http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews%2013:5&version=NIV
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208:35-39&version=NIV
Last year I was preaching a sermon when I said something to the effect that the word ‘abandon’ is not in God’s vocabulary. I probably would have forgot all about it except that one of my elders brought up my statement the next week in our Leadership Team meeting. Being duly reminded of it, it piqued my curiosity. I wondered what other words might not be a part of God’s vocabulary. So, from time to time, I am going to post a word that I feel falls into this category. And my reasons for making this assumption. Today, in this inaugural post, I am going to start with the word abandon.
‘Abandon’, like many words, has several different meanings, depending upon how it is used. Two definitions I want to focus on are “to withdraw support from” or “to surrender one’s right or claim to”. In our culture (and I say this to our own detriment) abandon is a word that most people are familiar with. And with good reason. Sometimes when a spouse files for divorce, their ground for filing is abandonment. This abandonment is usually one of two forms. Physical abandonment, such as not providing any financial support. Or simply deserting the marriage altogether. Or it could be emotional abandonment, such as being aloof. Cold. Distant. Perhaps a more common example of abandonment is in regard to children. An unwanted child is abandoned by being left on a relative’s doorstep. Or to fend for themselves on the street. Every once in a while we read about a newborn who is abandoned in a dumpster. Or some similar place. Of course, some children suffer abandonment in the form of severe neglect. Or being totally unloved. So, yes, we know all about the word abandon.
So, does Jesus. That night in the Garden of Gethsemane. When His enemies came to arrest Him. Mark 14:50 is a fairly simple statement of what happened. “Then everyone deserted him and fled.” Pencil in ‘abandoned’. Hardly 12 hours later Jesus experienced abandonment once again. This time by His Heavenly Father. At the moment when Jesus took upon Himself all of the sins of humankind, yours and mine, God abandoned Him. In Matthew 27:46 Jesus utters perhaps the greatest cry of agony of the ages. “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” Once again, pencil in 'abandoned'. In an ultimate act of love, Jesus suffered abandonment from the Father so that we wouldn’t have to. So that we could be reconciled to God. Oh, how I love Jesus!
So, as a result of what Jesus did on the cross, abandon is not a word in God’s vocabulary. At least not to believers. Yes, He might abandon us to our willful, sinful ways at times. Meaning that He withdraws His support from us as we persist in sin. Yet He doesn’t abandon us in the sense that He disowns us. As Christians, God will never abandon us. Not now. Not ever. No matter what we do. No matter how many times we fail. And miserably at that. He will be always be with us. Convicting, yes. Disciplining, yes. But also forgiving. Strengthening. Comforting. Loving. What a great truth this is. A truth that we can count on. A truth that God wants others to experience as well.
‘Abandon’, like many words, has several different meanings, depending upon how it is used. Two definitions I want to focus on are “to withdraw support from” or “to surrender one’s right or claim to”. In our culture (and I say this to our own detriment) abandon is a word that most people are familiar with. And with good reason. Sometimes when a spouse files for divorce, their ground for filing is abandonment. This abandonment is usually one of two forms. Physical abandonment, such as not providing any financial support. Or simply deserting the marriage altogether. Or it could be emotional abandonment, such as being aloof. Cold. Distant. Perhaps a more common example of abandonment is in regard to children. An unwanted child is abandoned by being left on a relative’s doorstep. Or to fend for themselves on the street. Every once in a while we read about a newborn who is abandoned in a dumpster. Or some similar place. Of course, some children suffer abandonment in the form of severe neglect. Or being totally unloved. So, yes, we know all about the word abandon.
So, does Jesus. That night in the Garden of Gethsemane. When His enemies came to arrest Him. Mark 14:50 is a fairly simple statement of what happened. “Then everyone deserted him and fled.” Pencil in ‘abandoned’. Hardly 12 hours later Jesus experienced abandonment once again. This time by His Heavenly Father. At the moment when Jesus took upon Himself all of the sins of humankind, yours and mine, God abandoned Him. In Matthew 27:46 Jesus utters perhaps the greatest cry of agony of the ages. “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” Once again, pencil in 'abandoned'. In an ultimate act of love, Jesus suffered abandonment from the Father so that we wouldn’t have to. So that we could be reconciled to God. Oh, how I love Jesus!
So, as a result of what Jesus did on the cross, abandon is not a word in God’s vocabulary. At least not to believers. Yes, He might abandon us to our willful, sinful ways at times. Meaning that He withdraws His support from us as we persist in sin. Yet He doesn’t abandon us in the sense that He disowns us. As Christians, God will never abandon us. Not now. Not ever. No matter what we do. No matter how many times we fail. And miserably at that. He will be always be with us. Convicting, yes. Disciplining, yes. But also forgiving. Strengthening. Comforting. Loving. What a great truth this is. A truth that we can count on. A truth that God wants others to experience as well.
Lord, I thank you that though people might abandon me, You never will. You have promised to always be with me. And Your Spirit lives in me. This frees me up from the pressure of constantly seeking to earn Your Presence. I already have it. And for that I am eternally grateful. In Jesus' name, Amen.
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