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Forsaken By God

Jesus is the only living Man Who knows what it is like to be forsaken by God. Only those who pass death’s door outside of Christ know the horror of being forsaken by God... and for them, there is no resurrection morning. For them, a horrible eternity in total consciousness of being shut out from the loving, merciful presence of God awaits. From it, there will be no escape and no relief. It is totally unnecessary because Jesus entered into the state of being on our behalf so that we would never have to experience it.

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabaktanei?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” Matt. 27:46, NASB

Everyone alive knows God's merciful touch on their lives, although many fail to acknowledge it. It is called “Common Grace” because it is God's grace that applies to all humanity. Every good thing that comes into a sinner’s life is because of Common Grace. This includes intangible things like friendship, courage, love, joy, etc. It also includes tangible things like a physical body, family, house, weather, etc. Anything good on any level is ultimately from God. People who say things like, "It's my body; I can do what I want with it," do not realize that even something as personal as their body belongs to God. It is only on loan, and they will have to account for their use of it, as will we all with every gift God has given us.

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. James 1:17, NASB

If we are deprived of some of these good things, it is a small picture of being forsaken by God. The Common Grace of God allows this world to function. Without it, everyone would completely engage their depraved, selfish nature and the world would self-destruct.

”Special Grace” is the term for those who have accepted Christ’s work on Calvary. They have entered into a personal relationship with God and will never be forsaken by God. Circumstances of life may come to test this faith, but the fact is that they are secure in God's hands. They will never be out of His loving presence or lack for His good gifts.

Forsaken By God

Jesus was stripped of everything so that this Special Grace could be available to the multiple of people to whom God has chosen to extend His gracious offer of salvation. [Common Grace is also only available because of the work of the Cross, but it will end when Christ returns and the unredeemed are forever removed from His loving presence.] The body of Jesus was shredded until the bones were visible, and almost all traces of skin had vanished. His mind was devastated by betrayal, denial, and rejection until He could no longer think of Himself as any higher than a worm.

But I am a worm and not a person, a disgrace of mankind and despised by the people. Ps. 22:6, NASB. [Speaking prophetically of Christ's thoughts on the Cross]

The One Whose value was more than the entire creation was torn down. The perfect Human Being [also God in the flesh] was tormented and violated by having the filth and sin of the world placed on Him. Then, finally - at His moment of greatest need - the loving presence of God, which had always surrounded Him, was removed. The result was a hollow Spirit crushed by loneliness and emptiness. Faith was put to its greatest test. Would Jesus give up in despair, or would He hold on in faith that everything was not as it appeared? We cannot even begin to imagine the suffering Jesus experienced on the Cross as He was forsaken by God. Thank God He didn’t give up - the destiny of the world hung on that one decision. If Jesus had given in and saved Himself, we would all have been lost for eternity.

Let us never take our entrance into the Kingdom of God lightly. Let us do our best to be faithful stewards of all God has placed in our trust. Let us work - through the power of the Holy Spirit - to see the benefits of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ reach their maximum impact on this earth. Let others not miss the good news because we gave up in a time of despair or fear.

Whatever has happened in the past is past. If it was a failure, forgiveness is found at the foot of the Cross. We step from this moment into the future—let us do so with faith and courage to fulfill our God-given destiny.

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