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I know I do. And I think God does, too.
The author of Hebrews writes:
“This High Priest of ours [Jesus] understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.” (Hebrews 4:15 NLT).
Jesus, being fully God and yet fully man, felt all the emotions we do (which is a piece of God’s image, by the way), but he also felt things like hunger, the need to go to the bathroom, sweat dripping down his face and his back. And he felt pain and sickness.
I believe he also felt lonely. I think he felt alone even before creation.
God made mankind because he desired to have a relationship with people, to feel loved and to be worshiped out of sincere love.
And when he made Adam, the first man, he provided a “suitable helpmate” for him, Eve, as it was not good for man to be alone (Genesis 2:18). Marriage was the FIRST institution God made because he knew what it felt like to be lonely.
Furthermore, he designed the human body to reproduce and to have offspring to create a family unit, where the first twenty-some years of your life you literally have parents and/or siblings to help guide you.
And then, in the New Testament, the family unit gets even bigger when God made the church – a people group of all tongues, tribes and nations, but individually, a collective group locally that helps support and grow Christians into maturity.
A specific incident where I can literally put my finger down on a chapter of Scripture where God felt lonely is in the Garden of Gethsemane, right before Christ was arrested.
The disciples had just taken part in the first Lord’s Supper and Jesus had also washed their feet. Now, they were in the garden as their Lord and teacher was troubled and liked to seek quiet to pray.
He left eight of them behind and selected his three best friends – James, John and Peter – to go deeper into the garden with him.
Then, in the book of Matthew, it says: “[Jesus] became anguished and distressed. ****He told them, ‘My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.’” (Matthew 26:37-38 NLT).
Jesus, God himself, was anguished, distressed and crushed with grief to the point of despair. He knew what was about to happen: his arrest and crucifixion. And he was literally sweating blood.
He didn’t want to be alone – “Stay here . . . with me.”
When you were a kid, and you had a nightmare, did you run to your parents’ bedroom and climb into bed with them? It felt safer, didn’t it? Those bad dreams couldn’t hurt you while you were ensconced in the warmth of having your mom and/or dad sleeping by your side.
When you hear something rattle outside or have to kill something scary (like a snake or a massive spider), do you like to do it alone? Or would you rather have backup with you?
The wisest man who ever lived (Solomon) once said: *“A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12).*
We were not made to be alone.
God himself didn’t like to be alone when he was wrecked with grief and anxiety.
There’s a reason prison uses solitary as punishment… people literally will go mad if they are left by themselves for too long.
When we are crushed with grief or even overwhelmed emotionally, we should reach out to whoever our James, John and Peter are.
We should seek comfort and peace in prayer, like Jesus did.
We shouldn’t face the rough spots of life without a friend, a family member, a spouse, a church or God himself.
When we are literally isolated and alone, that’s when we are the most vulnerable to Satan’s lies, deception or temptation.
So remember . . .
if you feel alone today,
if you feel separated from your friends,
if you feel separated from your family,
if you feel isolated from your spouse,
if you haven’t found a church home,
God is always, always, with us.
“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.” (Deuteronomy 31:8 NIV).
Copyright © 2020 by Melody Turner @ https://honest-maybe-relatable.com/2020/06/19/never-alone/. Used with permission.
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