A CRY FROM THE DARK
Matthew 27:32-54
BY
FRANK LAY
Jesus spoke three times during His first three hours on the cross. First, he prayed for those who were crucifying him. “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” The tense of the words indicate that Jesus prayed this prayer over and over again. He prayed for the religious leaders who had demanded his crucifixion. He prayed for the two thieves who were crucified at his side. He prayed for the Roman soldiers who carried out the terrible act. He prayed for the curiosity seekers who merely came to watch the crucifixion. He prayed for those who mocked him saying, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the king of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” Moreover, he prayed for you and me because it was our sin that put Him there.
Next He spoke to the dying thief who had prayed, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” Jesus responded to his petition, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
The third time Jesus spoke, He lovingly provided for His mother. Listen to John’s gospel, “Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “behold your mother!’ And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.”
Then after three hours on the cross something amazing happened. The Bible tells us that, “from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.” That would be from noon until 3:00 PM in our way of keeping time. It was a deep darkness! A mysterious darkness! An unexplainable darkness! A terrifying darkness!
“It must be a solar eclipse,” someone said with an uncertain voice.
“No, it can’t be,” answered another. “The moon is full. There can be no solar eclipse when the moon is full.”
“Maybe a storm is coming,” called out another.
“Perhaps, it’s a dust storm,” cried still another.
But there was no dust in the air, nor was there a storm. Yet there was darkness. Darkness at mid-day, darkness at high noon! Darkness at what was usually the brightest time of the day! How can it be?
“I’m afraid,” someone said as she began to cry.
Jesus spoke three times during His first three hours on the cross. Then there came three hours of unexplainable and terrifying darkness accompanied by a dreadful silence. Jesus spoke not a word until the end of those three long and agonizing hours of darkness. The only sound heard from the cross was that of raspy breathing as our Lord and the two dying thieves struggled for every breath. Very little was heard from the crowd. How dark the day had become from noon until around three PM. There was only darkness and silence.
Someone may have cited the book of Amos. “And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD God, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day” (Amos 8:9). Then once again there was silence, a fearful silence, a dreadful silence. Silence, and more silence! Darkness and more darkness!
Suddenly, after three long and excruciating hours of darkness, Jesus broke His silence. All of a sudden, a pitiful, an agonizing, and a terrifying cry pierced the blackness. “Eli Eli lama sabach tha–ni”, which means, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me? God forsaken of God, how can it be? Some who heard Jesus’ cry, misunderstood Him and thought He was calling for Elijah. They said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.” How do we explain our Lord’s piteous cry?
In the Bible, darkness is often used as a symbol of sin, of death, and of judgment. Hell is described as a place of outer darkness. The darkness of Calvary speaks of the judgment of God against sin. Yet Jesus was the sinless Son of God. Oh, He was tempted in every way like we are tempted, yet He was completely without sin. Never once in his life did he sin. He was totally innocent. You and I are totally guilty. You and I deserved to have been on that cross. Yet there on the cross hung Jesus who was dying for every evil thing that you and I ever did and for every wicked thought we ever had. He was dying in my place and in your place. His precious blood was poured out for your sins, and mine. He took all our sin upon Himself.
The Bible says that God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21). Isaiah said it this way, “The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). You see, God is holy and cannot look upon sin. For this reason, the Father turned away from the Son in that awful moment when the Son was made to be sin in our behalf. For the first time in all eternity, the Son of God knew the horror of being separated from His Father. No wonder that after six long hours on the cross, and especially after those three long agonizing hours of separation from the Father, Jesus cried out in anguish, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me.” Our sin in all its ugliness was laid on Jesus. Moreover, His righteousness was imputed to us.
By His amazing grace, Jesus did something for us at Calvary that we were unable to do for ourselves. Jesus knew that the final result of sin was to be abandoned by God. He was abandoned by the Father so that we might not have to be abandoned. Jesus was judged at the cross so you and I won’t have to be judged. Someone has said that Jesus Christ was the most God forsaken man who ever lived. Because of what He did for us on the cross, you and I who have believed in Jesus will never be God forsaken. Because of the precious blood which Jesus shed on the cross, you and I don’t have to pay the penalty for our sins. The price has already been paid. Because of the Blood Jesus shed at Calvary, you and I can be forgiven of every sin. Because of the cross, we who believe in Jesus will never have to cry out in anguish, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me.”
Listen to the words of the following poem entitled, “A Cry from the Dark.”
Not a sound was heard
But the shuffling of anxious feet,
As frightened people
Groped their way up the darkened street.
Even strong men trembled,
Afraid they might die,
And they struggled in vain
As they tried not to cry.
Women sniffled softly
As they fought to hold back the tears,
But there was nothing anyone could do
To relieve them of all their fears.
The darkness had come on suddenly
In the middle of the day.
Some remembered Amos had said
That it would happen that way.
For three long relentless hours
Not a sound was heard.
The Man on the cross suffered in silence
And spoke not a word.
Suddenly from the cross
Came an agonizing plea,
“My God, My God,
Why have you forsaken me?”
God forsaken of God,
How can it be?
Jesus had born the penalty for all our sin
That you and I might be free.
3/18/03 © wfl
Jesus’ final four words from the cross all came rather close together. Following His desperate plea, He said, “I thirst.” His lips were parched and His tongue clave to the roof of his mouth. He needed to be refreshed so he could give His final two words.
After receiving a bit of sour wine, Jesus uttered a word which I consider the greatest word in history. It is the word Tetelestai” which means, “it is finished,” His word was not a cry of resignation or defeat. It sounded more like a shout of victory.
Papyri receipts for taxes have been found with that word “tetelestai” meaning “paid in full.” When Jesus said, “It is finished,” He meant that the work of salvation had been fully accomplished. There is nothing left for us to do for our salvation. The work his been done. The price for our salvation has been paid in full. All that is left for us is to open our hearts in faith, faith in the Son of God who paid in full the terrible cost for our salvation.
Dr. H. H. Hobbs gives some additional examples of how the word “tetelestai” was used in New Testament times. It was used of a promissory note. A person would sign a note and promise to pay a certain amount. When the final payment was made, the word “tetelestai” would be written on the note. That meant that payment had been received in full and would never again be demanded.
Again, the word “tetelestai” was used in the accomplishment of a mission. For example a father might send his son on a mission. He was not to return home until the final act of the mission had been completed. When the mission was fully accomplished, the son would then return to his father and say “tetelestai;” Mission accomplished.
In his high priestly prayer, Jesus said to His Father, “I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do” (John 17:4). Jesus fully completed the mission that the Father had sent Him into the world to do. Salvation’s work was fully accomplished. The price for our salvation has been paid in full by the blood that Jesus shed on the cross of Calvary. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ is an act that will never have to be repeated again.
After shouting the word “tetelestai,” Jesus bowed his head and spoke His final word. He said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit”, and with those words, He died.
During this season of the year, we think of the cross. Rather, we think of the Christ who died there on the cross. We remember how Jesus suffered, how He bled, and how He died on that Good Friday so long ago. All that He did at Calvary was for us. Yes, he died a real death on that Friday and He was buried in a borrowed tomb. His enemies felt that they were rid of Him at last. But that’s not the end of the story, because SUNDAY CAME.
I was deeply moved by the movie, “The Passion of the Christ.” Better than any movie ever made, “The Passion” accurately portrayed the suffering that Jesus had to endure during the ordeal of Calvary.
However, my favorite scene occurred at the very end of the movie. It was a scene that only lasted about 15 seconds or so. It took place inside the tomb of Jesus on Sunday morning following His crucifixion; Jesus is seen sitting up on the side of His burial place. He sat there for a few moments, and then got up and walked out of the tomb. While that part of the story seemed to be brief in comparison with the rest of the movie, I literally wanted to lift my hands in praise and shout at the top of my voice one word
YES!!!!!!!
FINISHED
Our Lord finished the work he came to do,
He paid the price for me and for you.
He died on the cross God’s love to show,
He paid in full the debt We owe.
There’s nothing left for you to do,
But trust in the One who died for you.
“It is finished ,” the Savior said,
But now he is risen from the dead.
(wfl)
Hallelujah to the Lamb of God!!!!
