Of all of the sayings of Jesus from the cross, this one that is preserved in the original Aramaic as they heard it, translated “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” is easily the most disturbing, the most perplexing, and the most confusing.

In our lives we’ve always had lapses. At various times we’ve had to say to people, “I said that and I did that, but it wasn’t really me. That’s not the me I want to be. It was a lapse. You have to understand that. Please forgive me.” This is not a lapse. This is not a failure.

As a matter of fact, if you can understand the meaning of this question, you have the ultimate–the highest, deepest, richest–grasp of who Jesus is and what he came to do. This is who Jesus is. Let’s find out, first of all, what the question tells us, and then we’ll be able to turn and find out what the answer is.

This sermon was preached by Rev. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 23, 1997. Series "The Real Jesus Part 3; The King". Scripture: Matthew 27:45-54.

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