Mensa Otabil - When We Feel Forsaken (10/23/2025)
Welcome to a brand new week. This week, we go back to our study of the Psalms. As you know, we are walking through the Psalms, and we are now in Psalm 22. Psalms 22, 23, and 24 are all Messianic Psalms, talking about Jesus Christ. Psalm 22 talks about His suffering, 23 as Shepherd, and 24 as Sovereign Lord. So, we are looking at Psalm 22, which mirrors the suffering of the Lord Jesus Christ. We read in verse 1: "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? And why are You so far from helping me and from the words of my groaning?"
If you remember carefully, Jesus used the opening phrases of this verse when He was on the cross, when He cried, "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?" Jesus was quoting this Psalm as a reflection of what He was going through on the cross. At the time David wrote the Psalm, he was experiencing personal pain, but not at the intensity that he describes in the rest of the Psalm. It is clear that, although he may have written it for himself, the issues he is dealing with are way beyond him. That is why we say it is Messianic, because it corresponds directly to Jesus Christ and His sufferings.
As a matter of fact, as you read through Psalm 22, you would feel as if somebody was there just recording everything at the foot of the cross of Jesus, because that is how the Psalm is portrayed. David cries out, and we can say Jesus cries out in the moment of agony and pain. He asks the question, "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?" Many times, we go through life, and, as I'm sure that is what David was experiencing, sometimes we go through difficulty and feel forsaken. When Jesus Christ cried, "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?"
His divine nature knew that God had not forsaken Him, but as a human being, He was reflecting what human beings go through when we experience difficulty. Sometimes we go through difficulty, although inwardly we know God has not forsaken us; just the feeling of what we are going through makes us feel He has forsaken us. There are two things playing out here: an inward knowing that God is with you and experiences telling you maybe God has forsaken you. Those are the two things going on when you feel that you have prayed and that God has forsaken you, while somewhere inside, you still know God has not forsaken you in your spirit, in your inner man.
Jesus knew God had not forsaken Him, and David knew God had not forsaken him. But we ask that question when we are going through difficulty. David then cries, "Why are You far from me and my groanings?" This is a person going through difficulty who is crying, groaning, and in pain, who is in anguish and not experiencing immediate relief or redemption. Sometimes we go through life like that; we pray and pray, we are in tears and crying, and we don't feel immediate relief. Of course, Jesus Christ went through that in the Garden of Gethsemane; He wanted the cup to be passed away from Him, but inwardly, He knew that was not what He really wanted-He wanted to do the will of the Father and the purpose of His sending.
So, what do you do when you're going through life, and things are hidden against you, when you're groaning, crying, and feeling that God has forsaken you? We can learn from this Psalm how we can approach times like that in our lives-dark moments when we feel abandoned and forsaken. The gratitude and joy are to know that our Lord Jesus Christ was in a similar place to where we are, and yet He came out victoriously-and you will also come out victoriously.
Let us pray. With me, Heavenly Father, You are with me even when I can't feel Your presence. Help me to always rest my faith in You. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.