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THE SON FORSAKEN
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23
Mark 15:33-37

Psalm 22:25-31

 

“…My God, my God, why hast

thou forsaken me?”

 

THE SON FORSAKEN
 
There was a supernatural darkness that covered the land from 12 pm to 3 pm. The noonday sun shone no light. Why did God send this darkness? Darkness is a symbol of judgment (see Isa 5:30; 60:2; Joel 2:30,31; Amos 5:18-20; Zeph 1:14-18; Acts 2:20; 2 Pet 2:17; Rev 6:12-17). W. Hendriksen commented, “The darkness meant judgment, the judgment of God upon our sins, his wrath as it were burning itself out in the very heart of Jesus, so that he, as our Substitute, suffered most intense agony, indescribable woe, terrible isolation or forsakenness. Hell came to Calvary that day, and the Saviour descended into it and bore its horrors in our stead.” At this time, Jesus (the sinless Lamb of God) was “made …sin” for us (2 Cor 5:21), made “a curse” (Gal 3:13), laden with “the iniquity of us all” (Isa 53:6).
 
At three in the afternoon, Jesus gave out a most agonising cry, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” These words are taken from Psalm 22:1. When Jesus said those words, it not only indicated the fulfilment of that Messianic psalm, but also displayed the intense torment of the soul that He went through. To be sure, God the Father and God the Son are essentially inseparable. The “forsaking” here has nothing to do with Christ’s divine nature but His human nature. In other words, Christ was left totally on His own to bear the weight of the sin of the whole world. His Father could not help Him. He had to do it all alone, by Himself. Ben Price’s hymn, “Alone,” captures this thought well:
 
Alone upon the cross He hung
That others He might save;
Forsaken then by God and man,
Alone, His life He gave.
Alone, alone,
He bore it all alone;
He gave Himself to save His own,
He suffered, bled and died alone, alone.
 
THOUGHT: Jesus was forsaken so that we might never be forsaken.
PRAYER: (Pray that you will always follow the Lord and never forsake Him.)

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