The word alone describes the absence of no one present but you. However, I have found that you can be alone even in a crowd of people. I have found myself in situations where I was surrounded by people, people laughing, talking, and seemingly connecting, yet I felt alone. As a Christian, if I am seeking to represent Christ to others, there may be many times in your life where you are placed in situations where you are the only Christian in a crowd. This feeling may cause you to want to leave, but remember, you are never alone if you have Jesus as your Savior. Jesus understands because He, too, was left alone, yet He did not abandon His mission. He knew his death was imminent, but He continued.
In Matthew chapter 26, Jesus finished the Passover meal with His disciples and then went to the garden to pray. After finishing the meal, He foretold of His death, resurrection, and His being abandoned by all. Peter speaks and declares that he will never be ashamed of being His disciple. Later, Peter and all the disciples proclaim that they will die with Him and never deny Him. They intended to be with Him all their lives. All but Judas proceeded to the garden with Jesus to pray, but it wasn’t long until Jesus was arrested, and all the disciples fled from Him.
Matthew 26:33 “Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.”
Matthew 26:35: “Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise, also said all the disciples.”
Matthew 26:56: “But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.”
Now, Jesus was left alone to face His persecutors. A week earlier, He was hailed as King of Israel. The people greeted Him with palm branches and cried, “Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel.” Now, He is about to suffer not because of anything He did but because of His love for us. This proclaimed King would soon be left alone by everyone.
John 12:12-13 “On the next day many people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.”
While His physical pain was excruciating, it could not compare to the pain of being totally alone yet surrounded by many. However, the worst feeling of loneliness came when His Father turned His back on Him while on the cross. The holiness of God cannot be in the presence of sin, yet our sin forced the separation of God the Father and God the Son. This pain is beyond our comprehension. He suffered a pain that we, as Christians, will never suffer. In Hebrews 13:5, Deuteronomy 31:6, and Joshua 1:5, we find that God will never forsake us. We will never be alone!
Hebrews 13:5b “ for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
If you feel alone, don’t despair you are in good company. Christ suffered the loneliness of friends forsaking Him. As an adult, he had no home of His own. His own people would not receive Him. He created the world, yet there was no place for Him in it. His own Father had to turn away from Him because of our sins. The cross was hideous and gruesome, but beautiful because of the hope that it brought us. We may feel alone in a crowd of people, but thanks to Jesus, we are never truly alone.
Matthew 8:20: “And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.”
John 1:10-11 “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”
