Ever Feel Abandoned by God? You’re in Good Company
Do you ever feel so distant from God that you feel completely separated from his presence? You long for the connection you once felt to him or the fire that you see in others around you, but it feels like God is so far away from you. Guess who else felt this way?
Jesus!
After leading a completely sinless life, Jesus was flogged, mocked and nailed to a cross. Jesus CHOSE to take ALL the sins of the world upon himself. Jesus, the sinless lamb of God. It is unimaginable what the pain must have felt like of having every sin upon him, when HE had NEVER experienced sin. The overwhelming pain would make any human question everything, just as we ourselves do so often in our own pain. This is when you hear Jesus cry out….
Matthew 27:46
At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”
This seems like the most painful part of the crucifixion, Jesus believing that God had abandoned him. Jesus CRIED out for connection with his Father. How often do we do the same when we are in terrible situations? We cry out for closeness to our Holy Father. In those moments it seems like nothing could be more painful than to feel abandoned by God.
God is right there with us when we feel far from him
Sometimes, we thirst for God’s presence and feel desperately alone. Jesus appears to also experience the feelings of abandonment by God during the crucifixion. However, I also believe that God was right there with him even when Jesus did not feel his presence. Just like God is right there with us when we feel far from him. God’s word is FULL of scriptures confirming to us that God will NEVER leave us.
Joshua 1:9
Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Deuteronomy 31:6
So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.
Hebrews 13:5
For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are ONE. So how could Jesus question that God had abandoned him?
John 10:30
Jesus replied, "The Father and I are one.”
John 14:9-11
Anyone who has seen me [Jesus] has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me. 11 Just believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.
God loved us so much that he made a way for us to be redeemed from our sins through the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. God wanted us to know that he understood the trials and sins that we face here on earth. It seems only appropriate that Jesus would experience one of most difficult trials here on earth…to feel like you have abandoned by God.
Jesus knows our earthly pain because he experienced every one
So when you feel alone and far from your Heavenly Father, remember even Jesus felt this way. However, this “feeling” is just another lie that we buy into. It is nothing but deception because God is ALWAYS with us, present and never separated from those of us who call Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. God NEVER turns his back on us, so press in deeper to his presence through worship, reading the Bible and prayer. This is where you will experience a deeper relationship with our Heavenly Father who loves us too much to ever abandon us.
Romans 8:38-39
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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One thought on “Ever Feel Abandoned by God? You’re in Good Company”
I really can Relate to this. I read it twice, at different times