My God, My God: Psalm 22 and the Cross
First B Jackson
2014-04-20

Automatically transcribed. Where this and the recording disagree, the recording is the record.

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Good morning, church family. He is risen. He risen. He is risen. Ain't it great?

It's great to be together, guys. I'm so glad to see all you're here, and it's like the Super Bowl today. You know what I mean? It's bigger than that. Our Christ is risen, and I wanna sing about it.

I want us to sing about it. So would you stand up? We'll sing together about our risen Lord.

Amen. The the announcements this morning are not gonna be long enough for you to sit down. So, thank you that you're here this morning celebrating a risen savior. If you don't have a bulletin, all the announcements about what's going on during the week are in there. I will tell you a couple things.

We are gonna gather together for pancakes. Between services today, there's no connect hour. It's a sticky connect with syrup. Sourdough pancakes down the hall for everybody, I think. We're gonna see how many we can feed.

So please feel free to hang around and then the choir will present a choir presentation of a beautiful beautiful Easter cantata that's that's happening at eleven. Other than that, would you just greet one another and I think we're going to bring ourselves back together with. Video and. A video. Thank you.

Y'all know in high school when you have the dream that you're going to show up and either you're going to be in your underwear or nobody else is going be there. You're going to have a test. You know, being a preacher is like that. Easter Sunday, all I could think about this week is nobody's going to show up. It's going to look like spring break.

It's going to look like spring break but you know what? There is a guarantee. A guarantee that they will and we're gonna look today at a scripture. Now, I preach mostly from the New Testament. Most of y'all know that.

You're gonna catch up with me here in a minute. The I've preached mostly from the New Testament all the time. So, Easter Sunday, it looks like, oh, going to the gospels, accounts of Jesus on the cross. I'm gonna go Old Testament this morning. Would you pray for me?

God, thank you that you know the end from the beginning, that you reveal your plan, Lord, through human agency. Lord, you are amazing, we love you, and we thank you, and we thank you that you're able to speak your truth throughout all the generations. I thank you for David and his sensitivity, he's a man after your own heart, and God I thank you that you gave him that depth of feeling, I thank you that you told us through Paul that we should be tender hearted, kind, loving, forgiving one another, that we should have a tender heart, and I thank you for that tender heart in David, and for the root of Jesse, for that branch of Netzer, for Jesus Christ, that he was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and that a bruised reed he would not break. Thank you Lord for gentle Jesus, meek and mild, but God I thank you also that he was able to take it. He took the punishment before or after the scourging on the cross.

Lord, we're gonna look at what David had to say a thousand years before Jesus would be condemned. An innocent man condemned, having lived a perfect life. Lord would you show us what you want us to see from Psalm 22, in Jesus name, amen. So this morning we have this service and we have another one at eleven, and the one at eleven is gonna be presenting from the choir, presenting towards, the participatory nature of worship in the first service we just love. Glad for all of us to be able to sing together, but that second service, the choir has gotten together and has practiced and gotten harmonies and everything just so, we've been going through that.

And in a way, these two sermons should be reversed, but they build, one builds on the other. So I wanna go through Psalm 22. Psalm 22, the first 21 verses are kinda dark, and I know it's Easter Sunday morning, but hey, Sunday doesn't get here without Friday. So we're going to walk through these things, and I want you to consider the fact that David, king David, in the line of Jesus and his genealogy, king David wrote this in about nine seventy BC, So, about a thousand years, pretty close to a thousand years before Jesus was condemned. An innocent man condemned.

So, let's just walk through it and I I could add more but I think that the scripture is pretty heavily. It's just awesome. Last week, we went over the great Halal. It was Psalm one thirty six and y'all recited back to me. I would recite the first part of the line and then y'all would respond with for his mercy endures forever.

For his mercy endures forever. Now, that had been around for a thousand years or more before Jesus came along too. His mercy endures forever. This message of God's goodness, give thanks to the Lord for he is good. His mercy endures forever.

For his creativity, he alone has made these wondrous things, the stars, the moon, the sun. His provision, he gave to them in the wilderness wanderings, his deliverance from Egypt. This was something off repeated in Jewish culture and his universal appeal. Thank you, God, that you feed all flesh. That's what we talked about last week.

Thanks be to God for this because his mercy endures forever. 26 times during the week this week, I had lunch with Todd Grauss. His father passed away in a car. 86 year old father passed away in a car accident last week at the same time that we were reciting, His mercy endures forever. And Todd recognized that as God's mercy.

His father was a believer and will spend eternity with Jesus, but he got to meet him. Last Sunday, his mercy endures forever. Let's go straight to Psalm 22. When I got together just to pray with the band over there in the corner a few minutes ago, thought, how in the world am I going to preach today? I'm so amped.

It's ridiculous. Psalm twenty two one through 21. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me and from the words of my groaning? Oh my God, I cry in the daytime but you do not hear.

And in the night season and I am not silent. David wrote this, I see the capital m's and that does refer to deity. Everybody agrees that this is a messianic psalm. The Jews today still believe this is a messianic psalm. This is pointing towards God's anointed one, his Messiah, the Christ in Greek.

Messiah in Hebrew. It's pointing that direction. That was written by God's anointed king. David was God's anointed king over Israel but Saul was the actual king of Israel when this was written and he was persecuting and persevering and chasing David and David felt his life was threatened because his life was threatened. So when he writes, David writes, he's writing it from a depth of of feeling.

Seeing just these two verses, have any of you ever experienced this feeling? God, why have you turned your back on me? I did what you said to do. I stepped out in faith and now my business has failed. My house won't sell.

Whatever it is, those those are fairly personal. But My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? It's not doubt. Don't read it as doubt. When he says, my God, he says it twice and there's no doubt in Hebrew, it's mine.

I know that you are my God. I'm intimately connected to you and I know that you belong to me. I'm yours. You're mine. My God.

My God. Why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me? I don't understand lord But it is a plaintiff prayer for an answer. From the words of my groaning, my God, I cry in the daytime.

Have you had those seasons where you just cry in the daytime and the nighttime? Yes. Dark night of the soul? Yes. But you are holy, verse three says, enthroned in the praises of Israel.

Wait a second. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Oh my God, I cry in the daytime. You know, Jesus quoted this from the cross. One of the things that he said on the cross was this, open in line.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? It was a reference to that. I'm sure that hanging from a cross, you don't have a whole lot of breath but this is the short form. My God, my God. He pointed to this.

Pointing to himself, God's anointed one. Oh my God, I cry in the daytime but you do not hear in the night season and I'm not silent. Remember the Gethsemane Garden? Lord, if there be any other way that you can do this, please do it that way. But if not, your will be done, not mine.

It is a surrendering of the will to God. And then he immediately goes from this feeling of desperation, this feeling of why have you forsaken me to this, which is awesome. But you are holy. I know that you're good. How many times do we repeat, your mercy endures forever?

I know that you're good. I trust in your goodness. You are holy, separate from everyone else. Enthroned in the praises of Israel. This is where we get that my one of my favorite little sayings.

It's not exactly biblical. It's pretty close. You are enthroned in the praises of Israel. I always will say, God inhabits the praise of his people. You're enthroned in the praises of Israel.

Our fathers trusted you. They trusted and you delivered them. They cried to you and they were delivered. They trusted in you and they were not ashamed of the fact that they trusted in you. But I a worm.

I'm a worm. I'm less than a man. I'm no man. A reproach of men and despised by the people. All those who see me, ridicule me, they shoot out the lip, they shake the head saying, he trusted in the Lord.

Let him rescue him. Let him deliver him since he delights in him. Now, when when David wrote this, you can see he's the anointed king waiting in line but Saul is still mighty powerful at this point, right? David's writing it going, I'm a worm less than a man. I'm the one who's supposed to be king but all they do is ridicule me and he's chasing me and he's going to kill me if he gets the chance.

A reproach of men, just somebody to write about in the paper. All those who see me ridicule me, they shoot out the lip. In Costa Rica, they do this. When they're pointing to someone, they go instead of or they'll even do this. That's just what they do.

Shooting out the lip, though in Jewish culture was it was kind of like doing this, or there are other symbols that we use too. It was not good. Not good at all. They shoot out the lip. They shake their head.

Saying, he trusted in the Lord. Let him rescue him. Do you remember the scene of Jesus on the cross when he is hanging there? And the high priest said, if you're the Messiah, come on down. Not just the robber, the thief that was next to him that said, hey, save yourself and us but the high religious officials said the same thing.

He's trusting the Lord. Lot of good that's doing him. Let him rescue him. Let him deliver him. That though, what was meant as bitter sarcasm and irony is exactly what he was doing.

Exactly. Jesus fully God and fully human was experiencing this last section of life fully human. He'd emptied himself, Paul says. He had emptied himself by going through death, even death on a cross and as an emptied himself, he had to go through this and feel the full brunt of all of our sin. The rest of the gospels point to the fact that he did not sin.

He is the only spotless lamb without blemish, the Paschal lamb, sacrificial lamb. He trusted in the Lord. Let him rescue him. He's feeling down. Can you imagine going through life?

I don't know. I can't imagine going through life sinless but as Jesus goes through life and does not have, can you imagine how light a feeling you are not having any blame that can be placed on you? Having not experienced what the the consequences of sin that hang over you, not ever having experienced actual guilt. But at this point, Jesus has taken on himself all of our guilt. Mine would be enough.

Yours would be enough, but he took on the guilt. I am a worm and not a man. You ever felt like that? You felt that low? This is a very experiential psalm.

The Psalms are the hymn book. If you're in a mood, there's a Psalm for you. But you, it goes back and forth. I'm a worm and not a man. You know, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

A worm, a man. But listen to this alternation. But you are he who took me out of the womb. You made me trust while on my mother's breast. I was cast upon you from birth, from my mother's womb.

You have been my God. Be not far from me, for trouble is near and there is none to help. He's calling out to the only one who can do anything about it. Many bulls have surrounded me. Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me.

They gape at me with their mouth like a raging and roaring lion. The strong bulls of Bashan, if you don't know, Bashan is a very very fertile section of Israel, and it's got great grass. And most of Israel is not great grass. It's really really good grass, really good grazing, and the cows of Bashan are big fat cows and the bulls of Bashan are supposed to be extremely strong. Now, he was surrounded literally by Roman soldiers on the cross.

When David was writing this, there were strong people that had come against him and they were not acting like people. They were acting more like animals. Many bulls have surrounded me. Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me. They gape at me with their mouths like a raging and roaring lion.

What does the devil prowl about like a raging and roaring lion seeking whom he might devour? I am poured out like water and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax. It has melted within me. I don't know what David was thinking.

I don't know exactly the position that he was in but in a crucifixion position, all of these make sense. He had been scourged and was bleeding. The dehydration that sets in, my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue clings to my jaws. Remember what Jesus also said from the cross? I thirst.

I thirst. You have brought me to the dust of death. He was completely dry, being poured out like water. Paul said later on that he was going he was being poured out like a drink offering. All my bones are out of joint.

Shoulders? I've had a shoulder thing before. Shoulders on a cross pop out of joint. Ribs come loose. My heart is like wax.

Congestive heart failure, congestion in the lungs. My heart is like wax, it's melted within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd. My tongue clings to my jaws, and you have brought me to the dust of death. For dogs have surrounded me.

Jews called Gentiles dogs. The congregation of the wicked has enclosed me. That actually is probably a reference to the Jewish people surrounding him. The assembly, the synagogue. They pierced my hands and my feet.

Really? A thousand years before Jesus? They pierced my hands and my feet. Crucifixion was not even a method of execution a thousand years before Jesus. The word there is dug, bore into, pierced, cut the flesh.

My hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. They look and they stare at me. They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing, they cast lots. Really?

That's the direct scene. This is exactly what happened at the cross. Dividing his garments. Death is imminent when people start dividing up your clothes. You walked around an elderly person's house and pick up anything with the masking tape underneath, it has initials and a date for the kids who are dividing up the things that are sitting around the house, they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.

But here he goes again, alternating, but you, oh Lord, do not be far from me. Oh my strength, hasten to help me. Deliver me from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion's mouth and from the horns of the wild oxen. Wow.

It's like Noah's ark. He's surrounded by all these animals. All of them are strong animals. Some of them are pack animals. They act as a mob.

And then, the very next part of the verse says, you have answered me. This is the Easter part of the sermon. You have answered me. Now, what did he ask? Why have you forsaken me?

Why is it that you've turned your back on me, God? What did he ask him for? Don't be far from me. Hasten to help me. Deliver me and save me.

Those are the the requests that he made. The question he made is, why have you forsaken me? But the request he made were all those others. Do not be far from me. Hasten to help me.

Deliver me. Save me. Why have you forsaken me? Well, the answer for us of why God forsook Christ is because he took upon himself the sins of the world. For all of those who would believe, he would remove the guilt of sin.

You can know what it's like to experience a life without guilt through Jesus' death on the cross. God responded to a sincere cry of desperation, an earnest plea for his presence, an urgent call for help and for deliverance. And simply put, when he said, save me, that's what he did. But Christ had to go through that as a human being that had lived a perfect life and did not owe a sin debt. That's what he did.

The good news for us is that it's transferable. The credit is transferable for that debt. Why have you forsaken me, lord? When we feel that, we can know that Jesus Christ went through exactly that. We can look through history and see a lot of people that felt that way.

If you read any theologians, any commentators, you'll see that they've gone through this. And not just theologians and commentators, but mystics and people that are just honest about how they feel. You can grow up knowing God from your mother's breast as David said, as Christ alluded to. But you can still feel like God has forsaken you. God responded to one calling out in faith.

He always responds to one calling out in faith. He does not care if it's from desperation or from I dare say logic. Have you all ever heard of Pascal's wager? Pascal, Blaise Pascal. Blaise Pascal said that it is best and most fruitful for you to live your life as if God existed.

In prayer, that he will show you that he does because the stakes are too high to act as if he didn't. He always responds to one calling out in faith. Even if that calling out in faith is, God, this preacher says you exist. I don't feel it. I feel like if you were God, you'd do something about evil.

I feel like if you were God, you'd do something about me in the way I am right now, sell my house, whatever. I don't feel it. But I trust in what that God did on the cross. Would you help me experience it? You may have to go through some of this hard hard stuff, but the good news is that he answered me.

He answered me. That's the good news. Now, the better news is in the 11:00 service, and that's sorry, isn't it? Ain't that a pitiful way to get somebody to come back? Should I put to be continued up there?

Y'all can read the rest of it if you want to, but the choir is gonna present basically what 21 b on to 31 says is that because he did this, he will through his death and resurrection bring more into the kingdom And his praise is the way he's gonna do it. God inhabits the praise of his people. Here they come. So, We are going to sing Amazing Love and the choir is going to gather behind us and we're going to do a song benediction with the choir but would you stand with us and the ladies are going to come back up and lead you in amazing love. If you have never put your faith in Christ directly but you just are coming and it's just like David wrote this a thousand years before and that is convincing to you that God knows the end from the beginning.

If you want to talk to anybody about this, you can talk to me but there are lots of other people who in this room today that would like to introduce you to Christ. Pray with you and take care with you. We're going to sing Amazing Love first and then the choir is going to do a song benediction.