The ‘With you’ God.
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16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” -
13 Shout for joy, you heavens;
rejoice, you earth;
burst into song, you mountains!
For the Lord comforts his people
and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me,
the Lord has forgotten me.”15 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!
16 See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are ever before me.
17 Your children hasten back,
and those who laid you waste depart from you.
18 Lift up your eyes and look around;
all your children gather and come to you.
As surely as I live,” declares the Lord,
“you will wear them all as ornaments;
you will put them on, like a bride.
These two readings sum up a recurring theme in my testimony and I hope it speaks into your own situation today. The Lord says in Isaiah 49v15 ‘Can a mother forget the baby at her breast..and have no compassion? Though she may forget, I will not forget you. See I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.’ Matthew 28v20 the Lord said as part of his great Commission, ‘I am with you always.’
Years ago, when I was lying crushed and paralysed on the steep bank at the foot of a ravine below Honister Pass in Cumbria’s Lake District, a Christian friend knelt over me and whispered in my ear – ‘do you feel the Lord’s presence with you?’ My instant inner response was this – ‘No, I do not feel his presence. I thought he was an eejit for asking me this question when I was fighting for my life. As soon as I entertained this negative thought, I sensed or perhaps actually heard a voice ‘I am with you always.’ Words the Holy Spirit spoke deep into my heart that reassured me and strengthened me for the way ahead both the immediacy of the time in survival mode in Intensive Care and for a life’s journey since then.
Despite my feelings of being crushed and alone and empty of all things spiritual the reality was that I was not alone that day. In those 5 words that kept me alive, surviving until I was blue lighted to Whitehaven Hospital – these 5 words reoriented everything I thought I knew. Matt 28:20, I am with you always.
Let’s break down the Gospel reading into these 5 words,
I am.
With.
You.
Always.
I Am of course, is GOD
As I lay on that bank at Honister Pass, God was present and feeding me the bread of heaven – word of God to keep me alive. It is not as if I was lying there thinking, ‘I’m in trouble here, I’d better think of some Bible verses.’ No, the Holy spirit was present, reassuring me, strengthening me with the Word: Matt 28:20 ‘I am with you always.’ Broken, cold, soaked and confused the only one who could help me at that time was Almighty God who so spoke deep into my heart, I am with you,’ hallelujah – he was all I needed. And there is another word - with
With
From before creation to the incarnation of Jesus, God in the flesh we have constant reminders in the Bible of God’ being with us. Heb 2:17 ‘ "Fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people."
Jesus was one of us, he knows our temptations and sorrows and limitations. He lived the righteous life we should have lived. He took all our sin and shame on the cross so that we can receive his righteous presence within us. His name Immanuel means God is with us. ‘With,’ means we are not alone no matter what our circumstances or how we feel. God is with us in our loneliness. With us in sadness. With us even if we cant sense that He is there. God is with us in our times of temptation and even failure.
God is with us when others abandons us, with us when others speak harshly or wrongly about us. Withness when the storms are raging and the waves overwhelming. His withness says peace be still. Withness in our everyday daily routines and the ordinariness of life. Withness promises when he re-appears, ‘we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.’
You
You is personal. In my life’s journey, which included kneeling at my bed as a young boy and inviting Jesus into my life. That journey as a young Christian included spiritual highs Holy Spirit kind, highs of sporting achievements and travel joys. There were lows of sin and selfishness and sadness.
Always - Matthew 28v20 “I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
If you think about it, ‘Always’ in the context of the great commission does not add anything to the meaning of his statement except for emphasis. I am with you – stands alone as a promise but ‘Always’ is reassuring.
Here is the link to our Old Testament reading. In Isaiah 49:15, see how the prophet responds to the idea that God has ‘forsaken and forgotten’ them (v14).
Had he forgotten me when the car careered off the road? God gives a picture in reply. How could he forget us if he is with us? The picture God gives is about a Tattoo. Has anyone got a tattoo?
The Israelites knew that the Babylonians tattooed the name of their god on their hands to remind them who they belonged. So, we could tattoo JESUS on our hands to say we are Christians.
BUT [the surprise is this] that’s NOT what God is saying here. God says, “I have engraved you on the palms of my hands”. God is saying I love you so much I am so certain of the permanence of our relationship, I have engraved you on my hands. God is saying I cannot & will not forget you.
That is what I am with you always means to me.
That is how it was for me as I heard his voice on Honister’s bank – it was that one word ‘Always’ that reassured me. He didn’t leave me as the car careered off the road; he is with me ‘always.’
Always means the risen Jesus through the Holy Spirit never leaves us and never fails us.
He always guides and strengthens us.
Always turns sadness into joy and mourning into dancing.
Always means we have the peace that is beyond understanding.
Always means he is here with us as we celebrate Holy Communion today.
Cover Photo Jason Swain Photography https://jasonswain.co.uk/
