Christian Reflection and Prayer

Scripture:

Read Mark 15:35-36

"Some of the bystanders hearing it said,
 'Behold, He is calling Elijah.'" (Mark 15:35)

Reflection:

In the darkness the crowd hears Jesus cry out,
"My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
They hear the Aramaic word "Eloi" and think He
is calling Elijah. They are thinking of a prophecy
from Malachi in the Old Testament, "Behold, I
will send you Elijah the prophet before the great
and awesome day of the LORD comes." The
bystanders wonder if Jesus is calling out for the
great prophet Elijah to come and rescue Him
from the cross.

Are the bystanders mocking Him again or might
they have another reason for pointing this out? If
it is just mockery then they think it's pretty funny
that Jesus is getting desperate for God to do
something to rescue Him.

But on the other hand, who knows what effect
these hours of unnatural darkness have had on
them? Luke tells us that after Jesus died, many
of these bystanders went home beating their
breast- a sign of sorrow and regret over what they
have done. (Luke 23: 48). Whether it was mockery
or genuine curiosity one of them ran up and gave
Him wine vinegar. Then they stood back to see
what might happen.

But Jesus wasn't calling Elijah- He was calling
out to His Father. But this time Jesus could not
call Him "Abba" or "Father", God had forsaken
Him because of our sins. But even though the
Father had turned His back against His own Son,
Jesus held on to His God, calling out, "My God".
Because God turned His back on His own Son,
we can be confident He will never turn His back
on us who trust in Jesus as our Savior.

THE PRAYER:

Lord Jesus, thank You for being willing to lay
down your life for me. Amen

(Lutheran Hour Ministries Lenten Devotional).