knows what a heart cry is. It is a cry of instinct more than one of intellect. It is a cry of longing more than one of logic. This heart cry transcends all language barriers; it transcends all belief systems; we can immediately identify with anyone who suffers no matter their culture, speech or nationality. The book of Romans tells us that the entire creation is groaning; suffering under the burden of sin and suffocating from the weight of wickedness. That groan is this very cry which we are considering. Jesus, being the most spiritually sensitive man ever, was acutely aware of this period of abandonment, and he cried and groaned in total identification with forsaken mankind.
I have heard it pointed out that if you read through the Gospels carefully, you will never see Jesus address the Father as God. He always tenderly addressed him as Father, but in this dark hour of his life He cried out to the God of the universe. Mankind is fallen and has lost his filial relationship with the Father. He cannot truly be called Father by anyone other than His children. He may be God to the entire world but He is Father only to the family. Something mysterious was transpiring within Jesus that was so terrible, so sacred, so beyond description that we must be very careful how we tread here. A thick darkness had covered the land for three hours restricting the onlooker's sight; it may be that God mercifully hid the eyes of humanity from catching sight of things which are beyond our ability to fully understand.
To ask the question 'why' is to ask the basic question of the fallen race. Why me? Why is this happening to me? Why is life so difficult? Why do I keep repeating destructive patterns? Why are all these terrible things happening in the world? Why? To pose the question 'why' is to inquire about causes; reasons that things are the way they are. We want to make sense out of our lives and circumstances. We want to find meaning and purpose in the midst of suffering. Someone has said that a man can put up with almost any ‘what’ as long as he has a ‘why’. Jesus knew why he had to suffer; he had told his disciples ahead of time that he was going to be killed and rise again, but darkness had encircled the land; darkness had come heavily upon him; darkness had enclosed his heart and now darkness was coming out of him. Why, God, why?
The question of why that comes from the inside of any man always comes with his own limited perspective; he doesn’t see the big picture and therefore he doesn’t understand. Perspective is what one sees from their point of view; from their standpoint. I read years ago that discussing Bible truths is like climbing a mountain; if you climb up one side you see one view, but if you climb up from another side you see a different view. There are always a variety of views to look at from man’s partial perspective. However, there is God’s unlimited viewpoint and His infinite perspective. There was a specific reason that Jesus was forsaken on that day; the purpose of God was being fulfilled. God was carrying out His great plan of redemption in this sacred and horrific moment. There was a definite and meaningful why.
Fallen man is forsaken man; he is forlorn man; he is forgotten man. Why have you done this to me? Jesus is representing the entire race of lost humanity who blame God for all their loss and agony. Why did you not protect me? Why are you allowing this to happen? The sense of forsakenness and abandonment is what stands between God and mankind. We sometimes have heard the phrase, ‘a God-forsaken world’, but maybe it is actually the Father God who is forsaken by the world. Maybe He is a ‘world-forsaken God’. The Father God is truly the ultimate sufferer; he loves much, therefore he suffers much. This moment of forsakenness was equally difficult for both the Father and the Son. The Son’s heart cried out in deep distress as He represented every terrible and tragic thing that man has ever experienced as a victim and committed as a culprit. The Father’s heart suffered in silent pain as He watched His Son carry the burden and the crushing weight; the culmination of every wrong choice; the sin and the hurt of the entire world.
Tragedy, atrocity, calamity, brutality and heartbreak are the sad realities of life on earth. One doesn't have to look very far to see that there is sorrow on every continent, pain in every country and grief in every home. Our deepest consolation comes to us as we understand that Jesus suffered these same things, he experienced the complete range of human emotions and he continues to suffer with us. He understands you, he understands me. Jesus was forsaken, deserted, abandoned and rejected so that we could be fully accepted and lovingly embraced; included in the family and affirmed by the Father. No matter what you may be facing today, however dark and heavy your heart may be, however many questions may be in your mind, I pray that you would cry out to the Father and receive His peace, His strength and His assurance that He is right there, walking with you through it all. He is there, as close as a whisper and He is ready to answer. Amen!
