“My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?” -- Mark 15:33-36

The darkest days of a person’s life is when they feel themselves to be completely and absolutely alone. Such times are filled with despair and dread, a sense of helplessness and uncertainty. It is a feeling that no caring person would ever wish on another person.

There are times in a person’s walk with God that we may seem to be separated from Him. There are times—what some call “the dark night of the soul”—when we feel God is nowhere to be found.

The reality is that God never leaves His people, but there are times when we are going through a trial or test that we seem to be alone.

This passage is a reminder to us that even when we feel alone, if we are walking in His will, we are never truly alone.

Central Truth: Jesus’ words remind us that the struggle against Satan can make us feel alone, but God is always near.

When we feel alone:

A darkness descends (33)

In the Exodus story, the last plague God visits upon Egypt before the Passover is a plague of darkness. The Bible records that the darkness was such that “no one could see anyone else or leave his place for three days” (Exodus 10:23). The effect was devastating for the people of Egypt.

Darkness is used by John to contrast the light that is Jesus. Darkness is symbolic of sin and Satan’s realm. In his first letter, John writes, “This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with Him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:5-7).

While John’s light is symbolic, the darkness of Exodus was real. The darkness mentioned in Mark’s account today is both real and symbolic. Mark tells us that around noon—the sixth hour—darkness came over the whole land until 3 p.m. Luke says the sun had stopped shining. It was probably a solar eclipse, but it was an enduring one. Seldom does a solar eclipse last three hours, and the timing of the eclipse lets us know that it was a result of God’s timing.

What caused the darkness? Since Jesus is on the cross at this time, we know that His actions were taking away the sins of the world. Jesus on the cross was paying the wages of sin in order that we might receive the free gift of grace in Him.

And if Jesus was paying for our sins, then the sins of the world came upon Jesus, and God, in His hatred of sin, would have shown us the full power of that darkness.

There are times when darkness is almost palpable. Driving home on nights were the clouds are thick, it seems so dark as to make the darkness seem more powerful than the light from my headlights. Even with the brights on, it seems that my car is straining to peer into the blackness around me. The darkness of that afternoon must have been even more oppressive. It was a darkness infused with all the sins of the world. One of my commentaries say that some of the ancients of the early Church claimed that Jesus was in hell during that time, and it is very feasible to see this as Satan’s most intense effort to defeat Jesus.

There is a darkness that seems to descend upon us when we feel alienated from God. It’s not necessarily a darkness of sin (though that can be the case), but a darkness of feeling apart from God, as though we are having to face a time of testing on our own. It is important to remember that, even in the times we feel ourselves to be in the dark and apart from God, that feelings are not faith, and that faith tells us God is always with us. He has promised to be with us until the end of this age (cf. Matthew 28:16-20). He promises us that nothing can separate us from Him (cf. Romans 8:37-39; John 10:28). Even though we may feel one way, we must remember to live by faith, not emotion.

We call out to God (34)

Jesus’ fourth statement from the cross is a quote from Psalm 22:1: “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

Jesus is here speaking in His native tongue—Aramaic. It’s probable that when Jesus was teaching and speaking to large crowds of people He spoke koine Greek, but when He spoke with the apostles, He spoke Aramaic. It was His and their first language; it would be the language they would be most comfortable in.

The words remind us that Jesus’ suffering on the cross was not only physical, but emotional and spiritual as well. We saw the emotional suffering last week when Jesus looked down on His grieving mother and the disciple, John. Now we see the spiritual suffering.

For the duration of Jesus’ life on earth, He has been in constant fellowship with the Father. He repeatedly stated that everything He did and said came from the Father. There was a connection between God the Father and God the Son that did not end when Jesus gave up His position to come to earth to walk among us. Jesus gained a strength from His relationship with God. He was in constant communication and awareness of God’s leadership and will.

Now, as the sins of the world fell upon Him with their full force, it would be inevitable that the sin—hated by God to the degree that He had to send His Son to pay the price in order to give hope to us—would seem to be separated from His Son. And so Jesus cries out.

I think it would be a mistake to think that Jesus’ cry is one of despair. Remember He is where God wants Him to be. He knows He is in God’s will, and He knew that this trial would be far more intense than anyone could imagine. Jesus never doubted His relationship with the Father, and, with this in mind, it seems highly unlikely that Jesus would cry out in a forlorn expression of despair and woe.

The psalm from which these words are found is one that has a remarkable depiction of one suffering for God. There are some who claim that the psalm is a foretelling of the crucifixion, and it’s possible that is the case. In any event, the psalm ends with a triumph and victory, and it should be no surprise that Jesus wants His followers to know that God is near and that victory is also near.

When we find ourselves in the darkness of the soul, it is important for us to also remember that God is with us and that we are being tested. Like Job, we must not give in to the feelings of despair and doubt, but continue to call to God, knowing that He is listening, even if He is remaining silent. With God, there is always the promise of seeing us through to the other side. To quote the psalm that comes after Psalm 22, “Even though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil.”

When we feel alone, walk in faith and talk with God. He is always listening.

Others seek to comfort us (35-36)

It’s not unusual for people to want to do something for us when we are hurting or going through a different time. As we read in this passage, though, sometimes people will misunderstand our situation or try to do something that, while well-meaning, really doesn’t address the problem.

Notice first of all that there were those who mistook Jesus’ words as calling to Elijah. It was a popular belief among those in Israel that Elijah would come to help God’s people when in great need. It’s possible that they heard Jesus’ phrase of “Eloi, Eloi” as “Elijah, Elijah.” It’s a stretch, but it’s possible.

But who would have thought Jesus was calling to Elijah. The Romans probably didn’t have any idea of Elijah or beliefs about him. It’s possible some of the Jews standing near the cross heard it and made the mistake, but those who were jeering Jesus would have used this as a means of further insulting Him. It’s also possible that they were looking around with concern—was Jesus calling upon Elijah to rescue Him from the cross and prove everyone wrong?

More than likely, it was people who were neither Roman nor Jesus’ enemies.

Regardless, Mark tells us that a man there ran to get a sponge with a cheap wine vinegar soaked through it to press to Jesus’ lips. Then they waited to see if Elijah was going to come.

There are people who will want to reach out to us when we are experience a sense of aloneness from God. They will search for the right words to say, the right thing to do, to help ease the pain. Remember Job’s friends? They came to help, and they spent their entire visit telling him he needed to repent and get right with God again. Clearly, they understood Job’s ordeal to be a punishment. They didn’t understand, and so their words were just the opposite of comforting.

Remember a couple of weeks ago, when Jesus told the disciples that He had to go to Jerusalem to experience what He was now going through? They were well-meaning, but they didn’t understand, either. The result was that Jesus rebuked them for wanting the things of man, not the things of God.

Well-meaning, sincere people will come to us in our hour of trial and try to make it right by saying the right words or doing the right thing. The problem is, when we are going through this time, the only thing people can do is pray for us that God will use this time to teach us what He wants us to learn and that we would be receptive to His will.

Conclusion

On the cross, Jesus was alone. Though the Father was with Him, it didn’t feel like it during the three hours of darkness that fell upon and around Him. This was something that Jesus had to do on His own, and no matter how much His friends and family cared, there was nothing they or anyone could do for Him. It was trial He had to endure on His own.

And Jesus faced His trial with confidence in the Father and faith that the Father would see Him through it. When the time came, Jesus knew the ordeal would be over and He would once again be with the Father.

It’s the same for us. We must also be strong in our faith, knowing what God tells us is always greater than whatever we may be feeling.

Walk in faith even in the darkest hour, and the victory will be ours.