Dealing with the Darkness

Matthew 27.32-50

If any portion of Scripture is especially holy ground, the accounts of Jesus' death certainly quality. Jesus' crucifixion is the turning point of all history. If there were no Cross then the course of human events is without any purpose. Life would make no sense. It would have no goal. And the crucifixion is also a moment in time that is filled with mystery. God, the Son, is alienated from God, the Father. What does that even mean? Is the Trinity somehow ripped apart? There is so much going on here. Last time we looked at the Cross we took a look at the torn curtain. Today, I want to focus on something else, something symbolized by the three hours of darkness. Jesus was utterly forsaken by the Father. As mystifying as that might be, it is also something that can give hope. Understanding something of Jesus' experience can be so very helpful for us when we encounter those times when life gets dark. Some of you wrestle with that more than others, but we are all confronted with it to some degree from time to time. The Spirit offers us help through Jesus' experience of the darkness. Listen to what He has to say.

Let's start with this. We all understand rejection. A young man asks a young lady to marry him, and she turns him down. He understands rejection. A father gives up on his family and simply walks out, never to return. His wife and children understand rejection. Like these, Jesus was rejected when He was dying on that Cross – except that it was worse. The Father seeing Jesus as the sinner that He became, rejected Him. He abandoned Jesus. And whatever it might mean for Him to endure the wrath of God against sin, Jesus experienced that wrath alone, utterly alone. Take a moment to consider what that must have felt like. For as far back as He could remember, Jesus enjoyed a closeness, an intimacy, with the Father that no other human has ever experienced. For as far back as He could remember. And then it was gone. And not just gone but suddenly destroyed. Instead of intimacy – violent rejection. Jesus found Himself in the outer darkness where there was weeping and gnashing of teeth, suffering alone. It was in the midst of that experience and in great anguish of soul that He shouted, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?' That's the darkness of the Cross, being hurled far from the presence of God, being forsaken.

All of that becomes worth meditating on when you remember that you have tasted of the darkness. There is a spectrum here from having to deal with feeling a little down for a morning to suffering an overwhelming sense of dejection for day after day after day. I think that we all have had to deal with times that were more difficult than just a blue morning. But bring whatever experience of the darkness that you've suffered to Jesus' Cross, and see how you can be helped.

I think that I can say that when we are afflicted in this way, we are at least tempted to tell ourselves, 'No one understands what I am dealing with.' And that, of course, makes it feel worse. But it's not true. Jesus understands exactly what you're dealing with. However much darkness you have faced, He has faced more. And this is why Scripture can called Him a sympathetic High Priest. And that can be so encouraging. Though it feels as if no one understands, Jesus does. You are not alone as you deal with the darkness. And knowing that will encourage you to do something that He did. He cried out. 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken Me?' His cry to the Father was a cry of faith. Jesus is not uttering some empty words as so many do when they say, 'Oh my god.' He was actually crying out to His God, to the God who had pledged Himself to Him. Jesus was depending on the promise of the covenant, 'I will be your God', a promise made to Him and to all within God's covenant. And so, He cries out, 'My God, My God.' This is what you must do as you wrestle with the darkness. Call out in faith to your God. Cry out to Jesus who understands what you feel. Cry out to the one who can sympathize with you because of His own experiences. Once again we're back to the importance of honest prayer. As you wrestle with the darkness of this fallen place, there is something that you can do. You can confidently cry out to Jesus because of His promises to you and because you know He will understand. And as you appeal to Him for help, you know that His response to you will be right on target.

Let's look at this from a different angle. How did Jesus end up on that Cross? How is it that He found Himself confronted by the darkness? Back to the Garden; not the Garden of Eden but the Garden of Gethsemane. What did Jesus say there? 'Not My will but Yours be done.' It was the Father's will that Jesus be engulfed by suffering. Jesus wrestled with that, but ultimately He submitted Himself to it. Your experience of suffering isn't by chance or by accident. Whatever its immediate cause, the Father is the ultimate cause. Being confronted by the darkness is part of the Father's plan for you. For so many out in the world that is a repulsive thought. To them God doesn't bring about evil. He's supposed to make life happy. Now, that is actually true. It is His plan for you to be happy. But the route He has chosen so that you might achieve that goal is a route with much that is hard. If you would be happy you will need to taste evil. Jesus submitted to the Father's will and the evil that was a part of that will. And you must do the same. And just as Jesus did, you must submit to that will in faith and in hope. There is a kind of submission that is actually no more than just resignation. 'Okay, God, have it your way. I can see that you have it in for me. I give up. I won't fight you any more.' While the resistance has stopped, there is no faith here. But a submission that comes out of faith shows as trust. 'This is hard, but I want to follow Your path, Father. I will follow it – however hard it might get – because I trust You. Help me to do that.' That's submitting in faith.

Tied to this is a sense of hope. First, there is hope about the future. 'When I get to the end of all of this, when I get to the place where there is no darkness, it will be so good.' The hope of heaven helps us deal with life today. But that's not all. There is also a hope about the present. 'Jesus is doing something now. Even though I don't feel it, I know it's true. Jesus is doing something in this darkness, and it is something good.' There is a purpose now for your suffering. All of this is important because hope – for the present and for the future – tells you that it's worth taking that next step. And this hope is not just wishful thinking. That's what the hope of the world boils down to. But the Christian has something more. We hope because of Jesus. We are confident because of what He has promised. So, we have a good reason to hope. Jesus will keep those promises. Trust leads to hope. And hope is so important because hope is what keeps you going. The lack of hope is the beginning of death.

Let's move on to another aspect of all of this. As you face the darkness and wrestle with it you'll need to be on your guard. Your struggles present an opportunity for the devil. He took advantage of the situation when Jesus was hanging on that Cross. Listen to some who were passing by: 'You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the Cross.' Doesn't that sound a bit familiar? Let's compare it with something from the beginning of Jesus' ministry: 'And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”' Do you see what Satan is saying in both situations? 'Come on Jesus, You can get yourself out of this fix, whether it's needing something to eat or being rescued from death. All You need to do is work a little miracle.' Then there's this from the chief priests. 'He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the Cross, and we will believe in him.' Do you hear the taunt? 'You're nothing, Jesus. If you want to prove Yourself, get off the Cross. Then we'll believe in you.' And then there's this. 'He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, "I am the Son of God."' That is so much like the serpent in the first Garden with the same goal. Get Jesus to doubt God's good intentions. 'So, Jesus, where is your God now? Why hasn't He delivered You? Are You sure He cares?' All he needs is just a little doubt.

Satan attacked Jesus when He was confronted by the darkness. He will do the same to you. You need to be prepared for this so that you can defend yourself. But note that defense is something that you work on before the big battle, not during. So, feed your trust in God so that it might be strong and ready for the day of battle. That means, once again, lots of Bible and lots of prayer. Look for God's trustworthiness when life is good, and thank Him for it so that when you aren't able to see it quite so clearly you'll still have reason to believe that He is worthy of your trust. The key is to prepare for the battle before it begins. This is how Jesus did it. How often do we see Him respond to His adversaries by saying, 'It is written...' or by some reference to an Old Testament incident. And the Gospels are faithful to record Jesus' many times alone for prayer. Lots of Bible and lots of prayer. And that's why when He was consumed by the darkness on that Cross it was Scripture that came out of His mouth. His cry from the Cross is from Psalm 22.Three of His seven last words are Scripture. He prepared for the battle before the battle. And that is why He was able to win. If you would win in battle in your day of darkness prepare for it now. Lots of Bible. Lots of prayer.

One last thought. The time may well come when you will feel forsaken, abandoned, all alone. When you feel like that, the evil one will try to convince you that your feelings are accurate. But they aren't. A favorite promise of mine comes from Hebrews 13. 'I will never leave you nor will I forsake you.' In English it isn't proper to use a double negative, as in, 'I am not never going to do that.' But in New Testament Greek using a double negative is a way to emphasize that negative. There are two sets of double negatives in this verse. So, you could translate it, 'It is impossible that I would ever leave you. It is impossible that I would ever forsake you.' That is Jesus' promise to you. It may well feel as if you are forsaken. And Satan will be busy whispering in your ear, 'It's true. You are all alone. Deserted. No one cares. No one understands.' But Jesus cares, and He understands. You are not alone. Remember His promise. 'It is impossible that I would ever leave you. It is impossible that I would ever forsake you.'

But Satan does not give up easily. Do you know what he'll say next? 'But you are such a sinner. You don't deserve such a promise. How dare you claim to it?' It's at this point that you are to remind yourself how it is that you can justly cling to this promise and call it your own. You, though you sin greatly, will never be forsaken by Jesus because He was forsaken. When Jesus became a sinner with your sins, He didn't just feel forsaken. He was forsaken. For you. And in that moment of unimaginable darkness, your sin was dealt with. All of it. Forever. So, when Satan whispers in your ear that you still sin, don't deny it. Admit that he's right about that. But then tell him, 'But Jesus was forsaken, rejected by the Father, because of my sin. And because of what He did for me this promise is most certainly mine, though I still sin. Be gone, Satan. I belong to my faithful Savior, Jesus. You've got nothing on me.' Prepare for the battle.

The Apostle Paul told some young disciples, 'It is through many tribulations that we must enter the kingdom of God.' And that includes bouts with the darkness. But we know how it turns out. Because of Jesus we shall enter God's eternal kingdom. And in that hope we can persevere.

The Curtain

Mark 15.33-41

The heart of our religion is the death of Jesus . Everything depends on the Cross: life and death, heaven and hell, now and forever. I was reading one of the Gospel accounts of Jesus' death recently when I stumbled onto a thought. There is no explanation of the significance of what is happening. Wouldn't you expect Mark to write something about how Jesus' death provides forgiveness of sin or the hope of heaven? Luke was a close associate of the Apostle Paul. You'd think that he would include maybe just a hint of Paul's teaching about our justification before the Father through the death of Jesus. But there is none of this in any of the four Gospels. They simply log what happened: this happened and then this happened and then this happened and then He died. There are no comments describing the salvation Jesus gained for us on that day. And that's why this tidbit in our text stood out to me. 'And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.' Believe it or not, this is commentary about the Cross, an explanation of what happened. But it is not commentary from Mark. Rather, it is commentary from the Father. And it is a profound commentary. So, this morning we're going to take a look at this curtain and what happened to it. There are some things going on here that you need to see, things that will speak to how you live. So, let's see what the Spirit has to say to us this morning.

The first thing we need to do is understand why the curtain is there. Mark tells us that it is the curtain of the temple. As such, it has quite a history. After the exodus, when God made His covenant with Israel, He told the people, in no uncertain terms, how they were to worship Him. At the heart of that worship was a tent called the tabernacle. God showed Moses what it should look like and then told him to build one just like it. I think it's helpful to view the tabernacle as a series of curtains. The first set of curtains surround the courtyard. Picture some heavy curtains hanging on wooden frames and attached to each other. They are set up to form four walls that you cannot see around or over or through. These curtains separate the courtyard and what is within it from the rest of the world. Within this courtyard is another set of curtains. This second group of curtains cover the four walls of the tabernacle as well as its roof. They separate the tabernacle itself from the rest of the courtyard. Then there is the third wall of curtains inside the tabernacle. This separates the Most Holy Place from all the rest. The Ark of the Covenant, the symbol of God's special presence, was kept here, in the Most Holy Place. The center of Israel's worship that Moses built was a series of curtains that blocked the way to God's special presence. When King Solomon arrived on the scene some 500 years later, he built a worship center that was more permanent than a tent. He erected a building with solid walls instead of curtains. But there was still a curtain separating the Most Holy Place, where God's special presence resided, from the rest of the world.

While this theme of the curtains is displayed most clearly in the tabernacle and the temple, it didn't start with these. In this as with so much else, we need to return to the Garden of Eden. The Garden was heaven on earth for Adam and Eve. It was a place of deep contentment and complete and perfect happiness. And it was that because God was there. Adam and Eve enjoyed God while in the Garden. Try to imagine taking a walk with God in the cool of the day. How glorious that must have been. And the work that He gave to them wasn't frustrating or tedious or anything like that. It was a joy. It satisfied. It fulfilled. Every day was filled with sunshine. It really was heaven on earth. But all that was destroyed. Adam and Eve listened to Satan and ruined everything. Do you remember what God did next? It's tempting to misread what happened. It's possible to think of it as God having a calm chat with His two errant creatures. 'Oh Adam? Where are you? There you are. Hey, buddy, we need to sort out what's happened.' That misses the point completely. God was enraged. Enraged. Just consider what He did. First, He cursed them both. Cursed! Try to picture God cursing someone. Not a pleasant image. Next, He kicked them out of the Garden. He kicked them out of this little bit of heaven on earth. Don't imaging this as some troubled host politely telling his guests, 'I think it's time that you left.' No. Genesis says He drove them out; He thrust them out. But then He did a third thing. He posted some angels at the entrance to the Garden and gave them a flaming sword. There is no explanation given of what they were to do but I think it's pretty clear. What would you think if you saw armed angels? 'Try to enter the Garden and we will kill you. God's orders.' We miss the point of what is going on if we imagine God as calm and eminently reasonable as He gently asks Adam and Eve to leave. No. He was angry. He was enraged. And He was enraged because He really hates sin. Really hates it.

All of this explains the curtains. What are the curtains saying? I think the message of the curtains is clear. 'STAY OUT!!' The curtains are a sign with bold letters on them. 'NO TRESPASSING! VIOLATORS WILL BE SHOT ON SIGHT.'There were some who ignored this message of the curtains. And they died. Just for one example there was Nadab and Abihu. Because they did not heed this message they were burned alive by God. I think that the point of the curtains is clear. But, in case you are unsure, consider this. Do you know what images were woven into the curtains? Angels, the guardians of the Garden. The curtains are God's message to sinners. 'Do not enter – on pain of death.' And so, no heaven on earth. No joyous work. No sense of being satisfied and fulfilled. No strolls with God. 'Stay out!'

Now, we're ready for our text. 'And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.' It is the image of a torn curtain that explains the Cross. This act is God's commentary. The curtain is ripped in two. It is taken away so that an entryway is opened. And who removed the curtain. God did. He grabbed it and ripped it from top to bottom. God has taken that 'No Trespassing' sign and thrown it away. The angels have sheathed their swords. The way back into the Garden has been opened to us. Heaven on earth.

But wait. What has changed? After all these centuries of armed angels why is that warning sign removed? We need to answer this. Could it be that God has changed? Does He now have a new opinion? 'Well, we all make mistakes. I was too harsh in the past. I'm turning over a new leaf. Let's let bygones be bygones.' The only label that fits this suggestion is blasphemy. What an insult! God's intense hatred of sin is not just some passing and errant opinion. God hates sin because it is an expression of His character. He is holy. And for that reason, sin – our sin – enrages Him. It is a personal affront to His sense of what is right. And that can never change. God hates sin – intensely. So, the curtain is ripped not because God has changed.

Could it be that we have changed? Have we finally sorted things out so that we understand how this life works? We've changed and now obey God and because of that He can now allow us in, right? I hope ho one here is so blinded to himself as to give this even a moment's consideration. Reality check. We sin. A lot. And in ways that we are too ashamed to admit out loud. The curtain is gone, but that is in no way because we are a better people. To suggest this is simply foolishness.

The curtain is gone but not because there has been some change in God or us. The difference is because of the Cross. The reason for the ripped curtain is tied to what Jesus did. Jesus died. But lots of people die. Why does this death change things? How does this death open the way for us? Luther called it the Great Exchange. All of your sin was placed on Jesus. That means all of the rage of a holy God against your sin was exploded upon Jesus. All of it. So, now, there is none left. God's anger at your sin is spent. God's sense of justice is satisfied by Jesus' death for you. At the same time, you get all of Jesus' perfection. And that means that the Father deals with you in the same way that He deals with the resurrected Jesus. The very same way. So, you see, the Father didn't lower His standards. You haven't changed into some obedient person. No, Jesus has traded places with you. He has suffered justice for you so that you might enjoy the benefits of His perfect life. This is all yours by faith. The Great Exchange.

So, the 'No Trespassing' sign lies off to the side, ripped to pieces. In its place is something new. A Welcome mat. Now, we are invited to draw near to the Father so that we might enjoy Him just as Adam and Eve once did. And that's what the Gospel is about. That's why Jesus has come: that we might enjoy God. And that makes so much sense because enjoying the Father is why we were created. When Adam and Eve looked around at the Garden, amazed at its beauty, that was enjoying the Father. When they strolled together holding hands, sharing their hearts, that was enjoying the Father. When they picked some fresh vegetables so they could enjoy a meal together, that was enjoying the Father. And when they walked with their God in the cool of the day, that was enjoying the Father. The Welcome mat is out. We have been invited back into the Garden to enjoy the Father and to be who we were meant to be. That's the Gospel. That's what Jesus came to do.

However – for one reason or another we do not enjoy Him as much as we could. And that's a problem. And it is a very large problem for some. In fact, for some the Welcome mat seems to be a cruel joke that God is playing on them. They see the Welcome but they do not feel it. And that really is a problem. But like every other problem of this life, it is one that can be dealt with. There are lots of reason why we don't enjoy the Father as much as we could. I'm only going to look at three. I do this as someone who believes the message of the Welcome mat. The curtain is gone. The way is open to draw near. That is something that I believe as well as something that I enjoy. And I want all of you to believe it and enjoy it also as much as you possibly can.

Here's one reason why we don't enjoy God as much as we might. We don't understand well enough what Jesus has done. Before we were married, Linda made a quilt. She cut some fabric into squares about four inches on a side. She put two of these squares back to back and sewed three sides. She stuffed each of these and then sewed the fourth side. Each looked like a little pillow, four inches square. She then took these little pillows and stitched them each, by hand, to the others until she ended up with a quilt. Then, she gave it to me. When she did, I said to myself something like, 'Oh, a nice blanket', put it aside and then asked her about what we should do for the rest of the day. She put in hours and hours and hours of work into that gift, and I just didn't get it. I did not appreciate her gift. And that is because I did not understand what went into making such a work of art. Jesus has given us a gift, but we do not enjoy it as much as we might because we do not understand well enough what went into creating such a gift. Since those pre-marriage days I have come to appreciate that quilt. But that's because I learned what it takes to make such a thing. We all need to learn more about what it took to create that Welcome mat. We all need need to ponder the ripped curtain. That will require understanding better things like angels with flaming swords, a God who is so holy that sin requires a violent reaction, hell and what exactly happened on Good Friday. We will not appreciate sufficiently – and thus enjoy sufficiently – Jesus' gift if we do not have a growing sense of what went into creating it.

Here's a second reason why some of you do not enjoy the Father as much as you might. You feel disqualified because of your sin. There you are and, once again, you've done something stupid. Your sin stares you in the face with that condemning look. It mocks your claim to be a disciple of Jesus, and it assures you that even God couldn't love you now. And life takes a nosedive. But here you must remember why the curtain was ripped apart. It wasn't' because you changed. It wasn't because you finally became a nice person. You're not. You sin. A lot. So, sinning some more doesn't change things. It's here that you need to remember that the curtain was removed because of Jesus. Remember the Great Exchange. You are loved by the Father not because you always get it right. You are loved because you enjoy the benefits of Jesus' perfection. Even when you sin – which is more often that you know – the Father still loves you. Because of Jesus, He still loves you. Do not believe the lies. When you've sinned, believe the Gospel instead and return to your loving Father and enjoy Him some more.

The last reason that we don't enjoy the Father as much as we might is that we don't work at it. There are some great marriages out there. But most marriages aren't great. And the reason for that is that most couples don't work at their marriages. Great marriages take effort. There are great Christians out there, people full of joy and love and an unshakable sense of peace. It seems as if the Spirit just overflows from them. And the reason for this is that they work at it. These are Christians who work at knowing God, who work at understanding the change from that 'No Trespassing' sign to the Welcome mat, who work at understanding the Cross. They battle with their own hearts and the sin that still resides there. They take pains to pray thoughtfully and honestly. They are not content with a surface understanding of their Bibles. They are not content with a surface understanding of Jesus. They work at it. This takes time and it takes effort, but it's worth it. Their enjoyment of the Father deepens with each passing year. Most Christians today do not work at following Jesus. Don't be among them.

The curtain is ripped in two. Jesus has come to open the way for you. That's something that starts now and gets better and better until it is transferred to the life to come where it continues on. Come and enjoy the Father.