Matthew
27:46
“Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why
hast thou forsaken me?”
Scholars
have parsed those words of Christ on the cross, as translated from
Aramaic to Greek, to explain away the seeming uncertainty and despair
of our Savior in the moments before his earthly death. In both
Matthew and Mark this outcry is reported as the last
words of Jesus; in Luke the words are not reported and Jesus’ last
words are “Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit!” (Luke
23:46). In John the
words likewise do not appear, and the last words are “It is
finished!” (John 19:30).
Hardly
any of us can follow the language experts in their dissection of
these passages. I for one am not only willing to accept that our
Lord was driven to the brink of despair by the crucifixion, but I
applaud this wonderful display of the humanity of Christ. I like to
think that Mark and Matthew are reporting what Christ really said,
and aren’t writing mere polemics. Here we are exposed to the great
good news that God himself could take on the frailties of humanity.
And remember, Jesus went through his agonizing ordeal to the
resurrection!
Dear
God: Thank you for sending your Son who shares with us the
uncertainties and sufferings of humankind. Let us remember your
mighty sacrifice of Good Friday, and guide us through Christ to the
resurrection and the life of your kingdom. Amen.
Stanford
Evans
No comments:
Post a Comment