Reading Plan:
Matthew 27

Our Thoughts:
Matthew 27 is likely one of the toughest and most sobering chapters in the Bible. In this chapter, Matthew recounts Jesus being rejected, mocked, beaten, and finally crucified on the cross. It would be hard to imagine a more horrible death and yet, Jesus endured it.
I think the crucifixion moves us so much because physical pain is something we experience and understand, so it is easier to empathize. Jesus certainly experienced physical pain while on the cross. He also experienced another kind of pain. To understand the depth and the nature of the pain Jesus experienced, let’s look at one of the seven statements Jesus made while he was on the cross.
Read Matthew 27:46. “About the ninth hour, Jesus cried out, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama, sabachthani?’”
This means, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus’ cry was a quote from Psalm 22. He wasn’t questioning God; rather, he was letting out a deep cry of sorrow and anguish.
What caused Jesus to cry out in this moment? Was it physical pain?
I believe that as difficult as the physical pain was, it was nothing compared to the spiritual separation he felt at that moment. As Jesus took on the sins of the world, he experienced separation and rejection from his Heavenly Father. You see, the wrath that God intended for humanity since sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden was finally poured out on his son (Romans 3:25-26).
Think about that. God’s wrath, the separation and rejection that we deserved, was directed at Jesus. This is what grieved Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane (separation from God) and ultimately the burden he embraced when he prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” (Matthew 26:39).
I don’t think it is possible for us to fully understand the spiritual pain that Jesus felt in that moment, but this is the reality of eternity in Hell. Talks and thoughts of Hell usually prioritize fire and “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” but the bottom line is that Hell is complete and utter separation from God for all eternity.
The darkest day in history was a day full of pain, both physical and spiritual, but even in the midst of all the pain and suffering, there is a glimpse of what Jesus’ death accomplished for us. There is a glimpse of light pervading the darkness.
In verse 50, we find that when Jesus had “cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.” There could not have been a more hopeless moment for Jesus’ followers – a hopelessness we cannot understand on this side of the resurrection. But as we continue to read in verse 51, Matthew writes, “at that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.” This is huge.
The curtain that Matthew speaks of was used to separate the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple. Essentially, it separated the clean from the unclean, the holy from the profane. On the other side of this curtain was the presence of Holy God. Only the high priest entered the Holy of Holies, and he did that just once a year on the Day of Atonement. When the curtain was torn, this symbolized that anyone (not just the high priest) could have direct access to God. How? What changed? Did God all of the sudden stop being holy or did He lower his standard of holiness? Negative! What changed is that Jesus' death provided the ultimate and final sacrifice. By paying the penalty and price for our sins, Jesus gave humanity full access to God (Hebrews 10:19-20). Jesus’ separation from God and rejection by God, in that painful moment, gave us access to God and acceptance by God for all of eternity.
So even on the darkest day, we find hope! As the author of Hebrews says, we can now “approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
There is no curtain. There is no separation. There is no rejection. There is only full access to the unending, inseparable, unconditional love of God through the blood of Jesus.

More Questions:
Have you ever considered what complete separation from God for eternity would be like?
Knowing that we can approach God with confidence, what area of your life do you need to ask him for help?

Prayer:
Father, thank you for giving me access to you through Jesus. Thank you that there is no longer a barrier that separates you from me. Give me the courage and confidence to bring all areas of my life to you so that you can help me live the life you have called me to.

Author: Gray Strickland