Matthew Ch27v45-54 - Sayings On The Cross 3 - Forsaken

And we're going to be reading from verses 45 to 54, and the words are up on the screen as well,

so you can follow along there or in your Bibles, whichever you prefer.

But I'm going to read Matthew 27, starting in verse 45.

From noon until three in the afternoon, darkness came over all the lands.

About three in the afternoon, Jesus cried out in a loud voice,

Eli, Eli, lemma sabachthani, which means, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

When some of those standing there heard this, they said, he's calling Elijah.

Immediately, one of them ran and got a sponge.

He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff and offered it to Jesus to drink.

The rest said, now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to save him.

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

At that moment, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

The earth shook, the rocks split, and the tombs broke open.

The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.

They came out of the tombs after Jesus' resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened,

they were terrified and exclaimed, surely he was the son of God.

Martin, thank you.

Thanks very much.

Alex, it's lovely to be back with you again.

On a few other occasions, we've looked at some of these sayings of the Lord Jesus on the cross,

and we're going to look at the other one that was mentioned from Psalm 22 this morning.

We'll really just focus in on those words of Jesus,

but obviously they come within the context of what's happening around it,

and hopefully we'll look at those verses to help us make sense of what Jesus says here on the cross.

But let's pray before we look at this together.

Father, we pray now that you might help us to grasp the truths of which we read,

that we might grasp the very depths of suffering that Jesus experienced for us,

so that we might never have to.

And so, Father, we pray that even as we think this morning of what it means to be forsaken by you,

that we might both grasp what Jesus has done for us,

and rejoice then in what is ours because of all that he has done.

And we ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

The very word forsaken is one of the most tragic in all of human speech.

That's what Arthur Pink writes before he lists a few examples.

A man forsaken by his friends,

a wife forsaken by her husband,

a child forsaken by its parents.

Perhaps you've known what it's like to be forsaken.

The word forsaken is one of the most tragic of all of human speech.

Yet it's the word that Jesus uses here.

Forsaken.

It's only in the last couple of years that I finally got around to reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.

When I say reading, I really mean listening.

I was too lazy to read the book.

I wasn't sure what to expect,

but I found it to be an incredibly moving story

in which I was filled with pity for Frankenstein's monster.

Victor Frankenstein is obsessed with creating life,

and he eventually succeeds in making a creature

that not only breathes and moves,

but thinks and feels.

But the creature's form is hideous,

and his stature is frightening.

Frankenstein is repulsed at the creature he's brought into being,

and he abandons him.

The story is really one of being forsaken.

At one point, the monster cries out to his creator,

I ought to be thy Adam,

but I am rather the fallen angel

whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed.

We finally sense the anguish of the monster.

He cannot understand why he's being treated as he is.

Rather than being loved by his creator,

the creature has been abandoned and forsaken.

He's treated more like Satan,

driven from God's presence,

than Adam, who was created to enjoy God's company.

And now his physical attributes mean

that no one else will ever accept him.

He's both hideous and frightening.

If his creator cannot love him,

who will?

He is alone,

abandoned,

forsaken.

Now when we think of that sense of abandonment,

whether it's a creature forsaken by its creator,

a wife forsaken by her husband,

a child forsaken by parents,

or a person forsaken by friends,

it's incredible then to contemplate

that Jesus experiences

what it means to be forsaken at the cross.

not just by his many followers,

or even by his closest friends,

but by his father in heaven.

Because here we see a man forsaken by God.

Now I've chosen those words really carefully.

A man forsaken by God.

Maybe you've heard statements before

about how the eternal relationship

between God the Son and God the Father

is broken during these three hours upon the cross,

as though somehow there has been a change

in the eternal being of God.

But God is unchangeable in his being.

The trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

cannot be broken,

even for a second,

or else God himself would cease to be God.

But this is the very reason

why the eternal Son of God

took on human flesh.

So that as a man,

he might experience

what it would be impossible

for God to experience.

Things like hunger, tiredness,

suffering, pain, death,

even being forsaken by God.

These things are true of the humanity of Jesus,

not of his divine nature.

But for all of his life here upon earth,

Jesus has enjoyed unbroken fellowship

with his heavenly Father.

This is something that no other human being

has ever enjoyed.

Jesus enjoys this unbroken fellowship

because he enters the world without sin,

and he lives in this world without sin.

There's absolutely nothing to hinder

his relationship with God.

He alone enjoys

what should have been the experience

of every human being.

what we all would have enjoyed

except for mankind's rebellion

against his Creator.

And we see evidence

of this unbroken fellowship

throughout Jesus' life on earth.

Even as a young boy,

you remember that Jesus

disappears to the temple,

telling his earthly parents

that he must be about

his Father's business.

Jesus says what his Father wants him to say.

He has come to do the Father's works.

At times, Jesus pulls away

from the crowds to be alone

and to have more intimate times

to talk to his Father in prayer.

But he lives all of his life

conscious of the Father's presence.

And yet now,

as he hangs upon the cross,

this unbroken fellowship with God,

which he has enjoyed

for every second

of every minute,

of every hour,

of every day,

for his 33 years here upon earth,

comes to a sudden end.

And he cries out,

My God,

My God,

Why have you forsaken me?

He is a man forsaken by God.

And this forsakenness

is evidenced in a couple of ways.

Matthew, first of all,

describes the darkness

of divine judgment.

It's a strange phenomenon, isn't it?

In verse 45,

from about noon

until three in the afternoon,

darkness came over the land.

It must have been a sight

that no one living at the time

would ever forget.

Perhaps you can remember,

at least I remember,

especially in my childhood,

times when the electricity

went off at home

and we had to rummage around

before we had torches

on our phones

to find the candles

in the drawers

and the matches

and light them up

and work out

how we were going to survive

without light in the house

for however many hours

the electricity would be off.

Such events

are memorable

enough.

But this,

this is darkness

in the middle of the day.

This is darkness

when the sun

is supposed to be

at its brightest.

From about noon

until three in the afternoon,

darkness came over

the land.

Now of course

there'll be many people

and you've probably heard

people try to put this event

in the category

of a natural event.

It was just a solar eclipse

and it was just a coincidence

that this occurs

at the time that Jesus

is on the cross.

Now I'm no scientist

or astrologist

but like the rest of you

I have the ability

to Google

what is the longest

possible solar eclipse

and if you're to do that

you'll find that the answer

is about seven and a half

minutes.

So whatever this is

it's not a natural

solar eclipse.

What happens here

is a supernatural

event.

The question is

what are we to make

of it?

Well it might

immediately conjure up

in your mind

a similar event

that lasted

not just for three hours

but for three

whole days.

There have already

been eight plagues

sent upon the land

of Egypt

because Pharaoh

refused to let

God's people go.

Each plague

seems to grow

in intensity

and severity.

And after the plague

of darkness

Pharaoh tells Moses

never to come

before him again

and Moses

assures Pharaoh

that he will never

see Moses'

face

again.

You see

this darkness

that fell upon

Egypt was the

darkness

of divine

judgment.

The plague

of darkness

was followed

only

by the death

of Egypt's

firstborn

sons.

Egypt would face

the judgment

of God

from which it

would never

fully recover.

Pharaoh had

ignored God's

commands,

resisted God's

purposes

and spurned

God's mercy

and all that

remained was the

darkness of

divine judgment.

Now here at the

cross for three

hours between

noon and three

o'clock

darkness came

over the land

and just as in

Egypt it was the

darkness of

divine judgment.

Just as Moses

had withdrawn

from Pharaoh

now it seems

that God

himself withdraws

from Jesus.

And just as

divine judgment

fell upon the

firstborn sons

of Egypt

now the

judgment of

God falls

on his

own son.

Not just

the judgment

of God

for the sins

of one

nation

but the

judgment of

God for the

sins of

all nations.

The judgment

of God for

all those who

had ignored

God's commands

resisted

God's purposes

and spurned

God's mercy.

The judgment

of God for

the sins of

the whole

world rested

upon Jesus.

This strange

darkness that

covers the

land is

nothing less

than the

darkness of

divine judgment.

It's no

surprise then

is it that

whenever Jesus

would talk

about the

eternal judgment

of hell

that will

come upon

those who

reject Jesus

he would

describe it

in terms of

complete

darkness.

Outer

darkness.

This kind

of darkness

the darkness

of divine

judgment

the darkness

of hell

itself

is what

Jesus

experiences

at the

cross.

Because

you not

only see

the darkness

of divine

judgment

but the

despair

of divine

absence.

Jesus cries

out in a

loud voice

my God

my God

why have

you forsaken

me?

This

strange

darkness

could have

been God's

judgment

on the

whole land

of Israel

for their

rejection

of their

Messiah.

That would

be understandable

wouldn't it?

But no we

see that God's

judgment is far

more specific

than that.

God's judgment

is not falling

on the whole

land of Israel

not even the

whole world

it is falling

upon one

person

Jesus

because as

the darkness

of divine

judgment

falls on

the land

Jesus

experiences

the despair

of divine

absence.

David had

once wrote

I was young

and now I

am old

yet I have

never seen

the righteous

forsaken.

But isn't

that exactly

what we see

on the cross?

there was

no one

more righteous

than Jesus.

No one

could be

more righteous

than Jesus.

He had

perfectly

obeyed the

commands of

God and

completely

fulfilled the

purposes of

God.

No one

was more

righteous than

Jesus and

no one

could be

more righteous

than Jesus

yet here

he is

forsaken

by God

experiencing

the despair

of divine

absence.

Again

Arthur Pink

comments

the hiding

of God's

face from

him was

the most

bitter ingredient

of that

cup which

the father

had given

the redeemer

to drink.

This is

what caused

the torment

in the

garden

of Eden

or Gethsemane.

In number

six there's

a blessing

I'm sure

you know

the Aaronic

blessing to

Aaron and

his sons

where the

people of

God say

the Lord

bless you

and keep

you.

The Lord

make his

face shine

on you

and be

gracious

to you.

The Lord

turn his

face toward

you and

give you

peace.

There could

be no

greater

blessing.

The Lord

turning his

face towards

you.

The Lord

shining his

glory upon

you.

The Lord

granting you

grace and

peace.

But here

Jesus

experiences

the very

opposite.

The Lord

turning his

face away

from him.

The light

of God's

countenance

being removed

from him.

The judgment

of God

falling

upon him.

Do we

begin to

grasp the

horror of

what is

actually

happening

here at

the cross?

Jesus,

the only

truly

righteous

person who

has ever

lived,

is forsaken

by God,

enduring the

darkness of

divine judgment

and experiencing

the despair

of divine

absence.

grace.

But Jesus

is not

only forsaken

by God,

he is

forsaken

for us.

Jesus

wasn't the

one who

should have

experienced

the darkness

of divine

judgment.

We should.

Jesus

wasn't the

one who

should be

forsaken

by God.

We should.

And it's

impossible to

make any

sense of

what Jesus

experiences

here at

the cross

unless we

understand that

Jesus was

not only

forsaken

by God,

but that

he was

forsaken

for us.

You see,

Jesus was

forsaken so

that he

might open

the way

into God's

presence.

Those three

hours of

darkness were

not the

end of

the strange

events of

this day.

Look at

verse 51.

At that

moment,

that is the

moment of

Jesus'

death,

the curtain

of the

temple was

torn in

two from

top to

bottom.

It was

the curtain

in the

temple that

divided the

holy place

from the

most holy

place.

It was

the curtain

that separated

the area in

which the

priests worked

and the

area into

which not

even a

priest was

allowed to

set his

foot.

It was

the curtain

that separated

the sinful

people from

the presence

of a

holy God.

Apparently,

it was about

ten centimetres

thick.

It was as

good as a

wall that

had a sign

placed on

it saying

in bold

letters,

no entry.

But at

the very

moment that

Jesus dies,

the curtain

of the

temple was

torn in

two from

top to

bottom.

The fact

that it's

torn from

top to

bottom indicates

that this

wasn't something

that people

could do,

but it was

the action

of God.

And it

was completely

torn from

top to

bottom,

removing any

hindrance to

enter the

most holy

place.

Now,

looking around,

I know some

of you are

old enough to

remember the

dramatic scenes

in November

1989 when

the Berlin Wall

was pulled

down.

I won't

hazard to

guess that

any of you

remember when

it was first

put up.

For 28

years, it

seemed like an

impenetrable

divide between

East and

West Germany.

And if you

can remember

the news

at that

time, we

watched the

wall crumble

in ours.

The wall

that had

separated people

from one

another simply

was removed

within ours.

The wall

that for so

long had

said no

entry all

of a sudden

had a hole

in it that

invited people

to come

through.

in the

temple.

Now in

just seconds,

the same

thing happens

in the

Jerusalem

temple.

The curtain

that had

stood as a

barrier for

hundreds of

years was

torn in two

from top to

bottom and

the way was

opened into

the presence

of God.

those who

once wouldn't

have dared

to enter the

presence of

God

could now do

so freely

because the

sin that kept

us out,

the sin that

meant we should

be forsaken

by God

had been

taken by

Jesus

and he

was forsaken

for us.

He experienced

God's absence

so that you

and I

might be able

to enjoy

God's

presence.

But that's

not all.

Jesus was

forsaken

so that he

might secure

eternal life

for his

people.

If the

tearing of

the temple

curtain was

a dramatic

symbol of

the way

being opened

into God's

presence,

well it

seems like

it was

only the

warm-up

act for

what happens

next.

What happens

next is far

stranger than

darkness in

the middle

of the day

or an

impenetrable

barrier being

torn in

two.

Dead

people

come to

life.

Look at

verses 51

to 53.

At that

moment the

curtain of

the temple

was torn

in two

from top

to bottom.

The earth

shook,

the rocks

split,

and the

tombs broke

open.

The bodies

of many

holy people

who had

died were

raised to

life,

they came

out of

their

tombs after

Jesus'

resurrection,

and went

into the

holy city

and appeared

to many

people.

How

incredible

is that?

At the

moment that

Jesus dies,

the dead

bodies of

some of

God's

people were

brought back

to life,

just as

Lazarus had

been brought

back to

life,

except these

had probably

been dead

for much

longer than

the few

days that

Lazarus had

laying in

his tomb.

It seemed

as though

they only

managed to

get out

of their

tombs and

make their

way to

Jerusalem in

time to

hear the

news that

Jesus had

risen from

the dead.

They were

able to

say,

we too

have been

brought back

to life.

It happened

when the

ground shook

a couple of

days ago.

What,

others must

have asked,

that was

when Jesus

died.

This really

strange event

bears witness

to what

Jesus will

one day

do in

the future.

He has

secured

eternal life

for all

of his

people,

and when

he comes

again,

he will

raise even

our dead

bodies from

the ground

to enjoy

the life

we were

always

intended

to enjoy.

These two

incredible

events,

the turning

of the

curtain

and the

raising of

the dead

to life,

demonstrate

that Jesus

has both

defeated

sin and

conquered

death.

You see,

it is only

sin that

keeps us

from the

presence of

God.

It is only

sin that

condemns us

to death.

But upon

the cross,

Jesus takes

the sin of

the world

upon himself.

As a result,

he is kept

from the

presence of

God.

He is

condemned

to death.

He is

forsaken

by God,

and he

is forsaken

for us.

And because

he was

forsaken,

we do

not have

to be.

We can

know our

sins

forgiven.

We can

have access

to the

presence of

God.

We can

have the

certainty

of eternal

life.

And we

can die

with confidence

that our

bodies will

not be

left in

the grave

because

Jesus took

our sins

to the

grave,

rose from

the dead,

ascended to

heaven,

from where

he will

come to

raise us

even from

the ground

to enjoy

the life

that he has

purchased for

all who are

trusting in

him.

Let's pray

together.

Father, we

pray this

morning that

you might

help us to

grasp

something

of what

Jesus

experienced

on the

cross.

And that

as we do,

we might

grasp

that that

is what

we have

been saved

from.

Not because

of anything

in us,

but because

Jesus was

forsaken

for us.

Oh,

Father, may

that stir

our hearts

with love

and gratitude

and thankfulness

towards you

that reorient

us to

direct us

towards you

to want to

live a life

that pleases

and honours

you because

we are

confident that

our sins

are forgiven,

that eternal

life is

secure,

and that

we too

in this

life can

enjoy

fellowship

with our

Father

in heaven.

We ask

this in the

name of the

Lord Jesus.

Amen.

Amen.