When
You Feel Alone
1
Kgs. 19:1-18 ELIJAH felt alone - as the only faithful one left But
God had 7,000
that had not bowed to Baal.
Do
you ever feel alone - like the only one in the world who loves God?
SAMUEL
might have felt as Elijah did when Israel asked for a king:
1
Sam. 8:1-9 Israel had not rejected Samuel, but God
When
we try to persuade others with the truth - and they reject it, They
are not rejecting us
but they are rejecting God.
1
Sam. 12:19-ff Even though they had rejected God, they could repent for
God is faithful and will not forsake His people.
PAUL
found himself abandoned & left alone - except for Luke:
2
Tim. 4:9-11 Paul was in prison waiting to be put to death.
Sometimes
all you can do for those that are alone & hurting is to be there.
2
Tim. 4:16-18 Though all forsook Paul - the
Lord stood by him.
JESUS
was abandoned by those who had followed Him:
Jn.
6:60-ff He would even be betrayed by one whom He had chosen.
Mt.
26:30-35 Jesus foretells His apostles that they will forsake Him.
Consider
how Jesus was forsaken.
Mt.
26:55-58 His disciples forsook Him - & Peter followed at a
distance.
Isa.
53:3 "He
is despised and
rejected
by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted
with grief. And
we hid,as it were, our faces from Him
; He is
despised, and we did not esteem Him."
Mt.
27:55 "And
many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him,
were looking on from afar."
Mt.
27:34-36 "Now
from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the
land. (46) And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud
voice,
saying, 'Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?' that is, 'My
God, My God, why
have You forsaken Me?
' "
In
order to stand for truth - we risk standing alone Walking
in the way can be a lonely place in this world.
When
we feel alone - Remember
God's promise
Israel
was reminded of God's promise to not forsake them, even in times of
despair:
Deut.
4:27-31 He would be there, waiting on them to return to Him.
Israel
& Joshua
were reminded of God's promise to be with them:
Deut.
31:1-8 The Lord would be with them - thus be strong & courageous
The
apostles
were reminded that God would be with them in their mission:
Mt.
28:18-20 "And
Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given
to Me in heaven and on earth. (19) God therefore and make
disciples
of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (20) teaching them to observe all
things that I have commanded you; and lo, I
am with you always,
even
to the end of the age.'
Amen."
Later,
Paul acknowledged this to be true in the midst of trial:
2
Cor. 4:9-14 Though persecuted, they were not forsaken. They
looked beyond the moment to when we will be raised.
The
Lord is not far from any of us. Paul spoke of this to the Athenians:
Acts
17:26-27 "And
He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the
face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the
boundaries of their dwellings, (27) so that they should seek the Lord,
in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He
is not far from each one of us
; (28) for in Him we live and move and
have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, 'For we
are also His offspring.' "
As
one song says it, "You are only a breath away." - a private
prayer away
Mt.
6:6 "But
you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your
door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father
who sees in secret will reward you openly."
INVITATION
He
is just outside the door - waiting for us to open to Him:
Rev.
3:20 "Behold,
I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens
the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me."
