“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Psalm 22:1).
Dear Praying Friends:
This cry of desolation was quoted by Jesus on the Cross (Matthew 27:46).
Sometimes God’s people also feel as if God has forsaken them. When temptations overtake us, suffering overcomes us, or intense pain overpowers us, it is easy to wonder whether God has forgotten us, or – worse – that perhaps he doesn’t even love us.
At these times, we need to remember two things: (1) God the Father really did forsake and abandon his Son Jesus for a while, as the Lamb of God absorbed the full wrath of God for our sins, taking the penalty we deserve (1 Peter 2:24-25; 3:18). (2) Because of the sacrifice of Christ, we have peace with God, and now nothing can separate us from his love for us in Christ Jesus (Romans 5:1; 8:35-39).
Therefore, we can fully trust Jesus’s words, “Lo, I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20) and the promise that God made long ago, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:5; Hebrews 13:5). No matter what happens, he is with us! Our loving Father may discipline us in order to advance our holiness (Hebrews 12:3-11), but he will never abandon us.
“Fear not, for I am with you” (Isaiah 41:10).
Yours in his faithful presence,
Wright