DEALING WITH ABANDONMENT! The feeling of abandonment occurs when someone feels deserted, rejected, or neglected by someone or a group they were emotionally attached to or relied upon.

We continue our study of the three angels’ messages in Revelation 14; within this context, we look at the final conflict between good and evil, God and Satan, the seal of God, and the Mark of the Beast.

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Let Us Invite God’s Presence:

Holy Father, when darkness seems to prevail, helps us keep our eyes focused on you and turn to you just like the flower turns to the sun. In Jesus’ Name Amen

Abandonment can stem from various situations, such as the loss of a loved one, the end of a romantic relationship, the betrayal of a friend, or the experience of neglect or abuse.

Matthew 27:45–50 teaches us about Christ’s experience of abandonment on the cross. It shows that even when Jesus felt abandoned and forsaken, He did not give up. This scene of Christ on the cross helps us understand what it means to have “the faith of Jesus” even when we feel abandoned.

45 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.

46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

47 Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!”

48 Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.

49 The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.”

50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit. (Matthew 27:45–50).

When Jesus hung on the cross, darkness was all around Him. He accepted the guilt, shame, and condemnation of the sins of the world. It was during this time that Jesus felt like he was abandoned, forsaken, and shut off from His Father’s love.

However, Jesus had, throughout his life, depended completely on God. His love for God and His total dependence on God prepared Him to go through the worst experience in His life, the feeling of complete separation from His Father.  Even then, when it looked like everyone had abandoned him, including his Father, He did not give up. He maintained his trust in God.

Ellen White, in the book Triumphant, says: “Darkness was everywhere. It looked as if God had left Jesus forever. Jesus had accepted the worst of human suffering and pain. In those awful hours, Jesus depended on proof of His Father’s love. . . . By faith, Jesus won.”—Ellen G. White, Christ Triumphant, page 277, adapted.

Faith of Jesus is what we will need in tough times. Describing the faith of Jesus, It is said that “the faith of Jesus is so deep, so trusting, so committed, that all the demons in the cosmos and all the trials on earth cannot shake it. It is a faith that trusts when it cannot see, believes when it cannot understand, it hangs on when there is little to hang on to.”

In other words, this kind of faith involves trusting what we can’t see. Trusting and believing what we can’t understand. Holding on to God’s unchanging hand when it seems as though there is little to hold on to. Trusting when it seems that all your friends and loves have abandoned you.

This is a gift that we receive by faith only from God. Why do we need this kind of faith? This faith will carry us through the terrible times just ahead of us when it seems that all our friends and loved ones are gone. It will help us stay focused on our mission, and it will help us keep our eyes on God, our Creator, even when we cannot see him or trace him. This faith helps us to worship Jesus, knowing that He won the battle with the enemy even when he felt abandoned by His Father. This faith will help us remain steadfast and unmovable even when the mark of the beast is enforced and those around give in under the pressure of being unable to buy or sell.

At the same time, this gift of faith that God has given us requires time to grow.  Learning to live by faith does not happen overnight. Learning to live by faith is something we practice daily. We show our faith in good times, in bad times, and under the pressure of being abandoned by our closest friends. We show our faith when we trust that God is near, although He seems far away. 

The point is that how we feel does not matter. We cannot go by our feeling and emotion in a time of crisis because our feelings and emotions will mislead us or misguide us. But the Bible tells us in Galatians 3:11 and Habakkuk 2:4, “the just live by faith.” So the time to develop this faith is not tomorrow but right now. 

 Every test, every trial of abandonment we face now, if we endure in faith, is strengthened. We are then prepared for the next trial. What’s more, with each new trial, our character is being developed whereby we are producing the precious fruit of the Holy Spirit, love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

We will need these qualities to avoid giving in under the enforcements of the mark-of-the-beast.  The mark of the beast is Satan’s final attack on God’s people. It is all about worship.

It is the final link in an ungodly chain that is designed to force everyone to conform to a certain set of beliefs and an approved system of worship. How do we prepare now to endure and not compromise our faith in God during this most trying time?  View Part 4: The Ungodly Chain,

Hebron Seventh-day Adventist Church

 7902 Wheatly Street

Houston, TX 77088

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