“My God… Why?!” Matthew 27:46
Entering Jerusalem on a donkey to observe the Jewish Passover, Jesus was greeted by the masses, who hailed him as king. After sharing the Passover meal, Jesus requested His closest friends accompany Him to Gethsemane, where, grieving, He asked God to stop what He knew was about to happen. Those closest to Him fell asleep.
ALONE.
In the early morning hours, Judas, one of the disciples close to Jesus, came to the “prayer meeting,” using it as an opportunity to hand Jesus over to the priests and temple guard.
BETRAYED.
His friends all fled as Jesus was taken into captivity. Observing from a distance, in the wee hours of the morning, His good friend, Peter, “the rock,” vehemently denied He’d ever known Jesus.
ABANDONED.
Not wanting to kill Him, Pilate offered an opportunity to free either Jesus or a hardened criminal, Barabbas. Jealous yet influential, the respected religious leaders, full of hate, had Jesus beaten. Under their influence, the masses, who had waved palms and paraded His entry into the city just days before, chose to release Barabbas. And by their choice, Jesus would be crucified.
ABUSED.
Beaten, the soldiers paraded Jesus through streets of mocking onlookers in Jerusalem. The destination for His execution was known as the place of the skull: Golgatha. Casting lots for His tunic, they stripped Him of His clothing and His dignity.
VULNERABLE.
Still, at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, not holding these actions of the day against any person, Jesus called out…
My God, My God, Why have YOU forsaken me?
No one was able to stand with Jesus in the way He needed and so desired! His mother mourned, His friends grieved, yet in the deep-seated need for self-preservation (sin), no friend could enter into Jesus’ experience to offer support. Understanding their blindness and offering forgiveness, Jesus placed the responsibility where it should lie, on God. The responsibility for all that happened rested on God. God refrained from intervening, and Jesus felt isolated, neglected, violated, and scorned.
Despising the shame, Jesus understood: God’s plans are much bigger than one man’s experience. His plans are for the redemption of all. Jesus’ suffering was temporary and for the good of everyone.
Choosing to stick with the plan, Jesus accepted the consequences of the broken relationships between God and us. Similarly, God allows humanity to suffer the consequences of our choices. Knowing that in broken experiences, we’ll join Christ in asking…
WHY…?!
God gives the final answer: We are more than conquerors because He conquered death! His death is not the end of His story. Jesus death ended in His demonstration of eternal life! His suffering was the inception of our hope for eternity. Personal suffering motivates questions that lead to God. Exploring our questions, we find that…
NOTHING can separate us from the love of God.
Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:33-34, Romans 8:31-39, Heb 12:1-3, John 3:16-18, John 10:11-18, Colossians 3:1-4, Philippians 1:3-11
Pictured is one of the largest Zionist churches in KwaZulu-Natal. This congregation was founded by Reverend Nkonyana, who worked closely with Edgar Mahon, one of the original leaders of the Zionist churches of South Africa in the early 1900s. The current Reverend Nkonyana is a descendant of this early pastor and continues to lead this mega congregation. Many amaZioni in this church combine Christian practices with African traditional religion.