“About the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).

“Oh, was there ever suffering and sorrow like that endured by the dying Saviour! It was the sense of His Father's displeasure which made His cup so bitter. It was not bodily suffering which so quickly ended the life of Christ upon the cross. It was the crushing weight of the sins of the world, and a sense of His Father's wrath. The Father's glory and sustaining presence had left Him, and despair pressed its crushing weight of darkness upon Him and forced from His pale and quivering lips the anguished cry: My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?' ” 1

“Why was the suffering of Christ more dreadful than that of other persons who have yielded their lives for His sake? If the sufferings of Christ consisted in physical pain alone, then his death was no more painful than that of some of the martyrs. Bodily pain was but an item in the agony of God's dear Son. The sins of the world were upon him, also the sense of his Father's wrath as He suffered the penalty of the law. It was these that crushed His divine soul. It was the hiding of his Father's face, a sense that His own dear Father had forsaken him, which brought despair. The separation that sin makes between God and man was fully realized and keenly felt by the innocent, suffering Man of Calvary. He was oppressed by the powers of darkness. He had not one ray of light to brighten the future. And He was struggling with the power of Satan, who was declaring that Christ was in his hands, that he was superior in strength to the Son of God, that God had disowned His Son, and that He was no longer in the favor of God any more than himself. If He was indeed still in favor with God, why need He die? God could save Him from death. Christ yielded not in the least degree to the tormenting foe, even in His bitterest anguish. Legions of evil angels were all about the Son of God. Yet the holy angels were bidden not to break their ranks and engage in conflict with the taunting reviling foe. Heavenly angels were not permitted to minister unto the anguished spirit of the Son of God. It was in this terrible hour of darkness, the face of His Father hidden, legions of evil angels enshrouding Him, the sins of the world upon him, that the words were wrenched from his lips, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me' (Matthew 27:46) .” 2

“As He hung upon the cross, angels gathered about the divine Sufferer. As they looked upon their loved Commander, and heard His cry, they asked with intense emotion, Will not the Lord Jehovah save Him? Shall not that soul-piercing cry of God's only begotten Son prevail?' We ask, What if it had? What if the world had been left to perish with its accumulation of guilt, while the Commander of all heaven again took up His kingly crown and royal robe, leaving an ungrateful, unappreciative people to perish in their sins?” 3

“It was our sins that caused the Saviour of the world such intense agony, pouring darkness into His soul, and extorting from His pale lips the anguished cry, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' ” 4

“The cup of suffering was placed in His hand, as if He were the guilty one, and He drained it to the dregs. He bore the sin of the world to the bitter end. And yet men continue to sin, and Christ continues to feel the consequences of their sin as if he Himself were the guilty one.

“Did the Father hear the cry of His Son in His agonized humiliation, My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?' That cry, wrenched from the divine Sufferer in that hour of anguish, was an appeal to the Father. No line can fathom, no measurement compute, the love revealed by the cross of Calvary. We could understand it more fully if we were capable of seeing it as it is.” 5

“Christ the sinless became sin for man. He bore the guilt of transgression, and the hiding of His Father's face, until His heart was broken and His life crushed out. All this sacrifice was made that sinners might be redeemed.” 6

“Amid the awful darkness, apparently forsaken of God, Christ had drained the last dregs in the cup of human woe. In those dreadful hours He had relied upon the evidence of His Father's acceptance heretofore given Him. He was acquainted with the character of His Father; He understood His justice, His mercy, and His great love. By faith He rested in Him whom it had ever been His joy to obey. And as in submission He committed Himself to God, the sense of the loss of His Father's favor was withdrawn. By faith, Christ was victor .” 7

“Christ is our example. In His life on earth He withstood the temptations of the enemy; for He was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. No man will ever be called upon to endure what Jesus had to endure. No man will ever have occasion to cry out, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' Jesus endured the hiding of His Father's face, that God might never have to forsake the children of earth, unless they deliberately turned from Him. In the light of the cross of Calvary, I ask you if you cannot see why the transgressor cannot escape the penalty of the broken law. Death is the wages of sin, and the law cannot be changed in the least to make a way of escape for its transgressor. The anguish of Christ on Calvary's cross speaks louder than any argument that can be presented, to prove the immutability of the law. But Jesus bore the penalty of the law, and tasted death for every man. But the tomb could not hold Him.” 8

“In that thick darkness God's presence was hidden. He makes darkness His pavilion, and conceals His glory from human eyes. God and His holy angels were beside the cross. The Father was with His Son. Yet His presence was not revealed. Had His glory flashed forth from the cloud, every human beholder would have been destroyed. And in that dreadful hour Christ was not to be comforted with the Father's presence. He trod the wine press alone, and of the people there was none with Him.” 9

Bodily pain was but a small part of the agony of Christ. There was a pain greater than the bodily pain of the crucifixion that Christ experienced. The weight of the sins of the whole world was laid upon Him and the sense of the curse of the Father's wrath against sin crushed His soul. The hiding of the Father's face—a sense that His Father had forsaken Him—brought despair upon Christ. The separation that sin makes between God and man was fully realized and keenly felt by the innocent, suffering man of Calvary. This was what Christ pleaded with His Father to be taken away from Him.

But the Father said, in essence, “No, I cannot remove the cup (curse) from you. This is the only way we could save humanity from eternal destruction.” We know this was the case because we read that the Father “spared not His own son” (Romans 8:32). In that fearful moment when the destiny of humanity hung in the balance, Jesus made His final decision, saying:

“Nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt. . . . O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done” (Matthew 26:39, 42).

Why was it that the Father did not spare His own Son? It was because the Father loves us so much that He gave His only begotten Son to be made a curse for us. It was because Jesus also loves us so much that He was willing to be cursed for us, to say goodbye to life forever, that you and I might enjoy eternal life.

The Father loves us, not because of the sacrifice made by His Son in our behalf, but He provided the sacrifice because He loves us. His beloved Son was the medium through which God the Father could pour out His infinite love upon us, sinful and unworthy as we are. “Look unto Jesus, not yourself Christ is the Author and Finisher of your faith. Trust the One who has helped you in the past to hold fast to the faith. In the hour of death Christ cried out, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' Had God forsaken Him? No, no. Neither has He forsaken any soul who trusts in Him. He will bring them off victorious, and give them the crown of life.” 10