Last week, we

learned how we were created with the need for relationships – with God and with

one another.  No matter what relationship

it may be – with God, coworkers, spouses, class mates, friends, children,

neighbors, etc. understanding is critically important for us to possess.

This morning, we’re

continuing on the theme of relationships as we begin to understand more fully

one of the best known promises of God. 

Before we can fully appreciate this promise for the amazing blessing

that it is, we must first must be aware of what we lack without it.

Perhaps one of the

worst and most painful feelings in the world is loneliness.  Having been created by God for healthy

relationships, being lonely is like slowly suffocating.  It kills from the inside out and the one

suffering this agony often shows no outward symptoms at all.  They just silently and quietly suffer

sometimes even with a smile on their face.

In fact, the most

painful moments experienced with loneliness isn’t when we have no one around

us, but when we are surrounded by people who make us feel alone.  It’s when you encounter that person that you

used to be so close to who now wants nothing to do with you.  Rejection and loneliness are very close and

dark companions.

If loneliness is a

spike, rejection is the sledgehammer driving it to deeply pierce our souls.

Loneliness and

rejection are often the end results of not being understood.  In fact, the times when we often feel the

loneliest are when we are surrounded by people who simply do not understand us.  They laugh and scoff out of ignorance of what

we are going through; disregarding and discounting us.

Perhaps even your

faith has made you feel this way at times even when surrounded by others.

Elijah felt just

this way.  In fact, he had a pretty

well-rehearsed lament about it.  Three

times he complained that he was the only one left faithful to God.  After his amazing show down with the prophets

of Baal, God assured Elijah that there were actually still 7,000 faithful to

Him.  Though this may have been true,

Elijah’s reality from his perspective was that he was all alone literally

fleeing for his life from Jezebel.

Paul wrote to remind

us about this fact:

Hebrews 4:14-16

14 Therefore, since

we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God,

let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest

who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been

tempted in every way, just as we are – yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then

approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy

and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Even in our darkest

moments when we feel as if though we have no one on this earth or no purpose

for our lives, Jesus can empathize with us. 

We see pictures of Jesus being a strong and attractive man full of

compassion that attracts everyone to Him. 

We read about thousands of people following Him.  It’s easy to think that there is no way that

He could possibly relate to feeling that way. 

Isaiah prophesied

about Jesus, however, a bit of a different picture:

Isaiah 53:2-6

2 He grew up before

him like a tender shoot,

    and like a root out of dry ground.

He had no beauty or

majesty to attract us to him,

    nothing in his appearance that we should

desire him.

3 He was despised

and rejected by mankind,

    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.

Like one from whom

people hide their faces

    he was despised, and we held him in low

esteem.

4 Surely he took up

our pain

    and bore our suffering,

yet we considered

him punished by God,

    stricken by him, and afflicted.

5 But he was pierced

for our transgressions,

    he was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that

brought us peace was on him,

    and by his wounds we are healed.

Jesus may have been

surrounded by people, but they were people who simply