When God Betrays
May 18, 2009
Matthew 27:46 "About 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?""
There will come a time and a day, if it hasn't already, when you will be completely abandoned and betrayed by God. Well, not really. It will FEEL like God has betrayed you. You will feel so dark and depressed and hopeless and lost and alone. You will cry out to God and you will hear silence. You will scream aloud for the Lord, Almighty, to hear your begging, but you will not get a reply and your prayer will go unanswered. You will shake your fist in the air, daring God to come down to save you if He is able, but He will stay enthroned in Heaven. Every one of you reading this knows exactly what I mean. You will feel betrayed by the one who was never suppose to let you down; you will feel abandoned by God.
Jesus felt this way. Jesus felt the emptiness and aloneness that you and I have faced. Jesus knew what if felt like to be betrayed by God. Jesus was left to die alone on a cross, bearing the weight of the world on His shoulders. He cried out to God, wondering why God had forsaken Him. Even though Jesus spoke those words from the pit of loneliness and despair, He was actually quoting scripture. The words He uttered on the cross were written by King David, when David felt betrayed, probably a thousand years before Jesus was born. Jesus was telling you and I that He knew what David felt like, what you and I have felt like. Jesus felt that feeling of betrayal, when God brings you to a place of suffering and then leaves you there, unwilling to rescue you.
You will question why God brought you to that forsaken land and left you there. You will question why God allowed your spouse to leave you. You will question why God allowed your child to die. You will question why God allowed such a horrible thing to happen to you. You will question why, in your darkest hour, why God did not come down to rescue you from that terrible situation. You will scream out to God, begging for His help, but He will be silent. If you haven't felt this already, you will. Jesus felt it. It is an awful, wretched feeling, where you cannot imagine the depths of Hell burning as badly as you burn inside for God to help you.
Christian, you are not alone. Jesus felt that way and EVERY Christian out there has felt that way. Everyone has felt betrayed by God; this is not a new experience. You may feel that way right now. Rest assured, however, that God has not forsaken you. You may feel like God has abandoned or betrayed you, but God has not. At the deepest, darkest hour in your life, one thing will always be true. God will be in control. God was in control when Jesus suffered on the cross and God is in control through the pain you are experiencing right now.
God has a promise for you right now. Never will He leave you or forsake you. You may not understand how God works or why He allows things to happen, but your situation is not beyond His knowledge or reach. Like Jesus' death on the cross, your deepest, darkest hour might be for an amazing resurrection story. Trust that God IS in control. Allow your feelings of betrayal to be just that, a feeling.
1. When and where have you felt betrayed by God?
2. Can you believe that God is still in control?
3. Believe right now that God CAN redeem that feeling?
Add. Scriptures for Study: Ps 9:10, Ps 22:1, Ps 94:14, Mark 15:34
May 18, 2009
Matthew 27:46 "About 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?""
There will come a time and a day, if it hasn't already, when you will be completely abandoned and betrayed by God. Well, not really. It will FEEL like God has betrayed you. You will feel so dark and depressed and hopeless and lost and alone. You will cry out to God and you will hear silence. You will scream aloud for the Lord, Almighty, to hear your begging, but you will not get a reply and your prayer will go unanswered. You will shake your fist in the air, daring God to come down to save you if He is able, but He will stay enthroned in Heaven. Every one of you reading this knows exactly what I mean. You will feel betrayed by the one who was never suppose to let you down; you will feel abandoned by God.
Jesus felt this way. Jesus felt the emptiness and aloneness that you and I have faced. Jesus knew what if felt like to be betrayed by God. Jesus was left to die alone on a cross, bearing the weight of the world on His shoulders. He cried out to God, wondering why God had forsaken Him. Even though Jesus spoke those words from the pit of loneliness and despair, He was actually quoting scripture. The words He uttered on the cross were written by King David, when David felt betrayed, probably a thousand years before Jesus was born. Jesus was telling you and I that He knew what David felt like, what you and I have felt like. Jesus felt that feeling of betrayal, when God brings you to a place of suffering and then leaves you there, unwilling to rescue you.
You will question why God brought you to that forsaken land and left you there. You will question why God allowed your spouse to leave you. You will question why God allowed your child to die. You will question why God allowed such a horrible thing to happen to you. You will question why, in your darkest hour, why God did not come down to rescue you from that terrible situation. You will scream out to God, begging for His help, but He will be silent. If you haven't felt this already, you will. Jesus felt it. It is an awful, wretched feeling, where you cannot imagine the depths of Hell burning as badly as you burn inside for God to help you.
Christian, you are not alone. Jesus felt that way and EVERY Christian out there has felt that way. Everyone has felt betrayed by God; this is not a new experience. You may feel that way right now. Rest assured, however, that God has not forsaken you. You may feel like God has abandoned or betrayed you, but God has not. At the deepest, darkest hour in your life, one thing will always be true. God will be in control. God was in control when Jesus suffered on the cross and God is in control through the pain you are experiencing right now.
God has a promise for you right now. Never will He leave you or forsake you. You may not understand how God works or why He allows things to happen, but your situation is not beyond His knowledge or reach. Like Jesus' death on the cross, your deepest, darkest hour might be for an amazing resurrection story. Trust that God IS in control. Allow your feelings of betrayal to be just that, a feeling.
1. When and where have you felt betrayed by God?
2. Can you believe that God is still in control?
3. Believe right now that God CAN redeem that feeling?
Add. Scriptures for Study: Ps 9:10, Ps 22:1, Ps 94:14, Mark 15:34
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