By David Faust
A radio program called “The Rest of the Story” aired daily for many years. It featured veteran media personality Paul Harvey telling cliffhangers that omitted key elements of the narrative until the very end. Harvey’s stories were like riddles that made listeners wonder how they would end.
Each broadcast had a surprise finish (often the name of a well-known person) followed by the tag line, “And now you know the rest of the story.”
Unexpected Endings
Bible stories often contain elements of surprise. A storyteller with a dramatic flair could do a lot with them.
“As a baby, he was drawn out of a river. In his eighties, he was used by God to draw the covenant people out of slavery. His name sounds like Hebrew for ‘draw out.’ We know him as Moses.”
“He was a crooked government employee—a short man who short-changed others—but he became the most generous man in Jericho after he went out on a limb to see Jesus. We know him as the tax collector Zacchaeus.”
“God opens and closes doors. But in the book of Acts, a woman was known for a door she left closed while Peter stood outside knocking. Her name was Rhoda.”
A Weekend with a Weak End?
Psalm 22 is well-known for the way it starts, but the latter half of the chapter gets little attention. Written more than 1,000 years B.C., this poetic prayer voices its author’s spiritual pain while simultaneously pointing toward the Messiah’s death. David starts by crying out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:1, New International Version).
But that is not the only part of the chapter that foreshadows the cross of Christ. Psalm 22 goes on to describe how onlookers mocked and insulted the suffering one (vv. 6-8), pierced his hands and feet (v. 16), divided his clothes, and cast lots for his garments (v. 18)—the same things that happened at Jesus’ crucifixion.
When Jesus quoted the melancholy opening line of Psalm 22 on the cross, it looked like the one who had brought healing and hope to multitudes was being abandoned by the heavenly Father. Have you ever gone through a time when you felt like God was forsaking you?
But Psalm 22 doesn’t end with abandonment. It continues, “For he has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help” (v. 24). In the big picture, the Messiah’s tragic suffering led to unmeasurable blessings.
Despite its sad beginning, Psalm 22 concludes with positive affirmations about the future. “Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord. They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it!” (vv. 30-31). The chapter starts with sad forsakenness but ends on a note of triumph.
Three days after the darkness of Calvary, the Son rose as the sun rose. It was a weekend that looked like a weak end to Jesus’ life. But when all was said and done, God used the cross and the empty tomb to display his resurrection power, offering living hope and a fresh new start to all who feel forsaken.
Aren’t you glad you know the rest of the story?
David Faust serves as contributing editor of Christian Standard and senior associate minister with East 91st Street Christian Church in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is the author of Honest Questions, Honest Answers.
Author: Christian Standard
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