Temple Baptist Church - 3-15-2026
Mark 15:25-36
Introduction:
A. The first 3 hours on the cross, Christ was crucified, and though the sacrifice of the Lamb of God on the cross was one of great importance, the Lord took care of “first things first” as He is a God of order.
1 Corinthians 14:40 Let all things be done decently and in order.
B. He forgave those who were crucifying Him because it was my sin and your sin that hung Him there. “Father, forgive them” showed us the mission of Calvary: without the shedding of blood, there is no remission. Christ died for the sins of the whole world (1John 2:2). Though Christ forgave those who crucified Him for that particular sin, He did not save them from an eternity in hell because that requires repentance and faith in Christ. They had neither! It also teaches us who are saved to forgive those who have hurt us, even if they do not ask for it or ever get right.
C. He forgave and saved a dying thief who repented and believed in Him. “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise” showed us the men of salvation. Though Christ died for all, not all are saved. Only those who come to Him are born again.
D. He made sure that his earthly mother was properly cared for after His death. “Woman, behold thy son” showed us the importance of his mother’s care in His absence. We need our families and have a responsibility to them. We are to be there for our families.
E. This morning, I want to look at the next of the seven sayings: “Why hast thou forsaken me?” Here we see a change. Psalms 22-24 form a trilogy that foreshadows the cross of Calvary in 22, the care of the sheep in 23, and the coming of the King in 24. In this saying, we find the fulfillment of Psalm 22:1 as Christ is currently suffering for the sins of the world.
F. During the last three hours of the crucifixion, there was total darkness on the earth.
2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
G. Here, we find the final forsaking of the Saviour.
1. He had been forsaken by the multitudes.
John 6:66 From that time many of his disciples went back and walked no more with him.
2. He had been forsaken by His disciples.
Mark 14:50 And they all forsook him, and fled.
3. He had been forsaken by Israel.
John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
4. He was forsaken by His Father.
Mark 15:34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
H. I want to look at that three hour period of darkness and try, with my finite mind, to grasp what infinitely took place. In those three hours of darkness, we find:
1. Darkness – “There was darkness” of sin as Christ became sin for us! Now, we find darkness as God became sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
a. Christ was crucified at the 3rd hour, or 9 AM. Mark 15:25 states, "And it was the third hour, and they crucified him." There were three hours during which our Lord was observed in light. From 12 noon until 3 PM (the 6th until the 9th hour), darkness covered the earth. This was an extraordinary event; it was not a solar eclipse, as a solar eclipse would have caused a twilight effect. According to Luke’s gospel, the “sun was darkened” (Luke 23:45a), as during the deliverance of Israel in Egypt, there was a darkness that could be felt. Jesus Christ became sin for us during this time.
Amos 8:9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
b. When the Lord judged the sin of Egypt, He caused a darkness that may be felt.
Exodus 10:21 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.
It was an absolute darkness in which you could not see your hand in front of your face. I have experienced such darkness while miles underground. There is a complete absence of light. Many of you have been in a cave when they turned out the lights and have felt the smothering effect of that darkness.
c. As sin brings about darkness, it also causes the heart to be darkened.
Romans 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
John 3:19-21 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. (20) For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. (21) But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
d. There was darkness because the payment of sin at Calvary was between God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. God allowed no one else to observe. Remission of sin is an act of God, not man!
Isaiah 53:10-11 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (11) He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Jude 13 Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.
2. Division – “why hast thou forsaken me?” Darkness and Light cannot co-exist, as light dispels darkness.
Genesis 1:5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
a. There has always been a division between darkness and light.
John 3:19-20 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. (20) For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
b. Christ became sin for us! Sin separates man from God.
Habakkuk 1:13 Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?
Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
c. Sin had to be paid for before relationship could be restored.
Hebrews 9:22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
3. Despair – “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
a. There is earthly despair because of sin.
Proverbs 13:15 Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard.
b. There is eternal despair because of sin.
Jude 13 Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.
4. Deliverance – Mark 15:39 And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
a. The light of deliverance is in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
b. The power of deliverance is found in salvation as we come to the light.
John 3:21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
c. The glory of deliverance is found in a new life in Christ.
1 Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
Conclusion: “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
a. The wages of sin have been set.
Genesis 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
Ezekiel 18:20a The soul that sinneth, it shall die.
b. The wages of sin never change.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
c. God the Father forsook His only begotten Son for me! God the Father forsook His only begotten Son for you! God the Father forsook His only begotten Son for the whole world!
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