Turn with me to that passage we read previously from Matthew's Gospel chapter 27. We're going to choose that well-known text there in verse 46 for our time this evening. And that text, Matthew chapter 27 verse 46, which reads, And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried with a loud voice saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthanai. That is to say, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And seeking the Lord's blessing we want to meditate profitably upon this portion of scripture which I'm sure is well known to all of us. We do believe what we have here is the fourth cry from the cross. and everything obviously that the Lord Jesus Christ says to his church and what has been recorded for us in the scriptures is precious. But we would say that the seven sayings of Christ from the cross are especially precious. And it is with that in mind that we want to seek to remind ourselves of what this text does teach us. We have obviously to admit, really at the very beginning, that we cannot fully expound this text. It is beyond us. But God in his infinite wisdom and his great grace and his love towards his church has recorded this for us and it is ultimately for our edification. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And a light reading of this text would tell us that in some real sense, the Lord Jesus Christ, the God-man, was forsaken at that particular moment when he cried out, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? We are obviously going to confine ourselves to the parameters of Scripture, to what we read and what we know and what has been revealed to us in the Scripture. And of course, we know that God cannot forsake God. And therefore, whatever happened here, the Son of God, in a very real sense, was not forsaken by the Father. God cannot forsake God. There can be no division or split in the Trinity. But, although we cannot fully explain it, We must not explain this text away so that it doesn't mean anything. Because it does mean something. And it means something that we are to realize, and we are to marvel at. And I do believe that this text is telling us that the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ, certainly in his human nature, suffered here. And he suffered something that was almost unbelievable to us. When he cried out, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And we are to realize there was a real rupture here. Something tremendously serious was happening here because it broke the silence. According to the scriptures, if we compare the gospel records of the crucifixion, and indeed it is a very profitable experience and exercise for us to consider these things, we believe that the crucifixion began at the third hour, which would be nine o'clock in our time. And therefore the Savior was on the cross for three hours until 12 o'clock. And what do we find during that three hours? Well, the sun would be shiny, it would be hot, and there he was lamb blasted with people speaking all kinds of things against him. How cruel can it be? Here was the Son of God suffering and dying on the cross and all the people could do was jeer at him and hurl insults at this person whose life was ebbing away. And then the heat of the sun and the fact that he was perspiring and the fact that God was laying upon him the iniquity of us all. And then, friends, what do we find happened around noon? Darkness. Darkness. A darkness that maybe could be felt. A supernatural darkness. I think it's Mr. Spurgeon who says something like this. Midnight at midday. What an occasion. And we're inclined to believe that this was God shielding the Savior. so that others would not be able to see His agony and all that He was undertaking there on the cross. And we know that this lasted as our text will tell us, or at least the text before. Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour, just before the ninth hour, here we find that the Lord Jesus Christ breaks the silence. Did we not sing in Psalm 22? My tongue, it cleaveth fast. That's referring to the Savior. Well, it didn't cleave there. It broke open. It broke open because something tremendous was happening to him. Something that he felt in his soul. This is what happened to him when he cried out, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? So although we will hold fast to the fact that deity cannot suffer, God cannot suffer, and God cannot forsake God. Yet friends, we will not explain this text away because God is wanting to convey something to you this evening and to me and to everyone who will read it. He wants us to know that something real happened there that caused the Savior to utter this shriek, this cry that broke all the silence. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Well, we want to draw one or two things from this to meditate upon what the Saviour has done. We've already indicated that it was towards the end of the crucifixion. It was about the ninth hour when we might say His agonies would come to an end. It wasn't long after this that We are inclined to believe that he gave up the ghost. He would have cried out after this, it is finished. And then he would have given up the ghost and his humiliations were over. It was over. Yes, we know he had to enter into the grave, and that was part of his humiliation we would acknowledge. But as someone has pointed out to me, and I'm very glad they did, when he died, He couldn't suffer anymore. He couldn't suffer anymore. And Christian, this is for your comfort too. This is what you are to realize. That the Lord Jesus Christ today is alive. He's sitting at God's right hand. He cannot suffer. His sufferings are over. Oh, his church may suffer. You may suffer. The world is surrounded in rebellion and sin, and of course the curse is still upon this world, and there's going to be suffering. But the Lord Jesus Christ does not suffer. He's in his state of exaltation, waiting for that day when he shall return in power and in glory. So it was towards the end of his sufferings that he cried out. And notice here too, again for our edification, we have the Lord Jesus with a loud voice. With a loud voice. We're not afraid to repeat ourselves, friends, when we consider this. You've been to a deathbed. You've seen the life of someone being taken away. How many of them have a loud voice? None of them. They can hardly speak. To speak takes so much effort, so much energy. But here we find the God-man, the perfect man, about to expire. And the other scriptures would tell us that he raised his head and spoke with a loud voice. He surrendered to death. He was in control here. He surrendered. And when you put your faith and your hope upon the Saviour, you are putting your faith and hope upon a real man. A real man. The God-man. The perfect man. Not a weak man. Not an effeminate man. But a real man. A loud voice saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani. God has forsaken him there. Christ was used to being forsaken. In a general sense, he came unto his own, and his own received him not. The Bible tells us that our Savior was a Jew. He came to his own. And the Jews were longing for their Messiah. The Jews would be praying for their Messiah. He was longed for. They offered up many, many prayers that God would fulfill his promises of the Old Testament and that the Messiah would come. Well, when he came, they rejected him. Did that affect the Lord Jesus? Well, we would have to say it would have had some effect upon him. Do you like to be rejected by your own? Of course not. The Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Son of Man, perfect God, perfect man. Do you think he would like to be rejected by his own people? No. He was used to it. It came with the territory, we might say. So he was, in a sense, used to it. But if we want to go up a degree, we could think of his disciples. He chose them. He loved them. He spent time with them. Did he not teach them? He was a great public teacher and preacher. But very often, friends, he took his disciples aside and he spoke to them intimately. He opened up what he had proclaimed in the public. He gave them special lessons that they might know and understand what he had said. The general public very often did not understand. But the disciples, and we use this with reverence, were not that bright. But the Lord Jesus Christ accommodated them and spoke to them and educated them. He had intimate time with them over a three-year period. Humanly speaking, he would have been hurt by Judas. Betrayest thou the son of man with a kiss? Yes, it was all part of God's plan. Yes, that's true. But in his humanity, would he not be affected? Of course. But what about the other eleven? They all forsook him. Yes, we're inclined to believe that John came back, but he did forsake him at one time. Do you think that would have affected the Lord Jesus? See the time, see the effort, see the energy that he used up teaching them, preaching them, guiding them, leading them, providing for them, and then to be forsaken at a time, humanly speaking, when he would need or would like comforters. He found none, the Bible tells us. He would have felt it. He was used to being forsaken. But what happened here was God had forsaken him. Towards the end of John's Gospel, when Jesus again is talking privately and intimately to his disciples, before the great high priestly prayer, in John chapter 16 verse 32, this is what it says, Behold the hour cometh, yea is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone. He knew the disciples would be scattered. He knew he would be left on his own. But do you know what that verse goes on to say? And yet, I am not alone. because the Father is with me." He knew that all human comforters would leave him, but he was believing, trusting that the Father would be with him. What do we find here in our text? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? This was a remarkable incident, occurrence. We cannot fully understand it. We could think of ourselves. Here was Jesus Christ, about to expire. He was forsaken. What does the 23rd Psalm tell us? The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me down to lie. What does it go on to tell us? Let me read it. My memory's not as good as it should be. Goodness and mercy all my life shall surely follow me. And in God's house, whatever more my dwelling place shall be. Earlier on, yea, though I walk in death's dark veil, yet will I fear none ill, for thou art with me, and thy rod and thy staff be comfort still. Would I be wrong to say that Jesus didn't experience that? He says here, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Christians who attend the deathbeds of other Christians, not universally, but on occasions, they can tell of wonderful deathbed experiences. When they see or hear of their loved ones and their joy as they are taken into glory. Why? Because the Lord is with them just before they're about to enter into eternity. The Lord condescends and comes down and brings his people into eternity. Is that not what we find in Luke's Gospel? The rich man and Lazarus? Lazarus, the angels came, escorted him into paradise, as it were, not for the Savior. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? He was never forsaken before. He was the delight of the Father, yet he was forsaken. This forsaking was terrible. Why? Because he lost the sense of the Father's presence. Notice what he says, My God, my God, I believe this is the first time that it is recorded that Jesus uses this expression, my God, my God. An earlier cry, Father forgive them, they know not what they do, But here the Son of God on the cross, forsaken by His heavenly Father, Jesus cries out, My God, My God! This is what He cries out, not My Father, but My God. Why? Because He lost that felt sense presence of the Father. We may well wonder why. This is what he says here himself. My God, my God, why? Why? Why now? Why now, at the pinnacle of my sufferings, if you like, at when I'm about to die, why now? Well, I think we know the answer, do we not? It is because God was punishing him in the room and place of sinners. He was the sinner's substitute, and he had to pay the price that rightly belongs to sinners. And in order to fully pay that price, he had to be forsaken He had to be bereft of that gracious presence of God in order that he might purchase your salvation, in order that he might take you to glory. He had to be condemned, and he had to go through the pains of hell, and he had to be forsaken. And that's why he says, why? It is Again, this is very difficult for us to comprehend. It's almost as if Christ is saying, is this what it requires in order to secure the salvation to my people in Partick this evening? Is this what is required of me? That I must be forsaken? It is as if he has tasted what sin is all about. He was sinless, of course. always was and always will be, couldn't sin. The only person who couldn't sin, Jesus Christ. But it is as if he tasted the horrors of sin on your behalf. Why? Again, thinking this on another side of it, why? Why should I be forsaken now when I'm doing the very will of God? Why? Because in one real sense when the Father looked upon him, the Father was delighting in what was happening because he was he was carrying out the will of God. He was the one who walked perfectly all his life and even on the cross here as he was forsaken he was obedient and therefore Jesus says why now? when I am doing the will of God. Oh, is it not a great mystery to us? What do we find here? My God, my God. Does this not tell us something of the mindset of Christ at this time when he was being separated from God? His mind was on the Word of God. He quotes the psalm that we have just sung. My God, my God. His mind was taken up with the Word of God. That was his great comfort, if we can say that. Or that is what sustained him, or that's what gave him light on the cross as he was suffering and dying. My God, my God. Why hast thou? If anyone that should forsake me, should it be the father? Why hast thou forsaken me? He could understand why his countrymen would forsake him and reject him. He would understand why his disciples, and they were true-hearted, genuine disciples, why they had forsaken them. Why? Because he knew what was in a man. We very often read John chapter 3 and we begin reading the first verse of chapter 3, but it would be profitable for us to read a few verses before in John chapter 2 when it tells us that Jesus knew what was in a man. He knew men, he knew what's in men, and therefore it was no surprise to him that his disciples, although they were genuine and sincere, yet they were weak, and they forsook him. He wasn't surprised at that. But here, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Well friends, the answer is clear. The only answer we can give to this question that Christ posed here, it is because of sin. And it is because Christ was suffering on behalf of others. And Christ was suffering the pains of hell. Jesus variously describes hell. Is it not the bottomless pit? Is it not the flames of fire? Does he not talk about the worm that shall not die? Does it not talk about outer darkness? All of these descriptions describe in hell, describe what hell is like. And this is what was happening to the Savior. He was, in a real sense, being forsaken by God. And that's what hell is like. Here we are in this world. Most of us, I believe, are professing Christians. There may be some who are Not professing, but may well be Christians. There may be others who are not Christians. There are multitudes out in the world and they make no profession, make no claim, they would call themselves unbelievers. Couldn't care less about Christ or Christianity. Well, whatever category we fit into, every one of us, from the moment we come out of the womb, to the moment that we close our eyes in death, we know something about the grace of God. We're not talking about saving grace, but we know something about the graciousness of God. God has been gracious to us. Well, friends, in hell, there's no grace. There's none of the gracious presence of God. That's a very accurate description of what hell is like. No grace. None whatsoever. God is there. Yes, of course. We cannot avoid God. God is everywhere. God is, in some sense, the hell of hell. For God is there. But he's not there in his gracious presence. And this is what the Savior experienced on behalf of his people. That's what happened. He was cut off momentarily, we're glad to say, from the gracious presence of God. And notice too here, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? We cannot enter into his agony. He doesn't really dwell upon the physical pain, although that pain would have been excruciating. We cannot enter into his sufferings in the soul. again beyond us. But when he cries out, he does not cry out against God, but to God. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? He doesn't turn against God. He's crying out unto him. What are we then to learn, friends? Well, one or two very, very brief things. Surely we are to learn the terribleness of sin. It is an abominable thing. It's something that God hates. And if you go to the cross, if you study the theology of the cross, if you look to the Saviour, It's clear and evident that God will not tolerate sin. He will deal with it. He didn't spare his son, and he will not spare those who are unrepentant. What a terrible thing it is to die in your sins. What an end. What an end that will never end. Oh, can you think on that? An end that will never end. What a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Our God is indeed a man of war. And he has revealed in the cross his hatred of sin. We're all so delighted to be able to tell you this night that when you study the cross and when you study the theology of the cross, oh, does it not shine out the love of God? Do you not see it? Is it not clear? Is it not crystal clear? When Jesus cries out, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? He was forsaken because he was our substitute, because God was determined to deal with sin in order that we would not be forsaken. And does that then not reveal unto us this wonderful, glorious, divine truth about the love of God? A love that we cannot comprehend, but a love that we can delight in and gloat in and revel in. It's there friends, oh we're missing something if we don't see that. And surely then if we think about the love of God, can we not see the love of the Saviour who is willing to undergo everything required in order to save? Even to be forsaken, whatever exactly that means, he was willing to go through it. He did not shun from it. He wasn't pressed, ganged into it. He did it willingly and he did it voluntarily. And friends, hear this, he did it triumphantly. Because later on, a few seconds after this, he cries out, it is finished. It's over. I've done all that is required. Christ, cry of dereliction, I didn't give you the title, but I'm sure you gathered. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? All I need to say now, friends, is come unto him. Embrace him. Don't run away from him. Don't hide from him. Come to Him. Come unto Me, all ye that labour." And you're labouring. Your conscience is telling you. You're labouring. You're not happy. You're not right. There's a burden there. I can't deal with it. You can't deal with it. But Jesus can. Because He was forsaken. Amen. And may God bless his word to us. Let us pray together.