The Cry of Forsakenness
Mt. 27:46-49; Mk. 15:34-35
Text
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" that is, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" 47 And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, "This man is calling Elijah." 48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. 49 But the others said, "Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him." (Mt. 27:46-49)
Introduction
To be shunned by society is traumatic. To be disowned by family is tragic. To be abandoned by parents is heart-rending. But to be cut-off from God is hellish and horrific.
Context
For this reason, many Bible readers balk at the fact of Christ's forsakenness. But rather than being distorted, diluted or denied, this historical fact should be carefully explained and fully believed.
A Triumphant Cry?
Correctly noting that Messiah’s forlorn cry is a verbatim quotation of King David, 1000 years before His Greater Son was pierced, some suggest that by citing the first line, Jesus wanted bystanders to complete the Psalm 22 with him (mentally if not verbally): it is true, of course, that that the "Psalm of the Cross" does conclude on a happier note, with end-of-earth salvation, as the result of resurrection. Yet, without calling into question His death benefits, this does not account for Golgotha's 3 dark hours, or furious, hellish, wrath, which our Lord endured for us.
A Mistaken Cry?
That this was not an extended positive quote seems to be shown by the way the cry was taken by the crowd. Apart, perhaps, from the penitent dying thief, the rest missed of the crowd obviously missed the point, heard Eli as Eliyahu, and thought that our Lord was praying to Elijah. If only they had seen that Jesus was suffering divine wrath, they would not have urged Jesus to dismount, for He was dealing with our guilt. They mistook the point. The cry of the Savior was derelict before God.
A Federal Cry
Foedus (from which we get federal) is Latin for our term Covenant. In Psalm 22, David was not recounting private, dark, depression. His public communication, clothed in hyperbolic speech, reflects agonies of heart felt and flowing from his faith which united Him to Christ. In His God-forsaken plight, by the Spirit of Christ, He officially, and prophetically, relates woes of Israel's future prince. His deep dereliction is suffered for the nation. As Head of State, and Anointed of God’s flock, He is abandoned for their sake. So when Christ prayed this prayer, at the Cross, God forsook Christ to curse, to seal the Covenant, to bless His sheep.
A Human Cry
Never forget, that Jesus is ONE PERSON with TWO NATURES. Christ is fully God. Christ is fully Man. Since God cannot die, His Son took human flesh. It was in His humanity, as one God-Man person, that Messiah was forsaken. Even as He hung, scorched by holy, just, flames, in His Godhead, the well-pleasing Son communed in unbroken eternal of the Father’s fellowship. Never moreso than that when derelict, the Father took delight in Christ. For "God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself." In other words, in this forsakenness, there was no rupture in the relationship within the Godhead.
A Judicial Cry
When the Father hid His face, it was a legal act than in no way ruled out love for His Son. Jesus suffered punishment as the scapegoat of our guilt, to carry off our filth, as far as is East from West. He who knew no sin became sin for us, that in Him, we might become God’s righteousness." This mysterious truth of the dereliction of the Son is certainly a high doctrine, but not out of reach from any of the saints. In Moses Law, when stubborn sons refused to obey, their parents led them out to be stoned to death. If either of my sons killed a man in hate, if guilt was proved, though I loved them both, my love would not cease if I was forced to bring them out. That the Father left the Son legally forlorn, does not mean Christ was personally unloved by God. And since, by that death, He redeems many sons, dereliction displays matchless wisdom.
A Purposeful Cry
This cry of dereliction was not bad luck or chance. It was decreed by God, by the hands of wicked men, by His blood, to secure New Covenant help which Jesus mediates. It secures ministry aid for Joshua who was told "I will never leave you nor forsake you." It secures personal help for David in the heat of the fight for "though my mother and father forsake me, the LORD will take me in." It secures church mission help "for Lo, I am with you, even to the very end of the age." It secures an unbroken stream of sovereign grace for believers for "nothing shall separate us from the love of God in Christ."
Conclusion
So, while a cry of triumph sounds after Christ rose from the dead, the path to victory was through painful forsakenness. This cry may be more, but it is nothing less than a human, federal, judicial, purposeful cry of hellish abandonment. It was this that led to the glory of the once-derelict Son. It is He who now reigns at God’s right hand to mediate saving life, peace and bliss to His Church.