April 20 - Forsaken

You Are My King

I'm forgiven because You were forsaken 

I'm accepted; You were condemned 

I'm alive and well, 

Your Spirit is within me because 

You died and rose again

Amazing love, how can it be that You,

 that my King, should die for me 

Amazing love, I know it's true it's my joy to honor You

 in all I do, I honor You

You are my King,

You are my King

Jesus, You are my King,

You are my King

Words and Music by Billy J. Foote
© 1996 worshiptogether.com songs

Forsaken

Matthew 27.46

I find fewer statements in the Bible that demonstrate the holy indignation of God toward sin greater than this cry of Christ on the cross. I am convinced that the Saturday of Holy Week is overlooked in our practice of worship because we miss this crucial point. We know Jesus died on Friday and we can’t wait to worship on Sunday because He rose again, so we skip over Saturday…or just hunt for eggs.

But, let’s consider a couple of things:

1. Jesus’ cry happens during the time that darkness fully covered the earth. It is in the darkness that we find allusion that the Light that had come into the world had been extinguished. Phlegon, a Greek historian with no ties to the Gospel, writes of a full darkness over the earth at the 6th hour in AD 33. The historicity of the darkness is valid, but so also is the spiritual implication.
2. This is the only address of Jesus from the cross towards God where He does not call Him “Father.” Notice the distance between God the Father and Christ the Son that is indicated in this change of address. Here, and only here, is God not “Father”. It may seem to be a simple choice of wording, but at the moment of greatest distress, Jesus does not call for the comfort of His Father but a cry to God.
3. The word “forsaken” gives much weight to the shift from Father to God and for the darkness. Jesus had become sin for us, so God separated Himself from sin.

I want you to see the great love that is extended to us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son (over to death, and fully forsaken as a sacrifice for our sin, in so much that He became sin and could, therefore, no longer be present with God, but rejected by Him) that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life.” We know John 3.16, but we must see that He who was the only begotten Son became the forsaken Son when He became sin.

Jesus’ condemnation did not come at the hands of Caiaphas or of Pilate, it came at the hands of a Holy God. He was forsaken because He was sin. He had not sinned, but He became sin. That is huge! 

I do not know what happened that Saturday. Many people have speculated as to where Jesus was and what He was doing. But, what I do know is that He gave up His position and became the forsaken Son because He loves us; because God loves us. What an amazing love that is exhibited and given!

Pray: Lord Jesus, You were despised and forsaken so that I could be accepted by God. Your blood has washed me. Thank You! God, I want others to worship You because of what You have done for them. Please show me how to live in Your acceptance so that they can know why Jesus was forsaken for them.