THE WOUND OF ABANDONMENT

By Dr. Eric C. Stumpf, Senior Pastor

St. Paul’s Ev. Lutheran Church – Munster, IN

Mt. 27:45-48 + Midweek Lent 6 +

 1 April 2009

             During this Lenten period we have meditated and heard God’s Word concerning His Son’s suffering.  We spoke of Jesus’ burdens as wounds.  The wounds of betrayal, apathy, denial, and mockery were covered.   

In sermon reports by the confirmands, students often wondered how someone could betray Jesus, especially when they were forewarned as Judas and Peter were.  How could the disciples deny their Lord and run away when Jesus was arrested, especially when they promised wholeheartedly they would remain loyal.  How could the soldiers be so cruel and mock Jesus’ kingship, degrade him with torture and punishment.  How could Pontius Pilate declare Jesus innocent over and over again and then send him to be crucified.  Yet, all of us have done the same whenever we have remained silent when we could have witnessed our faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior, whenever we find something more pressing to do on Sunday morning than worship him, whenever we have spoken lies about others and degraded their good name, whenever we have taken the Lord’s name in vain, and so on and so on. 

             Today we look at the result of our sins laid on Jesus. He bore the wound of abandonment.  As we hear the account of Jesus’ death, we can see that he was abandoned by those close to him – his disciples, abandoned by his own people who cursed him, abandoned by the fellowship of his religion, abandoned even by those who had nailed him on the cross.  This loneliness was nothing in comparison to the abandonment of his own Father.  My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” 

             Jesus bore the very center of sin.  Sin is not merely a matter of murder and adultery and gossip.  Something to do or not to do.  The center of sin is loneliness, the turning away from God’s gracious presence.  Here Jesus bore that loneliness on the cross because he bore our sins and God’s judgment was on sin.  He became sin for us.

The Hell of Loneliness

            Recently I was watching a television program.  An elderly woman was in the hospital and her impatient family was around her complaining to the doctor that she would not die.  She would have these emergencies and the family would fly in to be with her, then she would rally and get better.  It happened again and again.  They wanted her to die.  The woman went into arrest and they thought she was finally going to die, but the doctor revived her.  The family was disgusted.  The doctor became angry and told them to leave the room.  The elderly woman, whose life must have been very miserable with a family like that said to the doctor, “They are impatient, but they always come…people are better than no people.”  We might think that her life was like a hell having such people around her, but in hell there is no one. 

 Remember the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.  The rich man is in hell, there is no one there at all, not even God.  He is alone.  He is all alone.  How he would like Lazarus, who was in heaven, to dip his finger in water and touch his tongue.  The rich man had lived his life as if there was no God.  He had turned his back to God and His word and His command.  “Leave me be.”  Now the rich man has what he wanted, he is all alone, and it is hell.

             Is that how we live our life?  Examine yourself.  When we reject his word, when we have something more important to do than worship him, when we chose to do things our way, instead of God’s way, when we tell God in thought, word, and deed, “Leave me alone,” are we wanting that?  Really?  Jesus took our sins and suffered the loneliness of being estranged from God, hell without God – abandoned.  Jesus endured it for us so we would not suffer for our sins. 

The Fellowship of Forgiveness

            Lisa Grozek led our office devotions this Monday.  The devotion began with the background story of the favorite hymn, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.”  It observed that the words bring the good news for those who feel alone by knowing Jesus is always with them.  That is good news for sinners who will not have to be alone, completely cut off from God because of their sins.  Jesus suffered the wound of abandonment for us.  The devotions said, “Just humming the old, favorite refrain brings peace to my mind on hetic, stress-filled days.  Try it sometimes.  When the airplane is suddenly tossed around the sky by high altitutde turbulence…when your kid is in trouble, again…when a relationship turns rocky…and here I would add, when you feel all alone as you struggle with a sin in your life…close your eyes and sing the little song to yourself, remembering Christians have a Friend who will “take and shield” us in his arms, who “knows our ev’ry weakness,” who’s “still our refuge.” 

             Jesus knows the destruction sin brings, he suffered for them in our place.  Jesus knows the abandonment sin brings, the forsakenness sin brings as it estranges us from others and from God, he experienced and felt it’s full measure on the cross for us.  To our sins Jesus forgives and takes it off our shoulders.  In its place Jesus’ arms of forgiveness and reconciliation enfold us.  Amen.

SDG