Hope for the Forsaken
Psalm
22:1-11 - New International Version (NIV)
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me,
so far from my cries of anguish?
2 My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,
by night, but I find no rest.
3 Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One;
you are the one Israel praises.
4 In you our ancestors put their trust;
they trusted and you delivered them.
5 To you they cried out and were saved;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.
6 But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by everyone, despised by the people.
7 All who see me mock me;
they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
8 “He trusts in the Lord,”
they say,
“let the Lord rescue
him.
Let him deliver him,
since he delights in him.”
9 Yet you brought me out of the womb;
you made me trust in you, even at my mother’s
breast.
10 From birth I was cast on you;
from my mother’s womb you have been my God.
11 Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near
and there is no one to help.
Who does the Psalmist say has “forsaken me” (verse
1)?
When does the Psalmist call out without an
answer (verse 2)?
Who is God enthroned as (verse 3)?
Who trusted God (verse 4)?
When were they saved (verse 5)?
In your opinion, what does the Psalmist mean by
“but I am a worm and not a man” (verse 6)?
Who mocks the Psalmist (verse 7)?
Why do people say “let the Lord rescue him”
(verse 8)?
What did God make the Psalmist do (verse 9)?
How long has the Psalmist worshipped God (verse
10)?
What is near (verse 11)?
In
your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
Mark 15:33-41 - New
International Version (NIV)
33 At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the
afternoon. 34 And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried
out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which
means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).
35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen,
he’s calling Elijah.”
36 Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a
staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if
Elijah comes to take him down,” he said.
37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
38 The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to
bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood there in
front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of
God!”
40 Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were
Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph, and
Salome. 41 In Galilee these women had followed him and
cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem
were also there.
How long was darkness over the whole land
(verse 33)?
When did Jesus cry out “Eloi, Eloi,
lema sabachthani” (verse 34)?
What does “Eloi, Eloi, lema
sabachthani” mean (verse 34)?
Who did they think Jesus was calling (verse
35)?
What did they offer Jesus to drink (verse
36)?
Why did they leave Jesus alone (verse 36)?
What did Jesus do “with a loud cry”
(verse 37)?
What happened to the curtain in the
temple (verse 38)?
Who said, “Surely this man was the Son
of God” (verse 39)?
Who watched from a distance (verses 40
and 41)?
In your opinion, what is the basic
message of this passage?
In your opinion, why was the first line of Psalm
22:1-11 the perfect thing for Jesus to cry right before He breathed His last in
Mark 15:33-41?
Acts
7:54-60 –
New International Version (NIV)
54 When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were
furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But
Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of
God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,”
he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right
hand of God.”
57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their
voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the
city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their
coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive
my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried
out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he
fell asleep.
Who was furious and gnashed their teeth at Stephen
(verse 54)?
Who filled Stephen (verse 55)?
What did Stephen see (verse 55)?
What did Stephen say (verse 56)?
Who covered their ears, yelled, and rushed Stephen (verse
57)?
Where did witnesses lay their coats while
Stephen was being stoned (verse 58)?
What
did Stephen pray (verse 59)?
What
did Stephen cry out (verse 60)?
In
your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
In
your opinion, how was Stephen in Acts 7:54-60, for whom
trouble was near like the Psalmist in Psalms 22:1-11, different from the
Psalmist in not crying out that he was forsaken?
In
your opinion, why did Jesus in Mark 15:33-41 cry out as one who was forsaken
and Stephen in Acts 7:54-60 for those who were stoning him not to have their
sins held against them?
Hebrews 10:19-25
– New International Version (NIV)
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have
confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living
way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the
house of God, 22 let us draw near
to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith
brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty
conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we
profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And
let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are
in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see
the Day approaching.
How do Christian brothers and sisters have “confidence
to enter the Most Holy Place” (verse 19)?
What is the “new and living way opened for us
through” (verse 20)?
Who do we have “over the house of God” (verse 21)?
What do we do “with a sincere heart and with the
full assurance that faith brings having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from
a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water” (verse 22)?
Why can we “hold unswervingly to the hope we
profess” (verse 23)?
What should we consider (verse 24)?
What should we not give up (verse 25)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this
passage?
In your opinion, how is
the trust of the Psalmist in God in spite of feeling forsaken in Psalms 22:1-11
fulfilled by what Hebrews 10:19-25 says that Jesus has done?
In your opinion, what does
Hebrews 10:19-25 show us that Jesus accomplished even though He was forsaken by
the Father when He breathed His last breath in Mark 15:33-41?
In your opinion, what do these passages from Psalms, Mark,
Acts and Hebrews help us understand about what it means to be forsaken by God?
In your opinion, how are we, who were forsaken
because of our sins but have had “our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a
guilty conscience” by Jesus, to approach our days and the Day?
(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)
