The Cross: Into the Ultimate Darkness
[Note: This is Part 6 of a 7-part series on walking with Jesus from temptation to triumph.]
The Cry That Changed Everything
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Darkness covered the land. For three hours, from noon until three in the afternoon, the sun refused to shine. And out of that darkness came a cry—not a whisper, but a loud voice tearing through the silence.
The Son who had lived in perfect communion with the Father from eternity past—this Son cried out in abandonment.
This was not theater. Something cosmic was happening. To understand why Jesus cried out, we must grasp what was actually taking place in that darkness.
The Three Hours of Darkness
Darkness at noon. The sun itself hid its face.
This wasn’t a natural eclipse—the timing rules that out, and Passover falls during a full moon when solar eclipses are impossible. This was supernatural darkness. Creation itself recoiled from what was happening.
In Scripture, darkness signals divine judgment. The darkness over Golgotha was a sign: this was no ordinary execution. Divine judgment was falling—not on the world, but on the One who hung there in our place.
Why Jesus Was Forsaken
Why did the Father forsake the Son?
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21).
On the cross, Jesus became sin. Not a sinner—He never sinned. But sin itself was placed on Him. All of it. Yours and mine. And God’s righteous wrath against sin—the wrath we deserved—fell on Him.
The Father didn’t forsake Jesus arbitrarily. He forsook Him because Jesus was bearing what the Father must by nature condemn. The holy God cannot embrace sin. And Jesus had become the sin-bearer.
This is why Jesus cried out. Not physical pain—though that was real. Divine abandonment. For the first and only time in eternal history, the Trinity experienced fracture.
Jesus experienced hell so we would never have to.
The Great Exchange
Here is the heart of the gospel: exchange.
He took what we deserved. We receive what He deserved.
Isaiah saw it centuries before: “He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace” (Isa. 53:5).
The exchange is total. Our sin became His. His righteousness becomes ours. Our punishment fell on Him. His standing before the Father is credited to us.
This is not a transaction we earn. It’s a gift we receive by faith.
It Is Finished
John records Jesus’ final word: “Tetelestai”—”It is finished” (John 19:30).
This is not “I am finished”—the moan of a defeated man. It’s “It is accomplished”—the declaration of a victor. The penalty for sin was paid. The power of death was broken. The way to God was opened.
Nothing remains to be added. We don’t complete what Jesus started. We receive what He finished.
The Torn Curtain
At Jesus’ death, the curtain of the temple tore from top to bottom—not from human hands below but from divine action above. God Himself ripped open the barrier. Access was granted. The way into His presence, closed since Eden, was thrown open.
Because of the cross, we can “draw near to the throne of grace with confidence” (Heb. 4:16). Not cowering. Not uncertain. Confident—because Jesus opened the way with His blood.
What the Cross Reveals
The cross reveals the seriousness of sin. This is what our rebellion costs.
The cross reveals the depth of love. “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8).
Hold both truths together. Sin is worse than we thought. Love is deeper than we imagined.
Application Points
- Meditate on what Jesus endured for you. Not generic humanity—you. The Father forsook His Son so He would never forsake you.
- Let the cross expose both sin and love. Don’t rush past the darkness. Let the weight of what happened shape how you see your sin and God’s love.
- Rest in “It is finished.” Stop trying to add to Christ’s work. The work is complete. Receive it.
- Draw near with confidence. The curtain is torn. You don’t have to clean up first. Come now, as you are.
Reflection Questions
- What does Jesus’ cry of abandonment tell you about what He endured in your place?
- How should the cross shape how you view your own sin? How should it shape how you view God’s love?
This post was originally published by Michael on The Gospel Today. Read the full post here: https://thegospeltoday.online/biblestudy/why-jesus-cried-out-on-the-cross.
