We are continuing our daily meditations on the crucifixion, death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, specifically looking at the crucifixion and the seven last sayings of Christ while on the cross. In the midst of the darkness after midday, Jesus spoke the fourth saying:
4) "'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?' - which means, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"' (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34).
This statement seems strange to many because, as a totally innocent human being, being brought into the world with no human father, and born of a virgin with no taint of Adam’s sin, the question arises: Why would Christ feel forsaken of God?
To die as a sacrificial substitute was the very reason Christ came into the world. The penalty against Adam, our forefather, was clear: "but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die" (Genesis 2:17). This judgment of sin came upon every one of Adam's descendants—every one that is born into this world from the seed of Adam: “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all menbecause all sinned”(Romans 5:12-14). God's plan was for us to be eternal creatures and live with Him, but sin entered the world and with it, death. But death is more than just physical death; it is spiritual separation from God at the end of our lives, separation from the author of life—God our creator and sustainer. But the good news (Gospel) is that God loves man so much that He decided to enter into the human experience as a man, so that He might acquit guilty humanity of our rebellion against Him by taking the punishment upon Himself in the person of His Son, the Lord Jesus, God in the flesh. His death was payment for our death:“For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:19).
Paul wrote to the church at Corinth,“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21). On the cross, the sin of the world was placed upon Christ. He became the sin-bearer for the whole human race. Scripture tells us that God is too pure to look upon evil (Habakkuk 1:13), so for the first time in eternity, fellowship between God the Son and God the Father was broken as the Father turned away from Christ. Now let's look at the most painful time of the crucifixion:
Thomas Davis, a medical doctor, has studied what effect crucifixion has on the body. He wrote:
As the arms fatigue, great waves of cramps sweep over the muscles, knotting them in deep, relentless, throbbing pain. With these cramps comes the inability to push Himself upward. Hanging by His arms, the pectoral muscles are paralyzed, and the intercostal muscles are unable to act. Air can be drawn into the lungs, but cannot be exhaled. Jesus fights to raise Himself to get even one short breath. Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs, and the bloodstream and the cramps partially subside. Spasmodically, He can push Himself upward to exhale and bring in the life-giving oxygen…Hours of this limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint-rending cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing pain as tissue is torn from His lacerated back as He moves up and down against the rough timber. Then, another agony begins. A deep crushing pain in the chest as the pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to compress the heart. It is now almost over—the loss of tissue fluid has reached a critical level—the compressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the tissues—the tortured lungs are making a frantic effort to gasp in small gulps of air. The markedly dehydrated tissues send their flood of stimuli to the brain.[1]
As death drew near, He spoke for the fifth time. We’ll look at that tomorrow.
Prayer: Oh God, please forgive me of my sin and rebellion. I want to receive the new life You bought for me at the cross. Please come into my life. I want to receive this free gift of eternal life in you. Amen!
Keith
[1]“The Crucifixion of Jesus: The Passion of Christ from a Medical Point of View,” Arizona Medicine, Vol.22, No.3 (March 1965), 183-87.
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