If you’ve ever had to say goodbye to someone, you treasure the last words spoken. You remember what was said. You hold on to those final words. For Lent in 2021, we are focusing on the last words of Jesus from the cross. What did he say? What does it mean for us? How do those words change us? This week, we focus on the word “forsaken”. Jesus said, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)
Invocation
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen!
Invitation Prayer
O God, everyone is from somewhere. But I’m in the middle of nowhere. I am a nobody. But you call my name, and I am somebody. Lord, do not forsake me. If no one else knows my name, I simply ask, call mine. Know me. Then I’m somebody. Amen.
Confession
Lord, I am a hollow tree. There is an empty space inside me. Gone is the passion and the energy. All that remains is an echo of what once was. Have you left me? Am I alone? I am a corpse without you. Lord, I am a hollow tree. Only you can fill the empty.
Word: Matthew 27:46
“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
Meditation
This word from the cross is different from the others. It is a word directed to the Father, a cry of abandonment in the God-forsakenness of our sin. It is an echo from Psalm 22 spoken in Jesus’ native tongue, Aramaic. It arises from the very depths of his soul.
These are not just Jesus’ words, but humanity’s. “God, you seem so far away. Have you left me? Are you gone? Are you not with me anymore?” To be abandoned, that’s a hellish feeling. To be an orphan with no home. To be a prisoner with no way out. To be lost with no one who cares enough to go looking.
Why did Jesus say these words? He fully took our place. He stood in the hell that we deserve. He experienced the abandonment and separation from the Father we should have.
Now there is hope for the forsaken. Because Jesus was separated from God, we are reconciled. Because Jesus was forsaken, we are promised that God will never forsake us. Write of a time when you felt forsaken by God.
God of the forsaken, I lay all my burdens at your feet. Take them and restore me. I appeal to your mercy. Amen.
Sending
From Hebrews 13:5-6: “He has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” Come, O Lord, Amen.
*Today’s devotion is taken from It Is Finished by Jeff Cloeter, published by CTA – Christ to All at ctainc.com