Forsaken so we might never be forsaken
My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? (Psalm 22:1).
Psalms 22, 23 and 24 have often been referred to as the cross, the crook and the crown. They were written by King David, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus Christ. These psalms refer prophetically to the coming Messiah and contemplate the past, present and future ministry of Christ. Psalm 22 looks back to His sufferings for us upon the cross and looks forward to the glorious results of those sufferings. In Psalm 23 we see His present shepherd-like care for us throughout our lives. And in Psalm 24 we look forward to the day when He will be owned as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
The heart-rending opening verse of Psalm 22 leads us to an appreciation of what the Lord passed through at Calvary. It is important to see that the words are addressed to God. When we think of Calvary, we often concentrate upon the physical suffering the Lord endured at the hands of men. But the cross is about God’s judgement against sin and His love for sinners. And the Lord Jesus had to pass through that judgement. As a Man here on earth, He had enjoyed complete communion with God. At the cross, He was forsaken by God. He was forsaken so that we might never be forsaken.
Psalm 22 can be divided into two sections: the sufferings of the cross (vv. 1-21a) and the glory of the cross (vv. 21b-31). There are seven statements which the Lord Jesus made from the cross. The fourth and central one was the opening words of Psalm 22: “My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?” The Lord Jesus was the only man who ever had the right to ask God why He was forsaken. There was nothing in Him which deserved being abandoned by God at Calvary. But forsaken He was. It was God’s judgement of sin and, as Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 5:21, God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” He bore God’s judgement against sin so that we could escape it.
It is always difficult to write or speak about the sufferings of Christ. We tend to shy away from looking too deeply into what happened at the cross. It is holy ground, and we should approach the subject with a deep sense of reverence. The Lord Jesus instituted a means by which we would always remember His sacrifice for us. By nature, we can easily forget. Joseph asked the cupbearer, “When it is well with you, remember me.” For a long time, the man forgot Joseph. I have to ask myself how easily I forget how much the Lord suffered for my salvation. Is it something in the distant past, or something I give thanks for every day of my life?
The Lord would always bring us around Himself. He never forgets us, and He never forsakes us. And it touches His heart when we by faith look up to Him in glory, remembering His love, responding in worship to His love and hastening in our hearts the day when He will return in love.
