The Cross Wasn’t a Moment of Abandonment: A Trinitarian Perspective (Part 4)

God Was Present at the Cross

Presence of the Holy Spirit

From His birth to His ascension, Jesus lived and ministered in close relationship with the Father and through the power of the Holy Spirit. While some theologians note there isn’t direct evidence of the Spirit working specifically in Jesus’ death or resurrection, it is clear that all members of the Trinity work together in everything God does. If the Spirit was present in Christ’s life, He was surely present in His death.

Paul Enns emphasizes that the entire life of Jesus was bound up with the Holy Spirit, from His miraculous conception to His resurrection. The Spirit empowered Jesus throughout His ministry, sustained Him in obedience, and even played a role in His sacrifice on the cross (Hebrews 9:14). Jesus’ final act—entrusting His spirit into the Father’s hands (Luke 23:46)—was carried out in full cooperation with the Spirit. Later, it was the Holy Spirit who raised Him from the dead (Romans 8:11).

In short, the Holy Spirit did not abandon Jesus. The cross was a united work of the Father, Son, and Spirit, accomplishing redemption, establishing the new covenant, and opening the way for new life for all who believe.

Conclusion: God Was Not Absent

When we look at the cross through Scripture and theology, it is clear that God did not abandon Jesus. The cry of dereliction was not a rupture in the Trinity—it was part of God’s eternal plan of redemption, in which the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were fully present and actively at work.

• The Father never turned away; in Christ, He was reconciling the world to Himself (2 Corinthians 5:19).

• The Son willingly took on humanity’s sin, showing that God’s love is stronger than sin and death.

• The Holy Spirit empowered Christ’s obedience, supported Him on the cross, and raised Him in victory (Romans 8:11).

The darkness, the torn temple veil, and Jesus’ words do not signal divine absence—they point to God’s presence. On the cross, God’s justice and love met perfectly. His holiness did not make Him withdraw; it compelled Him to redeem.

For us today, this means that God—Father, Son, and Spirit—is always present, even in the darkest moments of life or the heaviest burdens of sin. Humanity is never forsaken. God who was fully present at the cross is fully present in our lives.

Robert Farrar Capon reminds us of Jesus’ words to Martha outside Lazarus’ tomb:

“Jesus is not interested in what she thinks she knows; He is concerned with what she is willing to believe—not her theology, but her faith.”

Faith in Christ’s finished work is the key. Believing in His sacrifice connects us to the presence of God, the same presence that stood with Jesus at the cross.