Loneliness
“I will not leave you orphans;” John 14:18
Orphans – The world is a lonely place. In fact, loneliness covers the globe in pandemic proportions. The prince of this world has done his best to separate us, driving wedges of despair and abandonment deep into even the closest relationships. Just a little self-reflection confirms the infection. There is loneliness lurking beneath the surface of our souls.
Only Yeshua can cure this kind of desperation. But the way that He claims to be able to do so is surprising. After all, orphans are orphans because they lack parents, not friends. Yeshua does not cure our essential loneliness by being our friend. He is a friend indeed, but if He were only a friend, we would still be orphans. No, in this statement, He claims to renew our relationship with the Father. He claims that He is able to return us to the family tie we are missing. He will not leave us orphans because He has the power to send the Spirit and the Spirit revives our long-dead relationship with God the Father. But that’s not quite the end of the story.
Did you notice Yeshua’s statement implies that we are orphans? He proclaims that He will not leave us in that condition, but, of course, that implies we already are orphaned. What conditions apply that make us orphans? Well, usually an orphan is one whose parents have died, but in this case, just the opposite is true. We are orphans because we have died. The Father still lives. He waits patiently for our return. He has never abandoned us. We wandered away. We left for a far country. We separated ourselves from His love and care – and in the process, we died. We are orphans because we have died to the Father. Now we suffer the results of our abandonment. Loneliness leads us toward desperate attempts to recover what we lost, but the recovery is impossible because dead men cannot raise themselves. Someone else must come to our rescue.
When Yeshua returns us to our Father, when He brings about the transformation that converts us from being orphans to being children with a parent, He actually resurrects us from the dead. No one comes back to the parent-child relationship with the Father except through Yeshua (John 14:6). Dead men are dead. They remain dead until Yeshua revives them. Loneliness is merely a symptom of a far greater disease – death! Without Yeshua’s provision, the disease will run its course.
This truth provides us with another insight. I won’t find a cure for my existential loneliness anywhere else. All other relationships simply mask the symptoms of this killer disease. All other solutions will ultimately fail. If I rely on my capacity for human contact and your response to human need, I will still be lonely. Someday the emptiness inside will overcome me again. Without a Father, I will be an orphan no matter how many friends, lovers and acquaintances I have. Without Yeshua’s restoration, I will follow the path of Cain, condemned to wander the wastelands of the soul in search of a city not made by human hands.
Topical Index: loneliness, orphans, John 14:18
orphans- orphanos- without a Father, comfortless, parentless.
G-d knows our condition and He knows our need. He is above all things, G-d the Father. G-d the Father, G-d the Son, and G-d the Spirit. A plurality in unity, but before all things- G-d our Father. Abba, Father, to those who have been twice-born. (you must be born again!).
Hell is a place of loneliness. There are those who jokingly say, “well, at least in Hell I’ll be with all my friends.” No, this is not so. Hell is a place of the “blackness of darkness”, to abide forever, alone. There is no comfort in hell. It is a burning garbage dump. Total abandonment. Total separation from G-d. Total separation from Light. Total separation from Love. Total separation from Life. Our Bible says, there will be weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth. An interesting phrase “gnashing of teeth”. Why this behavior? Is it because Hell will be a place of eternal remembrance and regret?
Our G-d is the G-d of all comfort. (2 Corinthians 1.3) Who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God? (v.4) -just askin’..
I love the “part B” to this verse. “I will come to you.” The Living Word Himself will be our comfort. Amazing.
Does G-d ever lie? According to Numbers 23.19 the answer is “no.” That being said, we who are the children of YHWH (by the new birth) may expect the promise of John 14.18- “I will come to you.”
The very Presence of the Annointed One is our expectation this very day. Ask and you will receive. -After all, “it is written”, and G-d is not capable of a lie.
Thank you Father for the honor of being your son. Thank you Abba, for the access you have given unto us, your children. Thank you for the comfort of the Scriptures and the strength you give unto us, moment by moment for our journey here today. Guide us and guard our way. We come unto you our Father as orphaned children, looking unto You, our Abba, for your provision, your protection, your Providence, Presence and Peace. Thank you for the comfort, strength and sustenance we find in your holy Word, both written and Living. Amen.
Shalom one and all,
As Skip points out the only way to the Father is through and IN Yeshua!
John 14:18 is however part of a broader revelation from Yeshua which depicts how we become “echad” (one) in Him, and through Him we become echad with HaAv (The Father).
And what does Yeshua reveal?
|15| If you have love for me (Yeshua), you will be shomer mitzvot (keep His commandments)
|16| Yeshua will ask The Father to send the advocate …. His Ruach
|19| Since Yeshua lives we also will live (be transformed from death to life)
|20| We will have knowledge of Yeshua being in The Father and Yeshua being is in us
|21| The one who keeps the commandments is the one who loves Yeshua and will receive the love from The Father and Yeshua … and Yeshua will manifest Himself to us
|23| Yeshua declares that the one who keeps His word is the one who loves Him; and Yeshua and The Father will come and abide in the person.
|24| The one who does not keep Yeshua’s Words does not love Yeshua
Now despite numerous teachings to the contrary, it would seem obvious that Torah is integral to the B’rit Chadasha (New Testament). In fact Yeshua declares that obedience to the mitzvot (commandments) is the verification of one’s love for Him and The Father. It would seem that Torah is indeed integral to a true believer’s faith!
We should be asking The Father in the Name of Yeshua to give us the wisdom and Spirit to keep His mitzvot … since this is how Yeshua gauges who really loves Him and this is how the world will know we are children of The Most High ELOHIM!
“As Skip points out the only way to the Father is through and IN Yeshua!”
Hi Drew,
I agree but isn’t the converse also true, the only way to Yeshua is through and IN the Father? Sort of like the “flip side” of a coin. You can’t have one without the other.
John 14:10 “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me?
Brother Michael,
Actually I would have to disagree! Yes indeed The Father gives all things unto The Son but Scripture is clear that none other than Yeshua has been to The Father. The Father knows us long before we are born but we do not know Him. We come to know Him through The Son.
To be echad with The Father we must first be one with Yeshua. We were only given the right to be a child of The Father because of Yeshua! Because of the unity of ELOHIM we do come into relationship with The Father when we come into relationship with Yeshua …. but we can not go directly to The Father ourselves without the Grace of Yeshua protecting us!
Shalom
-but we can not go directly to The Father ourselves without the Grace of Yeshua protecting us!-
and (praise His name)- the propitiating blood of the Atoning Sacrifice covering us!.. (but we do have access to the Father!) Yeshua is The Way!
“can not go directly to The Father”
Hi Drew and Carl,
Seems to me that we see things differently on this particular issue. In my view, when it comes to the interpretation of texts, it is easier to prove an interpretation is invalid than it is to prove that it is valid. In my experience, there almost always seems to be be some room for disagreement.
That said, I think would be helpful if you could use some textual evidence to support your thesis. A little “show and tell.”
For example, I would argue that “David” is going directly to the Father in the following passage:
To you I will cry, YHWH my rock. Do not be silent to me, lest, if you are silent to me, I become like those who go down into the pit. Psalm 28:1
Hello again Michael,
The short version! 🙂
Matthew: 11:27 All things are delivered unto me (Yeshua) of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
John: 6:28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of Elohim? 6:29 Yeshua answered and said unto them, This is the work of Elohim, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. ….. 6:32 Then Yeshua said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. 6:33 For the bread of Elohim is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 6:34 Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. 6:35 And Yeshua said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst …. 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 6:39 And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.
John: 14:6 Yeshua saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
John: 17:24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world. 17:25 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me. 17:26 And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.
And we could go on and on! Regarding approaching The Father … it is not possible in a state of imperfection and sin! We would be consumed by ELOHIM’s perfection and glory! Only through the covering of Yeshua can we be spared!
The path for humans is through Yeshua … the One Whose very essence is in us … John: 1:9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
Yeshua even tells us to ask The Father IN HIS NAME for what we need! And of course we are in a relationship with the Father once we come into a relationship with Yeshua …. They are echad and we are missing out on nothing being the slave of Yeshua our Master, Lord and G_D!
There is at least one cent if not two! 🙂
Shalom
“Matthew: 11:27 All things are delivered unto me (Yeshua) of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.”
Hi Drew,
Very good textual evidence 🙂
I agree brother Michael, it is always good to have a “textual reference” because the word of the LORD is our standard. (Psalm 119)
Starting in Genesis 1:1 (the creation) and until the last Amen in the closing book of the Revelation (the crowning) we who have been walking in the Way and who are followers of Yeshua will testify to the life-changing power contained within a very special book. This particular book is not like any other. This is because it is G-d’s book. It is His revelation of Himself to us. It is a book of history yes, but even more so, it is actually His story. I have read many “good” books, but this particular “good book” reads me.
It is written:
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Hebrews 4.12)
(Jeremiah 23:29) “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?
(Ephesians 5:26) so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
“so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55.11)
“so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55.11)
Hi Carl,
When you say: this particular “good book” reads me; I’m assuming that you mean that, for example, the words above come through you with some special meaning or significance.
That in a sense you are acting as a kind of surrogate for Isaiah, receiving God’s words and forwarding them to this community and me.
I’m no expert on this passage, but it seems to me like Yahweh is speaking to Israel through Isaiah, and that He is assuring the people of Israel that His word cannot fail.
In my reading, I get the feeling that Isaiah is directly connected to God and that from a historical perspective, Yeshua is not known.
But from John’s perspective, Yeshua and Yahweh are one and the same or so it seems.
Michael you get the feeling that Isaiah is directly connected to God and that from a historical perspective, Yeshua is not known.”
Simply because there was not knowledge of “The Son” revealed or grasped, does not change the reality that all dealings were with The Son! Additionally it certainly seems as if Isaiah knew the Savior would be G_D!
Isaiah 7,14 Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: behold, the young woman shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanu-el.
Isaiah 9,5 For a child is born unto us, a son is given unto us; and the government is upon his shoulder; and his name is called Pele-joez-el-gibbor-Abi-ad-sar-shalom.
In Psalm 110 it seems as if David is well aware of “The Son” … and on and on!
Yeshua is always there … at the creation, appearing as the “Angel Of The Lord, wrestling with Jacob, protecting the Israelites while escaping Egypt, Saving us from sin and death and of course He will be there at the end … He is the alpha and omega! Or the Aleph and Tau!
Yeshua is our EVERYTHING and this is according to the will and authority of ELOHIM!
Just want to add this thought about prophetic passage of Scripture. Nearly all prophecies have multiple layers of meaning. So, they have application in the time and culture of the delivery of the prophecy and, later, are also recognized as unfolding something that wasn’t seen at the time of delivery. Consider Psalm 22. When David wrote the Psalm, it would not have been possible to apply it to the event of the crucifixion. Readers might have recognized that it was odd because it did not directly fit the life of David, but they would have been at a loss about exactly where it did fit until Yeshua made it applicable to Himself. Then the secondary meaning became clear and the odd relationship in the original temporal application were resolved.
We can apply the same interpretative scheme to Isaiah. At one level, Isaiah is speaking about the birth of a real son in his time and the outcome of that event for Israel in his time. But the New Testament authors read more in the verse, applying it to Yeshua. This is reading backwards, an art that requires that past material be understood in new ways through hindsight. The Netzarim Keutvim is particular good at this backwards reading. Remember, however, that suggesting the ORIGINAL sense of the text always pointed to events that occurred hundreds of years later implies that when the text was delivered it was nonsense, unintelligible gibberish. Of course, that is not the case. So, we must deal with this passage at two levels (or more) if we are going to understand how they fit into the larger picture.
I agree, Skip. The Rabbis teach that there are four levels of interpretation of scripture, which they describe using the acronym “PaRDeS”. They are:
Pashat – the literal meaning of the text as it is read.
Remez – the hint level, “Reading between the lines” so to speak
Drash – the practical application to current situations (which is where we get the term Midrash, or teaching “out of” drash).
Sod – the mysterious level – a much deeper non literal understanding from the text (as Paul says, “Behold I show you a mystery, I am speaking of Christ and the Church”).
Paul and the other NT writers used all of these in their writings and the readers of their original autograps, being Torah-observant Jewish believers and/or proselytes (who met in the synagogues) would have been well versed in these techniques.
Is Sodom a twisted sod?
Shema, O Israel, Yeshua and Yahweh are One!! The Logos incarnated into flesh! The LORD, He is G-d!
Drew.. I’ve never heard this passage of Isaiah referring to Hashem as written: Pele-joez-el-gibbor-Abi-ad-sar-shalom. I do believe, if we did actually pronounce “the Name”, we would run out of breath before we were finished with it. My full name is “Carl Elton Roberts”. G-d’s “full name” we do not (yet) know “fully”. It is a marvelous thing to consider this “Name” though- maybe (Skip) in days yet to be, -we could “sneak-a-peak?”
Carl … lol
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
A child …. and His name is …. Blessed is He Who comes in the name of The Lord!
Isaiah: 43,10 Ye are My witnesses, saith the LORD, and My servant whom I have chosen; that ye may know and believe Me, and understand that I am He; before Me there was no God formed, neither shall any be after Me. {S} 43,11 I, even I, am the LORD; and beside Me there is no saviour. 43,12 I have declared, and I have saved, and I have announced, and there was no strange god among you; therefore ye are My witnesses, saith the LORD, and I am God. 43,13 Yea, since the day was I am He, and there is none that can deliver out of My hand; I will work, and who can reverse it?
Yes indeed Carl …. Sh’ma Yisrael! He is One and His Name is One!
A few years ago, I am sure Carl recalls, I did a full study of this name, one word at a time. Maybe I can find it and repost.
That would be very cool Skip!
That verse from Isaiah is simply astounding and it could not have been far from the thoughts of the talmid John when the 4th Gospel was penned! 🙂
OK, when I get home I’ll look for it.
I’ll look forward to hearing what you find. Thanks
WOW, lot’s happening on the website while I am traveling from Indonesia back to Singapore and then, finally, back home. There is a lot to comment on, but it will have to wait. Got to move once more. Soon I will have some time to catch up.
Skip
Wow, that really hits home. When do you think we left Him? Where did we reside with Him? In Adam’s loins in the Garden, or perhaps pre-Eden?
Thanks for this cool post. Anyway i found your blog on yahoo and find it very useful. I’ll be sure to come back again for more!