The recent solar eclipse captivated the attention of multitudes across the nation. Some folks made long trips so they could see the total eclipse.
How did you watch this special event? I am so thankful for the technology today that can capture such heavenly scenes on camera and then televise it. What we naturally could not view on our on can be seen through these manmade things. I enjoyed doing what I did as a kid watching my first solar eclipse. The pin hole in a paper held over another white paper revealed the shadowing of the sun. Even though we missed the total darkening of the sun, we did enjoy the coolness it created in the middle of a summer day.
I suspect that many Christians related this day to the day Jesus died on the Cross for us. While suspended between heaven and earth, having the feelings of being forsaken by His Father, the sun stopped shining on the earth. The sun was eclipsed that day! In whatever manner, with the physical or with His supernatural powers, God darkened the sun. Can we blame Him?! What a horrible sight! God had sent His One and Only Son into the world to bless every human soul. Jesus had proven to be a faithful Son in every respect. He went about doing good. He was beaten unmercifully. He was mocked exceedingly. The cross was the Roman’s worst torture and cruelest execution. Jesus was nailed to the cross.
If you have a child, put yours in that scene. Could you look upon the suffering? Could you bear the emotional trauma? “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” were not just words quoted from a Scripture. They were a cry of the deepest pain ever felt by Jesus. He had been betrayed by one disciple, denied by one and forsaken by all. Now- now He is suffering great physical pain in his body along with the greatest emotional pain for a human being The sins of mankind separated Him from the Father. It is no wonder that the God who made man in His own image could not look upon the scene at Calvary. I know, God could see through the darkness. But I am also sure He didn’t want to!
The darkest day in human history was when the “Light of the world” was treated like a criminal on the cross.
Max Pratt
