Mark 15:33-34, 37-39 NIV
“At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”)….With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!””
There is something unusual about the behaviour of Jesus…a dying man, suspended between heaven and earth by nails in His hands and feet, His lungs constricted by the weight of His body.
Every breath was agony as He pushed against the nails to take a shallow breath. He would eventually suffocate when His body grew too weak to relieve the pressure on His lungs…an agonising death, like the slow leak of a punctured tyre.
Yet, twice in Marks record, Jesus cried out with a loud voice…how was this possible?
First, He called to the Father in the prophetic words of David,
…“Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).”
Mark 15:34 NIV
What was He saying?
Was this the human Jesus, feeling the terrible isolation from the Father that the sin of the world was inflicting on Him? Had the Father, in that moment, literally forsaken His Son, left Him to suffer alone, with no comfort or assurance of His presence?
Was Jesus, as He had done so many times before, in the agony of that moment fitting perfectly into the picture of prophecy?
What do we make of Paul’s statement, as he outlined the broader context of Jesus’ death…?
“All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.”
2 Corinthians 5:18-19 NIV
“God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ…”
It seems that the Father was there, perhaps hidden from His Son’s conscious awareness, but nevertheless present to supervise this crucial moment when the universe itself held its breath for the outcome!
It is impossible for God to absent Himself from any spot on earth since the Scripture itself assures us that He fills heaven and earth with His presence.
“Am I only a God nearby,” declares the Lord, “and not a God far away? Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord.”
Jeremiah 23:23-24 NIV
David himself cried out…
“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?”
Psalms 139:7 NIV
“He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him— the dark rain clouds of the sky.”
Psalms 18:11 NIV
Although it is impossible for God to absent Himself from any geographical location on earth, in the darkness of human experience He can be as absent as it seems.
Second, Jesus cried out in a loud voice at the moment of His death! Dying people don’t cry out…they whisper or are silent.
In His many debates with His enemies, He stated categorically that He was in charge of His own death.
“The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.””
John 10:17-18 NIV
Again, this very statement is a declaration that He was giving Himself voluntarily as an atoning sacrifice for the sin of the world. No other human has ever died in this way, controlling his death to his last breath.
Is it any wonder that a seasoned centurion, who had witnessed the deaths of many criminals executed by crucifixion, should make this his conclusion…
“And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!””
Mark 15:39 NIV