Alone
“Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Matthew 28: 18-20
When Grace was about two years old, she would get really upset when people would leave her. She would cry out “Mommy, please don’t leave me”, when I was just heading downstairs to pick something up. She did not seem to grasp that just because I was out of sight, did not mean that I have disappeared completely. My son, Nathan, used to be the same way when he was younger if he would wake up in the middle of the night. He would lie in his bed and just cry and cry because “it was dark and I was alone.” Same with Nathan too. He did not realize that his daddy and I were only footsteps away and would be there at the faintest cry from him. Precious friend, have you ever felt alone in your life or are you feeling alone right now? Do you have a loneliness that presses down on your very soul and you think that no one else on the earth could ever know how you are feeling right now? Do you fear that sometimes this loneliness will just consume you?
My dear friend, may I tell you about my Savior who decided that He would take on the greatest loneliness anyone could have ever imagined for the sake of you and I? Jesus was the “Darling of Heaven”. According to Matthew 26, in Heaven Jesus was seated at the right hand of the Mighty One and rode around on the clouds. He enjoyed the presence of the Almighty Father each and every second of every day. Heaven was filled with streets of gold, gates of pearl, and crystal seas. There was no famine, no disease, no sickness, no tears, and no loneliness.
And yet, this same Jesus loved us so much He left all that splendor, He left all that glory, He left all that fellowship, and came to earth as a man. Philippians 2:6-8 tells us that Jesus, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!” Now, that must be love. But, this is not all that Jesus endured.
Two other times we are reminded how much Jesus gave up. While praying in the Garden of Gethsemane the night that He was betrayed, Luke 22 says that Jesus was so distressed “his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” Just minutes earlier He had begged of His friends with Him to keep watch and pray so that they would not fall into temptation. And what were they doing – sleeping. All Jesus wanted was for His closest friends to pray with Him during this most difficult time. However, their minds still could not grasp all that was about to happen, and so – they slept. Have you ever felt that way – hoping and praying that others would just understand how lonely you felt inside and would pray with you?
Finally, we learn the most difficult part of Jesus life. While hanging on the cross, Mark 15:35 records that “at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" This Darling of Heaven for the first time in His life had cried out to His Abba, his Daddy, and his Daddy could not respond back. You see, Jesus took on the sins of the world at that point – all those things that you and I have ever done or will ever do, separated Him for the first time in His entire life from the One that He had been with since the beginning of creation. Talk about being alone! I cannot even begin to fathom what Jesus must have felt at that point – utter and complete silence. Praise the Lord, though, that the story does not end there, for since the sins heaped upon Him were not His own, Jesus triumphed over sin for all of us and forever bridged the gap between us and the Mighty One.
Precious Sister, if you are feeling alone right now, please know that your Savior knows exactly how you feel. He chose to feel that way, so that you might be able to find peace. Turn your burdens over to Him and trust that there is someone “out of this world” that feels your pain and wraps you in His arms of comfort and peace. Deuteronomy 31:8 says, “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” There is no fear that God cannot triumph, or loneliness when God is by your side.
Pray with me: Heavenly Father, we are so very thankful to you that we can never truly be alone, for you are always there with us. You will never leave us nor forsake us at any point in our lives. Holy God, wrap your arms around us and carry us in the difficult times of life, when our cares and burdens seem to overwhelm us. Guide us with your Spirit so that we may feel that Peace that passes all understanding. May we find our joy and comfort in you, so that all feelings of loneliness have been completely dissolved and we rest in the fact that you love us. Thank you for being there for us! In Jesus’ precious name we pray, AMEN.