And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Mark 15:34 ESV
By nine o’clock this morning when the Rams Horn was sounded for the first sacrifice of the day, Jesus has been betrayed by one of His disciples, agonized in the Garden to the point of sweating blood. He was beaten, had His beard pulled out and a crown of thorns pushed on His head. Taken into the courtyard and brought before Pilate, then scouraged to the point that His major organs and bones were sticking out. Made to carry the cross beam of the cross and now finally nailed to the cross, which He did willingly for you.
When we think of the cross, we mostly think of Jesus taking all our sins and diseases, sorrows, sicknesses and griefs and nailing them to the cross. Which He did, but I believe the most difficult part for Him was that He also endured separation and being forsaken by His Father. This He endured so we not only could be accepted and reconciled back to God, but we could now call Him Father.
I once heard a pastor say that’s why He thought Jesus died of a broken heart, He lost relationship with His Father and any of us who have ever been betrayed or abandoned in some way know that pain of heartbreak. He became forsaken, so we could be forgiven and restored. As C.S. Lewis put it, “The Son of God became a man, so men could become the sons of God”. What love and grace, beyond all measure and He did it for the entire world, even people who don’t believe He exists and those who hate Him. He opened the way for everyone and for all who accept His gift of salvation will recieve His forgiveness and righteousness and call themselves sons and daughters of the Most High God.
No wonder He also cried out “Finished” and with great power He bowed His head humbly before God and then He gave up His Spirit. Everything Jesus did was intentional and deliberate. In this He made the statement the debt has been paid and three days later He arose to say the payment has been accepted, now go live life in My Resurrection Power and be an overcomer!
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