Will We Leave God?

In John 16:32, Jesus is talking to His disciples. At first look, one might think that He is rebuking them.

Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. 

When you look at the entire passage, you will see that their faith was real, but was disordered and unfocused, and they were loosing in the important realities of life. They were scattered to their own concerns and they had interests apart from Jesus Christ.

After we have the perfect relationship with God, through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, our faith must be exercised in the realities of everyday life. We will be scattered, not into service but into the emptiness of our lives where we will see ruin and barrenness. This is what internal death to God’s blessings means. Are we prepared for this? It is certainly not of our own choosing, but God engineers our circumstances to take us there. Until we have been through that experience, our faith is sustained only by feelings and by blessings. But once we get there, no matter where God may place us or what inner emptiness we experience, we can praise God that all is well. That is what is meant by faith being exercised in the realities of life.

“. . . you . . . will leave Me alone.” Have you been scattered and have you left Jesus alone by not seeing His providential care for you? Do you not see God at work in your circumstances? Dark times are allowed and come to us through the sovereignty of God. Are you prepared to let God do what He wants with you? Are you prepared to be separated from the outward, evident blessings of God? Until Jesus Christ truly becomes our Lord, we each have values and goal that are of our own making. And we will spend most of our time serving them.

 Our faith is real, but it is not yet permanent. And God is never in a hurry. If we are willing to wait, we will see God pointing out that we have been interested only in His blessings, instead of in God Himself. The sense of God’s blessings is fundamental

“. . . be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Unyielding spiritual fortitude is what we need.