1 00:00:02,440 --> 00:00:04,800 Welcome to the Islands Christian Church podcast. 2 00:00:04,880 --> 00:00:07,480 Subscribe to hear a new episode every week. 3 00:00:07,840 --> 00:00:17,520 Thanks for joining us, Lord, We thank you for letting us worship 4 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:22,280 today and sing to you. Thank you for the team that 5 00:00:22,280 --> 00:00:24,360 gathered early to make that easy for us. 6 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:31,120 And we pray now that we'll hear what you have to say to us from 7 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:40,640 your scriptures as we remember that this is Holy Week, the week 8 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:45,400 that your son came in triumphantly but was then 9 00:00:47,080 --> 00:00:50,920 arrested in a sham arrest and trial. 10 00:00:53,520 --> 00:00:58,640 And we pray God that we would remember all that he's done for 11 00:00:58,640 --> 00:01:04,000 us right now. In the name of Christ, we pray, 12 00:01:04,360 --> 00:01:07,760 Amen. All right, today we're going to 13 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:10,600 talk about the cross. And at the end of our time 14 00:01:10,600 --> 00:01:13,520 together, we'll be a celebrating communion. 15 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:15,960 So if you've been wondering like when's we're going to have 16 00:01:15,960 --> 00:01:19,680 communion at the end of our time together today, something I like 17 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:23,880 to say often is this, that the gospel message of Jesus Christ 18 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:29,000 is scandalous, is scandalous. We can be forgiven of all our 19 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:31,080 wrongdoing, everything we've ever done wrong. 20 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,000 We can be forgiven of that. And at the same time, we can be 21 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:38,040 given right standing before God because of Jesus's 22 00:01:38,040 --> 00:01:40,320 righteousness. That's scandalous. 23 00:01:40,680 --> 00:01:43,280 It's scandalous. And at the heart of this 24 00:01:43,280 --> 00:01:46,120 scandalous message that you can be forgiven and you can be made 25 00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:48,960 right with God, at the heart of that is a scandalous event. 26 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:55,520 Jesus dying on the cross was not what anyone who knew him thought 27 00:01:55,520 --> 00:01:58,640 would happen. Jesus died a criminal's death 28 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:03,200 between two criminals. And while there are multiple 29 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:06,480 scandalous things that took place around his trial and his 30 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:09,720 execution, there is one scene that we're going to focus on 31 00:02:09,720 --> 00:02:13,600 today. It's a moment where for those 32 00:02:13,600 --> 00:02:16,280 who were there that day, they would have thought Jesus was 33 00:02:16,280 --> 00:02:18,360 cracking. He was breaking under the 34 00:02:18,360 --> 00:02:20,920 pressure, but in reality he wasn't cracking. 35 00:02:20,920 --> 00:02:22,480 He wasn't breaking under the pressure. 36 00:02:22,640 --> 00:02:27,040 In reality He was holding firm to the mission of His life for 37 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:31,320 the very reason He was born. So go with me to Matthew chapter 38 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:41,960 27, verses 45 through 46. Matthew 2745 through 46 here, 39 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:48,200 Jesus, it's on the cross, nearing the end of his life. 40 00:02:50,200 --> 00:02:55,480 He has survived a beating that most people who received did not 41 00:02:55,480 --> 00:03:00,600 survive. He's nailed, He's bleeding, he's 42 00:03:00,600 --> 00:03:09,320 naked before a crowd of people. And this is what Matthew records 43 00:03:09,320 --> 00:03:13,800 for us from that scene. Matthew 27, 45 through 46. 44 00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:21,600 From noon until 3:00 in the afternoon, darkness came over 45 00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:26,040 all the land. About 3:00 in the afternoon, 46 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:35,160 Jesus cried out in a loud voice. Eli, Eli Lama Sabachthani, which 47 00:03:35,160 --> 00:03:40,560 means My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? 48 00:03:43,400 --> 00:03:45,120 There are three ideas from this text. 49 00:03:46,400 --> 00:03:50,240 We're going to see a cry, a question, and a resolve. 50 00:03:51,240 --> 00:03:55,480 So if you take notes, those are the 3A cry, a question, a 51 00:03:55,680 --> 00:04:00,480 resolve #1A cry. First of all, we see this cry 52 00:04:00,480 --> 00:04:04,440 from Jesus, and the word cry is a sanitized translation for 53 00:04:04,440 --> 00:04:06,920 sure. The Greek word here is not like 54 00:04:06,920 --> 00:04:09,000 a whimper or a cry. This is a shriek. 55 00:04:09,040 --> 00:04:12,880 This is a loud scream. It's the kind of cry. 56 00:04:12,880 --> 00:04:15,600 It's the kind of shriek that everyone there that day would 57 00:04:15,600 --> 00:04:18,200 have noticed, would have looked up and paid attention to. 58 00:04:18,320 --> 00:04:20,360 It's the kind of moment that everyone would have. 59 00:04:20,399 --> 00:04:21,920 It would have burned in their memory. 60 00:04:21,920 --> 00:04:24,240 Have you ever been anywhere heard someone shriek a cry and 61 00:04:24,240 --> 00:04:25,960 you can still remember that sound? 62 00:04:26,400 --> 00:04:29,320 This is what's happening here. This would have burned in their 63 00:04:29,320 --> 00:04:30,920 memory. I want you to notice that 64 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:35,560 Matthew records the cry in the original Aramaic. 65 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:38,720 Why would he do that? Why would he tell us? 66 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:42,160 Eli, Eli Sabakhthani, Lamasabakhthani. 67 00:04:42,160 --> 00:04:44,280 Why would he record the original Aramaic? 68 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:47,080 What is the language that Jesus spoke? 69 00:04:48,160 --> 00:04:50,840 This is the actual words that came from the cross. 70 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:55,480 These, this is what he said. This is this is, you know, when 71 00:04:55,480 --> 00:04:59,560 we read the Bible, we'll read Jesus words in English, Matthew 72 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:02,200 or Luke or John, they're writing them in Koine Greek. 73 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:03,880 So they're taking Jesus as Aramaic. 74 00:05:04,120 --> 00:05:06,240 They're putting it into Greek and then we're putting it into 75 00:05:06,240 --> 00:05:08,360 English. But this is Matthew saying, I'm 76 00:05:08,360 --> 00:05:10,680 going to give you exactly what he said in the Aramaic. 77 00:05:10,800 --> 00:05:13,800 Why is he doing that? Because there were eyewitnesses 78 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:17,720 there that day that distinctly remember the shriek, the scream 79 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:22,120 coming from the cross. And so Matthew says, I'm going 80 00:05:22,120 --> 00:05:26,520 to record it like we all heard it because we all heard it just 81 00:05:26,520 --> 00:05:29,440 like this. Now, if you're a skeptic of 82 00:05:29,440 --> 00:05:32,120 Christianity, maybe you're not a believer in this whole story. 83 00:05:33,320 --> 00:05:36,160 Let me just ask you to think about this. 84 00:05:37,560 --> 00:05:41,400 If you were making up a story about Jesus, if you're making up 85 00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:47,720 a story about a a man who died on the cross, this is not what 86 00:05:47,720 --> 00:05:52,520 you would expect the founder of your made-up religion to say on 87 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:54,720 the cross. In other words, you would not, 88 00:05:55,360 --> 00:05:57,040 you would not have him say these words. 89 00:05:57,040 --> 00:05:59,680 You, you would have him instead, instead have kind of a hero's 90 00:05:59,680 --> 00:06:01,360 death. You would have him say some 91 00:06:01,360 --> 00:06:05,200 encouraging, some challenging, some courage words there at the 92 00:06:05,200 --> 00:06:08,800 end of his life. I think of all the time of, of, 93 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:12,560 of the end of Braveheart, you guys, what does he say? 94 00:06:13,920 --> 00:06:17,120 What does he say aloud? Freedom, right? 95 00:06:17,120 --> 00:06:20,000 We all know that, right? Like, that's if you don't know 96 00:06:20,000 --> 00:06:20,880 that. If you haven't seen the movie 97 00:06:20,880 --> 00:06:23,280 Braveheart, is it? You've not seen it? 98 00:06:25,000 --> 00:06:27,680 Wow. Shocked. 99 00:06:27,680 --> 00:06:30,960 Anyway, so at the end of that movie, you know, he's dying and 100 00:06:30,960 --> 00:06:32,760 he's being tortured. In the midst of his torture, all 101 00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:35,440 he has to do is say he'll be loyal to the king, and he won't 102 00:06:35,440 --> 00:06:39,080 say it. Instead, he says freedom, Right? 103 00:06:39,240 --> 00:06:41,040 And it echoes throughout the people. 104 00:06:41,040 --> 00:06:44,120 And they're like, you know, and when you watch the movie, you're 105 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:47,280 kind of moved with chills. You're like, yeah, OK, so. 106 00:06:47,280 --> 00:06:51,400 But that death is the legend. Just so you know that. 107 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:52,720 I'm sorry, Did I ruin that for you? 108 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:57,520 That's a legend. Sorry, John, that's a we don't 109 00:06:57,520 --> 00:06:59,360 actually know what he said. That's made-up. 110 00:07:02,680 --> 00:07:05,600 We would expect if you were making up a legend, you would 111 00:07:05,600 --> 00:07:07,760 have just that kind of death, right? 112 00:07:07,760 --> 00:07:09,440 You would have Jesus on the cross saying freedom. 113 00:07:10,880 --> 00:07:15,000 Instead he says, why God? Why God have you forsaken me? 114 00:07:17,880 --> 00:07:19,280 That's not what you would expect. 115 00:07:20,480 --> 00:07:23,440 And even skeptics of the Bible and skeptics of Christianity 116 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:25,200 will say this. So if you're a skeptic, this is 117 00:07:25,200 --> 00:07:31,200 something skeptics say. They say that that there is good 118 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:37,280 reason to believe that this is a genuine authentic recording of 119 00:07:37,280 --> 00:07:45,520 Jesus's death, that this is how it happened because this cry is 120 00:07:45,520 --> 00:07:51,440 recorded in the Scripture. The fact that Matthew would 121 00:07:51,440 --> 00:07:54,560 record this suggested it actually happened this way. 122 00:07:56,360 --> 00:08:01,120 And Jesus cries, why God? Why God? 123 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:05,480 And this is a cry of desperation and a cry of pain. 124 00:08:06,200 --> 00:08:09,360 He cries out, Why God? Why? 125 00:08:10,640 --> 00:08:15,440 Let me ask you a question. Have you ever cried similar 126 00:08:15,440 --> 00:08:18,880 words? Why? 127 00:08:23,480 --> 00:08:29,040 We have all experienced that moment, and here's Jesus 128 00:08:29,040 --> 00:08:33,120 experiencing his why have you abandoned me moment. 129 00:08:35,760 --> 00:08:44,400 Now here's the thing. Jesus chose these words on 130 00:08:44,400 --> 00:08:48,960 purpose. In other words, this wasn't just 131 00:08:48,960 --> 00:08:54,040 an emotional outburst. This was Jesus choosing words 132 00:08:54,040 --> 00:08:58,080 strategically. He's asking this specific 133 00:08:58,080 --> 00:09:01,840 question for a reason. And that's our second idea this 134 00:09:01,840 --> 00:09:05,400 morning, a question. So we have a cry, and now we 135 00:09:05,400 --> 00:09:08,280 have a question. And what is this question? 136 00:09:09,040 --> 00:09:16,840 My God, My God, why have you forsaken me Now in this question 137 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:20,360 that Jesus is asking from the cross in all of his pain and his 138 00:09:20,360 --> 00:09:24,320 excruciating death, This is a question he's asking on purpose. 139 00:09:24,480 --> 00:09:26,720 It is not random. It has a reason. 140 00:09:27,960 --> 00:09:30,760 Jesus is not just choosing some random words. 141 00:09:30,760 --> 00:09:37,480 He's actually quoting A Psalm. He's quoting Psalm 22, which is 142 00:09:37,480 --> 00:09:41,000 a Psalm of King David. So David wrote the Psalm. 143 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:44,640 Now listen to the very first verse of Psalm 22. 144 00:09:45,680 --> 00:09:49,280 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? 145 00:09:50,080 --> 00:09:52,800 There's Psalm 22 verse one, my God. 146 00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:55,440 So there's Jesus quote. Now what he's doing on the cross 147 00:09:55,440 --> 00:09:59,120 is he's saying these words in Aramaic and everyone who heard 148 00:09:59,120 --> 00:10:03,840 them would have remembered them. And Matthew records them for us. 149 00:10:04,040 --> 00:10:06,680 And Jesus chose them specifically so that we would 150 00:10:06,960 --> 00:10:09,960 know what Psalm 22 says. And listen to the rest of verse 151 00:10:09,960 --> 00:10:12,760 one. Why are you so far from saving 152 00:10:12,760 --> 00:10:16,320 me, so far from my cries of anguish? 153 00:10:17,280 --> 00:10:19,600 David's this is David, King David writing this. 154 00:10:20,320 --> 00:10:23,520 Verses 7 and 8 say all who see me mock me. 155 00:10:23,640 --> 00:10:26,920 They hurl insults, shaking their heads. 156 00:10:27,600 --> 00:10:31,040 He trusts in the Lord. They say, let the Lord rescue 157 00:10:31,040 --> 00:10:35,320 him, let him deliver him, since he delights in him. 158 00:10:36,440 --> 00:10:41,520 Verses 13 through 16 David writes in his Psalm Roaring 159 00:10:41,520 --> 00:10:46,720 lines that tear their prey open, their mouths wide against me. 160 00:10:46,720 --> 00:10:49,800 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. 161 00:10:49,920 --> 00:10:52,840 My heart has turned to wax. It has melted within me. 162 00:10:52,960 --> 00:10:56,560 My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks 163 00:10:56,560 --> 00:11:00,000 to the roof of my mouth. You lay me in the dust of death. 164 00:11:00,560 --> 00:11:03,800 Dogs surround me, a pack of villains and circle me. 165 00:11:03,880 --> 00:11:06,440 They Pierce my hands and my feet. 166 00:11:07,440 --> 00:11:12,920 Verse 18, They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my 167 00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:17,600 garment. This is King David thousands of 168 00:11:17,600 --> 00:11:19,360 years before Jesus is on the cross. 169 00:11:19,480 --> 00:11:23,520 This is King David and he's describing something and what 170 00:11:23,520 --> 00:11:26,840 he's describing is something he's never experienced. 171 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:31,960 He's describing an execution, but it it's not an execution he 172 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:34,680 walked through. It's not an execution that he 173 00:11:34,680 --> 00:11:36,960 lived. He was never executed. 174 00:11:38,120 --> 00:11:41,280 Instead, what David is doing is he's being led by the Holy 175 00:11:41,280 --> 00:11:45,880 Spirit in in the inspiration of this poem centuries before 176 00:11:45,960 --> 00:11:49,200 Jesus. And Jesus quotes this Psalm on 177 00:11:49,200 --> 00:11:52,240 purpose in the middle of his excruciating death because it 178 00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:57,120 points to a reality about this death he's experiencing. 179 00:11:57,440 --> 00:12:02,560 This death, according to Psalm, is an execution. 180 00:12:03,720 --> 00:12:08,600 This Psalm 22 is describing an execution, someone who's being 181 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:15,400 executed. Jesus quotes Psalm 22 on purpose 182 00:12:15,480 --> 00:12:20,080 to say the execution David was singing about, which is a 183 00:12:20,080 --> 00:12:22,520 strange thought thing to write a song about, right? 184 00:12:22,800 --> 00:12:25,800 The execution that David is writing a poem about, that 185 00:12:25,800 --> 00:12:30,160 execution was always pointing to me, because my execution on this 186 00:12:30,160 --> 00:12:33,000 cross is not random, it's not an accident. 187 00:12:35,440 --> 00:12:38,360 Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, David was 188 00:12:38,360 --> 00:12:42,080 foretelling this moment, a moment that he himself did not 189 00:12:42,080 --> 00:12:44,600 live. But I am not living. 190 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:50,760 So the question why am I being forsaken? 191 00:12:50,920 --> 00:12:54,120 Why am I being mocked? Why am I being torn apart? 192 00:12:54,200 --> 00:12:56,000 Why are my hands and feet pierced? 193 00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:58,560 Why are they gambling for my clothes? 194 00:13:00,400 --> 00:13:05,240 Well, it's a purposeful death. This is a an on purpose 195 00:13:05,240 --> 00:13:10,200 execution. Jesus is dying on the cross for 196 00:13:10,200 --> 00:13:15,720 a reason. If it is indeed an execution, 197 00:13:17,040 --> 00:13:20,040 then an execution is an exercise of judgement. 198 00:13:21,360 --> 00:13:27,120 That's an exercise of justice. No one is executed unless it's 199 00:13:27,120 --> 00:13:32,200 an exercise of just justice. And this is the reason Jesus is 200 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:38,320 executed. He's executed for justice. 201 00:13:39,520 --> 00:13:46,440 It's judgment. He's suffering the judgment of 202 00:13:46,440 --> 00:13:49,760 God. You remember the little detail 203 00:13:49,760 --> 00:13:53,480 that Matthew said? He said at noon the sky went 204 00:13:53,480 --> 00:13:55,720 dark. Do you guys remember that? 205 00:13:57,720 --> 00:14:00,720 All throughout the Bible, darkness is symbolic of God's 206 00:14:00,720 --> 00:14:03,680 judgment, God's bringing judgement. 207 00:14:04,560 --> 00:14:07,240 God's judgement is falling on Jesus. 208 00:14:07,880 --> 00:14:13,240 That's why he's being forsaken. That's the purpose of his death. 209 00:14:14,560 --> 00:14:18,600 Every execution is happening because of judgement, and this 210 00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:23,760 is God's judgement. Now, if there's judgement on 211 00:14:23,760 --> 00:14:26,960 someone, the assumption is that there's guilt. 212 00:14:28,400 --> 00:14:31,600 Judgment would not come, especially from a perfectly just 213 00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:38,960 God, unless there was guilt. But the reason for this judgment 214 00:14:40,320 --> 00:14:44,720 is not any of Jesus's guilt. The Scriptures tell us that 215 00:14:44,720 --> 00:14:49,760 Jesus was without sin, and yet he's receiving judgment as if he 216 00:14:49,760 --> 00:14:52,560 were guilty. Well then, for whose guilt is he 217 00:14:52,560 --> 00:14:59,360 being judged? For my guilt, judgment has 218 00:14:59,360 --> 00:15:04,400 fallen on Jesus. Judgment and justice is coming 219 00:15:04,400 --> 00:15:08,800 to him for my guilt. And for your guilt. 220 00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:15,480 He's not guilty, but he's experiencing execution as if he 221 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:20,920 were guilty. I'm guilty and you're guilty. 222 00:15:21,560 --> 00:15:23,160 Now. I know, I know. 223 00:15:23,160 --> 00:15:27,680 This feels uneasy. It this feels uneasy. 224 00:15:27,960 --> 00:15:30,120 We, we don't like the idea of guilt. 225 00:15:31,240 --> 00:15:34,320 Pop culture, pop psychology says you shouldn't feel guilty. 226 00:15:34,320 --> 00:15:36,240 Guilty. Guilt is bad for you. 227 00:15:36,760 --> 00:15:40,000 We don't like the idea of guilt. But listen to me carefully. 228 00:15:40,800 --> 00:15:45,720 If you deny that we have guilt, then you're also denying that 229 00:15:45,720 --> 00:15:47,760 there's any such thing as right and wrong. 230 00:15:50,000 --> 00:15:52,720 So if you say there's no such thing as guilt, I'm not guilty. 231 00:15:52,720 --> 00:15:54,520 You're not guilty. We're just living our lives. 232 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:58,000 Then you're also saying there's no such thing such things as 233 00:15:58,000 --> 00:16:03,000 right or wrong when you also deny guilt. 234 00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:05,440 So you deny that there's no such thing as right or wrong. 235 00:16:05,440 --> 00:16:07,040 You're like, hey, there's there's no right or wrong. 236 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:11,520 But you also deny that we ever need forgiveness, that we ever 237 00:16:11,520 --> 00:16:14,240 need someone to forgive us, to restore relationship with us. 238 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:16,520 Because you've never done anything wrong. 239 00:16:16,520 --> 00:16:18,000 Why would anyone need to forgive you? 240 00:16:19,080 --> 00:16:21,000 But you're also denying repentance. 241 00:16:21,440 --> 00:16:22,720 You're saying, well, I'm not guilty. 242 00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:26,520 I've never done anything wrong because I'm not guilty, then 243 00:16:26,520 --> 00:16:30,320 there's no need to change. So this feeling of like, I don't 244 00:16:30,320 --> 00:16:32,320 think there's a such thing as guilt and I don't think people 245 00:16:32,320 --> 00:16:35,280 should feel guilty is to say that there's no right or wrong, 246 00:16:35,560 --> 00:16:37,880 is to say there's no such thing as forgiveness and to say 247 00:16:37,880 --> 00:16:40,800 there's no reason to ever change, that no one should ever 248 00:16:40,800 --> 00:16:45,280 change. So if you say there's no guilt, 249 00:16:45,920 --> 00:16:49,760 if you deny that guilt exists, then whatever you do is neither 250 00:16:49,760 --> 00:16:52,680 bad nor good, is simply a choice. 251 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:57,000 That's it. If someone hurts you, then you 252 00:16:57,000 --> 00:16:59,680 are simply suffering because of their choices. 253 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:02,720 They are not guilty and you are not a victim. 254 00:17:05,119 --> 00:17:09,599 This is the reality. If you say there's no such thing 255 00:17:09,599 --> 00:17:11,640 as guilt, I'm not guilty. People aren't guilty. 256 00:17:11,640 --> 00:17:16,720 The people are just people. This is not what the scriptures 257 00:17:16,720 --> 00:17:20,359 teach and we know that. This is not how the world works. 258 00:17:20,839 --> 00:17:25,440 We know there is right and wrong and when we do what's wrong, do 259 00:17:25,440 --> 00:17:27,960 you agree with this? When we do what's wrong, we feel 260 00:17:27,960 --> 00:17:30,640 it. Do you ever notice that? 261 00:17:30,640 --> 00:17:33,720 Like you feel it? And if you tell a little white 262 00:17:33,720 --> 00:17:36,240 lie, as soon as it comes out of your mouth, it's kind of like 263 00:17:37,680 --> 00:17:41,720 you lose your cool with somebody 1015 minutes later. 264 00:17:41,720 --> 00:17:50,550 You're like, when we do wrong, we feel it. 265 00:17:52,440 --> 00:17:55,320 Now what we what we struggle with to believe is that all 266 00:17:56,040 --> 00:17:58,280 guilt requires there to be judgment. 267 00:17:59,840 --> 00:18:03,040 And you know that you believe that because if someone had done 268 00:18:03,040 --> 00:18:10,080 something to hurt you, something terrible, while you would 269 00:18:10,080 --> 00:18:14,720 forgive them because Christ compels you to, you would still 270 00:18:15,120 --> 00:18:20,160 would like the justice system to work on your behalf to bring 271 00:18:20,160 --> 00:18:22,920 judgment against their law breaking. 272 00:18:23,960 --> 00:18:28,600 But I always say about justice and judgment, you know, justice 273 00:18:28,600 --> 00:18:34,920 for thee, but not for me. But that's not how it works. 274 00:18:37,400 --> 00:18:42,640 If we're all guilty, then we're all subject to judgment. 275 00:18:43,320 --> 00:18:45,160 And I have guilt and you have guilt. 276 00:18:45,320 --> 00:18:51,400 Everyone has guilt. And the Bible teaches the wages 277 00:18:51,400 --> 00:18:53,800 of our guilt or the payment for our guilt is death. 278 00:18:54,560 --> 00:18:56,640 And that's not just physical death, that's separation from 279 00:18:56,640 --> 00:19:00,240 God. But God in his infinite mercy 280 00:19:00,240 --> 00:19:05,880 and his grace placed all the judgement for my guilt and for 281 00:19:05,880 --> 00:19:10,520 your guilt on to Jesus. And so when Jesus refers to 282 00:19:10,520 --> 00:19:15,240 Psalm 22, a clear description of an execution, this is what he is 283 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:18,720 saying. He's saying this is not an 284 00:19:18,720 --> 00:19:25,120 accident or meaningless death. This is judgment from God placed 285 00:19:25,120 --> 00:19:30,080 on me on your behalf. This is an execution. 286 00:19:31,640 --> 00:19:34,480 It's not one I deserve, but it's what I'm taking. 287 00:19:38,640 --> 00:19:42,400 He's not the one who's guilty, but he remains on the cross and 288 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:44,640 he fulfills the calling of his life. 289 00:19:47,440 --> 00:19:51,480 He stays. And that's our third idea, a 290 00:19:51,520 --> 00:19:55,640 resolve. So we have a cry, a question and 291 00:19:55,640 --> 00:20:01,160 a resolve. The words my God, my God, 292 00:20:02,360 --> 00:20:03,800 they're an indication of something. 293 00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:08,000 You see, when God made covenant with his people, he said I will 294 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:10,480 be your God and you will be my people. 295 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:13,280 In other words, now you can refer to me, the creator of 296 00:20:13,280 --> 00:20:17,560 heaven and earth, as. My God, this is covenant 297 00:20:17,920 --> 00:20:22,280 language that Jesus is using. You can refer to the creator of 298 00:20:22,280 --> 00:20:25,520 the world as my God. And so when Jesus uses my God, 299 00:20:25,520 --> 00:20:30,240 he's using covenant language. So these two words, my God, also 300 00:20:30,240 --> 00:20:32,240 show us something else. Not only is it covenant 301 00:20:32,240 --> 00:20:35,880 language, but it shows us the real pain of the cross. 302 00:20:36,040 --> 00:20:38,640 And it was deeper than the nails and deeper than the crown of 303 00:20:38,640 --> 00:20:41,120 thorns, and deeper than the beating He took before He was 304 00:20:41,120 --> 00:20:44,840 placed on that cross. The words My God, my God, show 305 00:20:44,840 --> 00:20:48,280 us the real pain of the cross. And I'll be completely frank 306 00:20:48,280 --> 00:20:51,640 with you, this is about the only pain on the cross that we can 307 00:20:51,640 --> 00:20:55,520 relate with just a little. We can relate with the pain of 308 00:20:55,520 --> 00:20:59,320 my God, my God, just a little. Because the worst pain of the 309 00:20:59,320 --> 00:21:02,640 cross that we all tend to forget as we focus on the crucifixion 310 00:21:02,640 --> 00:21:05,840 of Jesus, the worst pain of the cross was not the beating, not 311 00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:09,360 the blood, not the nails. The worst pain was relational. 312 00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:16,120 It was relational. You see, when you lose someone 313 00:21:16,120 --> 00:21:24,480 you love, when someone who's dear to you is taken from you, 314 00:21:27,280 --> 00:21:34,000 you know that relational pain and Jesus is experiencing on the 315 00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:38,200 cross separation from his heavenly Father. 316 00:21:40,800 --> 00:21:44,320 Now that sounds like, well, OK, but hold on. 317 00:21:44,320 --> 00:21:48,520 Listen to what John, the John, the Gospel writer in the Gospel 318 00:21:48,520 --> 00:21:51,120 of John chapter one, verse 18, Listen to what he says. 319 00:21:51,640 --> 00:21:54,240 I'm not going to read it word for word, but he tells us that 320 00:21:54,680 --> 00:22:00,480 that Jesus is the only one who has seen God because he is at 321 00:22:00,480 --> 00:22:04,200 the Father's side. And what the old King James 322 00:22:04,200 --> 00:22:11,320 Version says is that he is in the bosom of the Father and 323 00:22:11,320 --> 00:22:16,080 that's for all eternity. You can't say he, you can't say 324 00:22:16,080 --> 00:22:17,840 he was. He just is. 325 00:22:17,840 --> 00:22:23,200 For all eternity, Jesus and the Father had been connected. 326 00:22:23,880 --> 00:22:26,840 That's what John is describing. This is the nature of their 327 00:22:26,840 --> 00:22:28,880 relationship between the Father and the Son. 328 00:22:29,040 --> 00:22:32,680 For all eternity they were in constant relationship, constant 329 00:22:32,680 --> 00:22:36,000 companionship with each other. And He has been in an eternal 330 00:22:36,000 --> 00:22:38,720 relationship with His Father. And now on the cross that's 331 00:22:38,720 --> 00:22:45,400 being torn apart because God made him who had no sin to be 332 00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:51,240 sin. For us, this is the excruciating 333 00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:56,080 pain. And we know the confusion that 334 00:22:56,080 --> 00:22:58,560 comes with relational pain. We know that. 335 00:22:58,640 --> 00:23:01,880 We know the heartache that comes with relational pain. 336 00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:04,880 And here is what? Here is Jesus in the midst of 337 00:23:04,880 --> 00:23:08,520 that pain, Yet He remains faithful to his Father. 338 00:23:08,560 --> 00:23:11,560 He is resolved in the midst of his confusion, in the midst of 339 00:23:11,560 --> 00:23:15,200 the deep relational pain where He goes, Father, why are you 340 00:23:15,200 --> 00:23:18,120 abandoning me? He stays resolved on the cross. 341 00:23:18,920 --> 00:23:22,360 He does not abandon His mission. He does not call down the angels 342 00:23:22,360 --> 00:23:24,800 to rescue Him. He does not just get off the 343 00:23:24,800 --> 00:23:26,720 cross, which He had the power to do that. 344 00:23:26,720 --> 00:23:30,320 No, instead He showed perfect obedience to the Father even in 345 00:23:30,320 --> 00:23:33,120 the midst of the pain that He was experiencing. 346 00:23:33,800 --> 00:23:38,360 He was obedient to death, even death on a cross. 347 00:23:44,130 --> 00:23:50,880 Why would Jesus do this? Why would He subject Himself to 348 00:23:50,880 --> 00:23:55,400 the pain of separation from God? Why would he have the resolve to 349 00:23:55,400 --> 00:23:59,920 walk through this? Why would he be forsaken? 350 00:24:01,000 --> 00:24:03,480 Why would he have his hands and his feet pierced? 351 00:24:03,560 --> 00:24:09,640 Why would he die as a guilty man when he in fact knew no sin? 352 00:24:11,720 --> 00:24:18,280 The answer is quite simple, But friend, deeply personal for you. 353 00:24:20,720 --> 00:24:25,880 He did this for you. He did this for me, He did this 354 00:24:25,880 --> 00:24:28,760 for you. Jesus gave up His eternal 355 00:24:28,760 --> 00:24:33,880 connection with His Father on the cross so that you could have 356 00:24:33,880 --> 00:24:37,240 an eternal connection with your heavenly Father, your Creator, 357 00:24:37,240 --> 00:24:41,400 for all eternity. He suffered the just judgement 358 00:24:41,400 --> 00:24:44,560 for my guilt and your guilt for my sin and your sin. 359 00:24:45,600 --> 00:24:48,760 And He did this on your behalf. And here's the thing that we 360 00:24:48,760 --> 00:24:52,440 don't realize is we could not have even done it for ourselves 361 00:24:53,760 --> 00:24:58,400 because the payment for our sin is death, which is separation 362 00:24:58,400 --> 00:25:04,400 from God. But God demonstrated His own 363 00:25:04,400 --> 00:25:11,960 love for us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for 364 00:25:11,960 --> 00:25:16,400 us. For whom did he do this? 365 00:25:16,400 --> 00:25:23,120 For me and for you. I know these things can feel 366 00:25:23,240 --> 00:25:31,480 legendary and almost fantastical, but please, will 367 00:25:31,480 --> 00:25:34,200 you acknowledge that you're Can we? 368 00:25:34,200 --> 00:25:36,040 Can we acknowledge that we have guilt? 369 00:25:36,240 --> 00:25:38,120 Can we all acknowledge that we're not perfect? 370 00:25:39,400 --> 00:25:41,520 Can we all acknowledge that we've done something wrong? 371 00:25:43,000 --> 00:25:48,480 I can and then can we ask the question if if I've done 372 00:25:48,480 --> 00:25:51,520 something wrong, do I deserve just judgement? 373 00:25:52,160 --> 00:26:00,600 And yes I do. Then once you please place your 374 00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:08,000 faith in this simple truth, God loves you and sent his Son to 375 00:26:08,000 --> 00:26:11,040 suffer and die for you personally. 376 00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:17,400 Jesus Christ is Lord crucified for my sin and your sin. 377 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:21,560 Now listen to me. Once you place your faith in 378 00:26:21,560 --> 00:26:24,680 this simple truth, you don't have to have all the answers 379 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:26,360 figured out. Like you don't have to know how 380 00:26:26,360 --> 00:26:29,960 it all works. You just have to acknowledge 381 00:26:29,960 --> 00:26:35,400 that you're guilty, that you're not perfect, and I feel like 382 00:26:35,400 --> 00:26:43,160 most of us are there. And then we just simply have to 383 00:26:43,160 --> 00:26:47,840 accept the free gift of Jesus's death through faith. 384 00:26:50,720 --> 00:26:54,840 He's not waiting on you to get holy enough or get good enough 385 00:26:55,400 --> 00:26:58,480 or go to church enough. He's not. 386 00:27:01,800 --> 00:27:07,480 He's done this for you. Knowing how broken we are, He 387 00:27:07,480 --> 00:27:10,560 knows we're a mess. Do you ever feel like a mess? 388 00:27:11,000 --> 00:27:16,640 I feel like a mess. He died for us knowing we were a 389 00:27:16,640 --> 00:27:18,320 mess. So if you feel like you're a 390 00:27:18,320 --> 00:27:22,840 mess, that's perfect. That means you acknowledge you 391 00:27:22,840 --> 00:27:27,440 need the Savior. He's not waiting on you to get 392 00:27:27,440 --> 00:27:31,920 holy enough or good enough. He loves you. 393 00:27:34,160 --> 00:27:40,080 He experienced separation from God, so you could have eternal 394 00:27:40,080 --> 00:27:44,840 connection with God. He experienced separation from 395 00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:47,920 God so you could be connected to God for all eternity. 396 00:27:49,560 --> 00:27:58,040 He was forsaken and did not deserve to be, so that we who 397 00:27:58,040 --> 00:28:02,000 deserve to be forsaken shall never be forsaken. 398 00:28:03,160 --> 00:28:05,240 God, we thank you for meeting us in this place this morning. 399 00:28:05,880 --> 00:28:08,840 We thank you for the hope ahead of us as we celebrate Easter, 400 00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:12,160 the resurrection of your son Jesus, your power over death, 401 00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:14,600 your victory over sin and the great. 402 00:28:15,160 --> 00:28:19,680 We thank you in Jesus name and all God's people said Amen guys, 403 00:28:19,680 --> 00:28:20,800 God bless. Have a great week.