Question:
Did God experience such profound sorrow for Jesus’ suffering in Matthew 24:47 that His attention shifted away, leading Jesus to cry out and ask why He had forsaken him?
Answer:
Matthew 27:46 revealed one of the seven sayings of Jesus Christ on the cross.
The statement “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me” doesn’t imply that God at a point couldn’t bear the suffering of His son. But the reason is that God couldn’t bear to see sin, your sin, my sin, our sin. It is for this reason Jesus on the cross endured judgment and penalty for the atonement of our sins. We deserve to be forsaken by God; we deserve to be separated from Him; we deserve to perish; but that wasn’t the plan of God concerning us. These words should influence our decisions, which is, that our place of shame, pain, mockery, humiliation, and condemnation was once taken by Jesus on the grounds of reconciling us to God. Interestingly, I can imagine how difficult it will be for one to lay down his life for another. Let alone, failing to be appreciated for such sacrifice. What picture am I painting? The decision to die for another to live is a very difficult one to make. Yet a man once made such a decision for our sake. The least we can do is to appreciate this ultimate sacrifice by Jesus Christ. May we receive His grace to fulfill the purpose of our calling.