Why Have You Left Me?

Mark 15:22-39

22 They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 23 Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it.24 And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.

25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. 26 The written notice of the charge against him read: the king of the jews.

27 They crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left. [28] 29 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 come down from the cross and save yourself!” 31 In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! 32 Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

33 At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 34 And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.”

36 Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down,” he said.

37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.

38 The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”

“Why Have You Left Me?”

Study Notes

‘Thunder rumbles in the mountain passes 
And lightning rattles the eaves of our houses.
Floodwater await in our avenues.
We question ourselves. What have we done to
so affront nature?
We interrogate and worry God.
Are you there? Are you there, really?
Does the covenant you made with us still hold?
Into this climate of fear and apprehension,
Christ* enters…’. -Maya Angelou (Amazing Peace) 

The folks responsible for passing along the stories of the Bible were perpetually under the boot of empire after empire: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and finally, Rome. The biblical writers knew oppression and the great lengths Rome, and those in power, would go to in order that the cauldron of fear festered year after year. Jesus’ death is a sign for the ages that God chose to go through the experience of the people, to carry the full weight of our cries for help and even enter the struggle with his own cry. Jesus knows fear, anxiety and every human emotion we can muster. God screams alongside us in Jesus. Jesus enters human exile through his death and invites us to return (Mk. 1.15) and be re-membered into a community that has found a new way to last in the world—through God’s love. As you read this week and reflect on this kind of love I invite you to walk, run or rest with a word that struck you in your time engaging the Bible. I also invite you to share with a friend or loved one what you are experiencing. 

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Genesis 3.8-13; 4.8-16; 15
Exodus 3.1-10; 12.40
Psalm 22
Isaiah 40.1-9
Lamentations 1
Mark 15
John 10.11-3
Acts 13.13-25
Galatians 3
Hebrews 4.14-5.10