There are 6 words in the Gospel of Mark that I came across and I just could not get them out of my mind. They haunted me, they challenged me, they sobered me, they saddened me.........What were they? They are from the 14th chapter of the gospel of Mark, they read as follows......They all forsook Him and fled.... We all know what it is like to be forsaken on one level or another don't we? Some have to experience it while they are young with the break up of their home, and they feel rejected and forsaken by those they love the most. Others have been forsaken by a spouse, and they know the sting that brings, the corresponding loneliness, and the ongoing fight with bitterness. Many people have been forsaken by peers, and know the hurt and the anguish of being let down. People who have been or are presently forsaken and rejected are around us all the time, it is part and parcel of life. If there is one truth that hits us all the way through life it is that life is not fair, and people are not always even handed!!
You don't have to travel far to find the rejected, just visit the local High School, and look for the teens who are rejected, already feeling the cold wind of being forsaken. They aren't hard to find, they may have acne or greasy hair, or a slow metabolism that keeps them over weight. They sit alone in the cafeteria, they stay home on the weekends, they long to be even recognized by a class star, they long for acceptance, but they are convinced they don't deserve it. You can find the rejected in a nursing home, people who through no fault of their own have committed the heinous crime of aging, and they are alone, feeling rejected and forsaken. Consider the divorcee, who used to be included when the couples went out, but they no longer call since her husband left, and she feels rejected and forsaken. We could add those who have AIDS, the handicapped, and the terminally ill. They all know what rejection and being forsaken is all about. Society doesn't know what to do with these people and sadly, even the Church isn't sure how to react, these people often would find a warmer reception at the corner bar than in a Sunday School class in some Fundamental Churches. Maybe you feel rejected and forsaken, and nobody would ever know, you've hidden it well, but deep down inside you feel cold, isolated, alone.....FORSAKEN
When you are in a state like this you begin to wonder, "Can anyone relate with how I feel? Can anyone help?" The answer to this question is a resounding YES! Jesus knows how you feel. He was rejected by everyone dear to him. He was rejected by his hometown. He grew up in Nazareth, a child without sin. He was wise beyond his years as seen in his teaching in the Temple at age 12. Being God in the flesh he was kind and loving all the time, yet he was forsaken by those closest to him. He was rejected by the religious leaders of the day. Those who dedicated their lives to the study of the Scriptures, which pointed to the coming of the Messiah, rejected Him when he came. Near the end of his life he was rejected by most those who had followed him. They had eaten food that he had miraculously provided. They had seen him perform many miraculous works, yet they rejected Him. He was rejected by one of his own disciples, Judas, who betrayed him for 30 pieces of silver. He was rejected by his family. His brothers and sister ridiculed him (See John 11:1-5). He was rejected by his closest friends, the disciples. These men who Jesus loved, and who he taught. These men with whom he spent 3 years of his life with. Arguably, these men were the most privileged men to ever live, and yet they turned their back on the one who had loved them like they had never been loved before. When the choice came between their skin and their Lord, they chose to run to save their skin. When they saw that Jesus was going down, they jumped ship! Jesus understands what it is like to be rejected and forsaken.
As intense as all of that rejection was, the worst rejection was yet to come. On the cross of Calvary, Jesus cried out, My God, My God, why hast thou FORSAKEN me? From 12:00 - 3:00 it was dark. It was not an eclipse, for it was Passover season, which is the time of the full moon. At this time the moon is opposite the sun. This darkness that was caused by God. It is interesting that at the birth of the Son of God there was brightness at midnight, and at his death there was darkness at noon. Why was Jesus forsaken on the cross? Because for 3 hours endured the pain, the suffering the agony of sin. The sins of Gods children were cast on Him, and the Father and The Spirit had to turn their backs on him. He suffered for sin alone, abandoned, forsaken. Why did he do this??? Hold on now....it is because he loved us. That my fellow bloggers is incredible!!! He endured the agony of rejection for those who are willing to turn from their sin, and embrace Him as Lord and Savior. Think about it this way. When Jesus was crying out for his Father to forgive them, he was saying, "Father, forgive them, by pouring out your wrath on me." When a person comes to Jesus Christ in faith that his death, burial and resurrection is sufficient to save, they are assured that they will never be forsaken again. People may let you down, but Jesus says to those who trust him, I will never leave you or FORSAKE you. As you gaze at the cross this passion season, remember, Jesus was forsaken so that we would never have to be eternally forsaken.
