The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ - Psalm 22

Opening thought:

Man Shocked To Open $218 Trillion Phone Bill
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, April 10, 2006 -- Think your phone bill is high? A Malaysian man said he nearly fainted when he got $218 trillion phone bill. That's U.S. dollars. The man, Yahaya Wahab, said he's been ordered to pay up within 10 days or face prosecution. The New Straits Times reported that the bill was for a line that was supposed to have been disconnected in January. The unhappy phone customer said he can't wait to face Telekom Malaysia in court, if the company follows through with its threat. Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press.

This is nothing compared to the bill we would receive for our sin. 2 Corinthians 5 tells us that when the Father found out that Jesus was paying our bill for sin, He didn’t even bother to do the accounting. He knew he was good for it. Why was he? Because Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for us paid for everything.

Textual Notes
Psalms means “praises, ” but Psalms is more than a songbook. Anyone who says that the Psalms should not be preached for their theology was not reading them they way the early church and our Lord read them. As we will see today, Psalm 22 is a deeply theological, prophetic, and Messianic psalm. Beyond all else, it is the Psalm of the Cross, a song written 1000 years before Christ’s death which accurately details Roman crucifixion and the words of Jesus on the Cross.

Spurgeon wonders if Jesus actually repeated it word for word on the cross, beginning with “My God, My God” and ending with, in original, “It is finished.”

Pitiful cry for help based on covenant (v. 1-10), Pitiful cry for help based on imminence of his death (v. 11-20) Foretaste of deliverance (v. 21-31)

INSIGHTS
1. The Father’s Desertion (Psalm 22:1-6)
Jesus feels God’s punishment for our sinfulness and rebelliousness Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34; Deuteronomy 10:21: 21; Job 25:6: 6 ; Isaiah 49:7; 53:3

2. The Reality of Crucifixion: (Psalm 22:7-18)
a. Public Insults (vv. 7-8) Mark 15:29, 31; Matthew 27:39, 43-44; Luke 23:35:
b. Physical cruelty (vv. 14-15; 1 Peter 2:22; 3:18)
(1.) Jesus was not a weak man. He was tough. John 19:28; Luke 23:27
c. Piercing of body (vv. 16) Isaiah 53:5; Zechariah 12:10; John 19:34
d. Dividing garments (vv. 17-18) Matthew 27:35; Luke 23:34; John 19:24

A Physician Examines the Crucifixion
A medical explanation of what Jesus endured on the day He died
By Dr. C. Truman Davis. Originally published in Arizona Medicine, March 1965, Arizona Medical Association.
This version from The Review of the NEWS, April 14, 1976

3. The Promise of Resurrection (Psalm 22:19-31)
a. Call for Help (vv. 19-22) (cosmic-level description)
b Command to Praise (vv. 22-23) Hebrews 2:12; 5:7
c. Why? B/c of resurrection (vv. 24-26) Isaiah 26:19
d. Vision of Missions (vv. 27-31) Psalm 2:8; 78:6; 86:9

INVITATION