An Old Testament Calvary

Psalm 22:1-31

Adrian Rogers


Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Psalm 22:1-31

The Old Testament and the New Testament tell the same story of Jesus Christ. The entire Bible expresses the fulfilled prophecy and united message that Jesus saves.

Psalm 22 greatly details the crucifixion of Jesus Christ a thousand years before He was born.

This Old Testament Calvary passage first shares the prophecy of the cross.

“O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; and in the night season, and am not silent” (Psalm 22:2). This verse mimics some of Jesus’ final moments on the cross recorded in Matthew 27. A great darkness came over the Earth at noonday, becoming both day and night; Jesus was mocked and scorned, a prophecy fulfilled not by Himself, but by His enemies.

“I am poured out like water, and all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me” (Psalm 22:14). According to the Gospels, Jesus’s bones were never broken; rather, He was pierced, and blood and water spilled from His side. Even the small detail of His asking for a drink fulfilled the prophecy that the One crucified for our sins would cry out in thirst. (Read Psalm 22:15.)

Second, this passage describes the agony of the cross.

No one has suffered like Jesus did.

To pay for our redemption and forgiveness, Jesus suffered at the hands of three.

First, He suffered at the holy hand of God; in the moment Jesus bore our sins, God’s eyes were too pure to look upon Him. As He was dying, Jesus was forsaken by the Father. (Read Psalm 22:1.) He also suffered at the hateful hand of man, as Psalm 22:6 says, “But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised by the people.” And He suffered at the hellish hands of Satan; all of Hell’s demonic power was concentrated upon the cross.

But thank God, Psalm 22 also tells of the victory of the cross.

As a prophet, Jesus declares the Father; as our great High Priest, He delivers the faithful. And as the Prince of Heaven, He dominates the future.

Adrian Rogers says, “People wonder what this world is coming to—I’ll tell you, it’s coming to Jesus.”

Apply it to your life

Do you serve Jesus Christ —the prophet, priest, and prince? Scriptures proclaim that this world belongs to Him, and He is coming back to it, soon.