Friday Evening Devotion
Matthew 27:45-46
45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Reflection
Death spreads through Jesus's body. The sin of the world, now fully upon Him, and the consequences of that sin, kill not only his body, but separate his soul from his Father. The forsakenness of human sin is now fully experienced by Jesus. The moment He dreaded in the Garden, which caused His sweat to drop as blood, is now realized. He cries out in despair.
How ominous our situation to be forsaken by God because of our sin! We go about our daily lives oblivious to the consequences of sin. Jesus's cry of despair should shake us to our core. If we fully realized the forsakenness of our sin, we would likewise cry out in despair. But praise God for this moment in history, because we can now hold onto the promise expressed by Paul, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor 5:21). His cry of dereliction and rejection is our cry of redemption.
Prayer
Jesus, as we hear in our souls your cry of despair, let us also hear the words of forgiveness, that we might truly repent of our sin, so the fullness of your grace may be received in our bodies. We invite your Holy Spirit to cleanse us, to heal us, to renew us so that we may know we are not forsaken by God, but welcomed into His Kingdom, through your sacrifice on the cross. Amen.
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Artwork: Calvary by Paolo Veronese, 16th century, and detail of fresco La danza macabra (Macabre Dance) by Simone Baschenis, 1539, ancient church of San Vigilio, Italy