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Christology #8
Oct. 16, 2005 (PM) - Pastor Ronnie Wolfe

THE CROSS OF CHRIST - PART 2

Part 2 - A Psalm 22"

Psalm 22:1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?

Introduction

No Psalm has ever been written that is quite like the 22nd Psalm. I love the Psalms, and many writers have given much time to the interpretation and explanation of them. But in this specific Psalm we have the story of the cross and those events surrounding the event of our Lord= s death.

So in this message we will look at this Psalm and learn some more about the cross of Christ.

This Psalm is divided into two parts: Psalm 22:1-21 deals with the humiliation of Jesus Christ as he suffers the events before his being hanged on the cross and the very sufferings on the cross itself.

Psalm 222:22-31 deal with the victory that the Lord has over his death and burial. Both of these ideas have to do with the cross. We are going to call these two parts by names. Part one will be entitled His Humiliation, and the second part will be called His Honor.

  1. HIS HUMILIATION, Verses 1-21
    1. Psalm 22:1-2
      1. Mt 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
      2. The Psalmist adds more words that the ones that are quoted in the New Testament.
      3. Jesus her is crying out to his Father in wonder as to why God is not near him at this very crucial point in his life.
      4. He is crying out these words for our sakes, not for his own. He knows the will the God in his own mind, but we would not know about this unless it were written down in the inspired words of scripture.
      5. He cries out asking why God is so far from him, because Jesus feels now the burden of our sins. God cannot look on sin, and Jesus has taken the sins of all of his people upon himself to die for them. God must now turn his back upon his own beloved Son.
      6. He complains (for our learning) that God is not hearing his cry, even though the Lord is crying to God day and night.
      7. This is his humiliation.
    2. Psalm 22:3-5
      1. The Lord continues his complaint to his Father (for our learning) that he delivered our forefathers when they cried to the Lord.
      2. He acknowledges that God is holy in doing this for our forefathers.
    3. Psalm 22:6-10
      1. Jesus calls himself a worm. What is a worm?
      2. Someone put it this way: One of the most harmless, gentle little creatures that you can think about is the earthworm. It has no teeth, no bones and no hard body parts. It has no arms or legs and cannot slap or kick. It cannot bite, sting or scratch or put out poison or a bad odor. It does not carry disease germs. The tiniest baby could hold one in his hand without harm. This little creature never fights even when others try to kill it. It may be chopped in two, but it does not scream or make the least fuss. The earthworm can leave its snipped-off tail and quietly begin to grow another one. The earthworm eats nothing or uses nothing that another creature would like to have. It does nothing that another animal or plant does not like to have done. It kills no plant or animal to take care of its own needs, but it is very useful to man and also to animals and plants.
      3. This is the very nature of Christ as he faced his enemies and as he died on the cross. Isa 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
      4. He was an outcast from God= s presence. He was outcast by his own disciples and even believers. He died all alone on the cross.
      5. But he does not lose hope in God: Ps 22:10 I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou [art] my God from my mother= s belly.
    4. Psalm 22:11-21
      1. Read this section.
      2. Jesus still cries out to his God to be near him, even when things seem hopeless humanly.
      3. The A bulls@ are his enemies. They seem to be strong bulls, because they have overcome him and are doing whatever they desire to him.
      4. Verse 14 tells us that he is almost dead just from the torture that he is receiving from men.
      5. In verse 16, they pierced his hands and feet. Do you know that, when you read the stories in the Gospels of the death of Jesus Christ, you never read about nails in his hands and feet? If I am wrong on that, show me. I will be happy to change it quickly.
      6. We know about the nails in the hands and feet from prophecies in the Old Testament and from implications in the New Testament.
      7. One prophecy is here in verse 16.
      8. Another prophecy is in Zec 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for [his] firstborn. This is fulfilled in John 19:37.
      9. We also know this from Joh 20:27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust [it] into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.
      10. We also know this from the knowledge we have of a crucifixion where the hands and feet are pierced.
      11. In verses 17-18, we find that Jesus was flesh and bone from his beatings and perhaps even starvation.
      12. They parted his garment in a gamble to get the garment. Matt 27:35.
      13. In verses 18-21 Jesus cries out to the Father for deliverance from the lion and the unicorn. These are both wild animals, but they are both in God= s hands.

  2. HIS HONOR, Verses 22-31
    1. It seems here that David now begins to speak
    2. He says he will declare the name of the Lord to his brethren and in the congregation, 22
    3. He encourages those who fear the Lord to praise the Lord, 23.
    4. In verse 24 he speaks of what the Father did for Jesus Christ. He has not despised the affliction of the afflicted. When Jesus cried to his Father, the Father heard him.
    5. In verse 26 he tells us that the meek shall eat and be satisfied, that is, on spiritual things.
    6. Verse 27 tells us that the Gentiles A the ends of the world@ will turn to the Lord.
    7. He declares in verse 28 that the Kingdom is the Lord= s. This is God= s spiritual kingdom on earth and includes his literal kingdom upon the earth in the latter days.
    8. Verse 29 tells of the inevitability of death. Everyone must die. But despite that, a seed shall serve him (verse 30).
    9. This will be done perpetually, from generation to generation.

Conclusion

So are we to give the message of the Gospel to every generation. It is the power of God unto salvation (Rom. 1:16). The Gospel is a look at the cross of Jesus Christ. 1 Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

Take a good look today of the cross of Christ. It is the only cross that has power. It is the only cross that is blood-stained with the only blood that can save our souls. It is the only cross upon which Jesus died and paid for our sins.

Look and Live

I=ve a message from the Lord, hallelujah! The message unto you I= ll give,
Tis recorded in His word, hallelujah! It is only that you "look and live."

RefrainLook and live, my brother, live!Look to Jesus now, and live;
= Tis recorded in His word, hallelujah!It is only that you "look and live."

Joh 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

 

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