Abandoment and Adoption — Dean Taylor

Emotional Experiences in the Christian Life

The song that I asked Christian to sing is from the Isaiah concept of Jesus Christ being a man of sorrows. What a name. And as I've been going through this series, I've been looking at the times in our life when we have strong emotions.

And the first I hit on this feeling of joy, this feeling of praise of God, and how this is something God-given. This is something that God has given to us to rejoice in Him, and that this is part of the Christian experience.

I quoted a very good quote, I think from Jonathan Edwards, that said that just because somebody has a bunch of high, exciting emotions, I'm paraphrasing, doesn't necessarily mean that he's a Christian.

But, if somebody is a true Christian, he will have these kinds of emotions. So it's part of the inheritance, this passion to love God and to praise Him. The next message I went through, the ideas of depressions, the ups and downs that we have.

I talked about how some of those are from different thinking that we have, and different places in life that we may be in. I looked at the different possibilities of the chemistry and the science that also gets wrapped up in it, and how fearfully and wonderfully made we are, and how that is very true.

And saw that God works with us through these times. And so today I'm going to probably finish off the series in talking about that feeling of abandonment and adoption, and then finish off with the concept of spiritual anguish, if I get to it.

Abandonment, Adoption, and Spiritual Anguish

So the feeling, the sanctified feeling of abandonment. The sanctified feeling of abandonment and the spirit of adoption and anguish before the Lord. So let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, we thank You, Lord, that You have made us, O God, in such a way that is so fearfully and wonderfully made.

I thank You, God, that You wept over us, and I thank You, Lord, that You ever intercede before God on the throne, Lord, and that You do these things, Father. I thank You that as Satan will come against us in so many ways, we have a Savior that says, You're a man of sorrows.

Help us understand that, Lord, and help us to understand our emotions and to put it in the right place and not to be ruled by it and different things like that, O God, but to stand on the promises that You've given us in the scriptures and to serve You and to love You, as we heard this morning all through our life.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So first I want to look into this idea of the spirit of abandonment. I think we all know what it feels like to feel left out. You know, I think it's in every single, you know, it doesn't matter where you are in life, there's this sense of us that we want to feel like we're a part of the team.

And I'll say, I was just recently listening to, or a few months ago listening to a TED talk about a guy, I think the name of it was Why Soldiers Want to Return to War. It's the name of the TED talk. It's an excellent TED talk, absolutely incredible TED talk.

And in it he talks about this spirit of brotherhood and that it's this spirit of brotherhood that drives people to actually want to go back to crazy places like Afghanistan or something because of what they share in that sense of acceptance.

Well, that's one thing at a brotherly level, but even more so as a father. I tell you, at 54 years old now, I still absolutely treasure affirmation from my father. I treasure it. I still do many things in hoping that he'll say that.

And you know, he's from the 40s, and so it's, you know, they express themselves in a different way. But even the little things, I just relish them. The acceptance of a father, the blessings of a father.

And when we begin to feel for whatever things that are happening in our life, that we're not having that with our heavenly father, there's a deep anguish in us. And again, I look at the psalmist David and his way, his honesty that he brings before God, and I look at this as an example.

David's Honest Lament in Psalm 13

Look at Psalm 13. I've been quoting him of how David, how he deals with these emotions in this conversation that he has with himself. He has a whole idea in itself, this conversation with God and asking him why he feels this way and asking himself why he feels this way.

And I just so love the Psalms, how they wake us up to these ideas. And in Psalm 13, we have David expressing this kind of emotion that he's feeling abandoned by his father. And remember what he's going through with Saul and all the things of feeling rejected by Saul.

And now we hear the Psalm crying out in Psalm 13 verse one. How long, oh Lord, will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul? Anguish having sorrow in my heart daily.

How long will my enemy be exalted over me again? You see how he's giving counsel to his own soul. This is a habit that David has of speaking to those bad feelings that he has in his mind. I talked about that a little bit in the second message on depression, that David would speak to himself.

Why are you thinking this way? And he's saying, well, how long do I have to keep counseling myself that I feel this abandonment? Verse three, consider and hear me, oh Lord, my God, enlighten my eyes. Lest I sleep the sleep of death.

Lest my enemies say I have prevailed against him. Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved. And then I love how David brings it into the tabernacle and of his soul and looking to him in verse five.

But I have trusted in your mercy. My heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord because he has dealt bountifully with me. You see that in the midst of this anguish, this sense of rejection, he's quoting the promises of God.

Remember that Satan is entirely is spending his life. He's ever accusing the brethren day and night saying you're worthless. You can't do it. You've messed up too much. You've sinned too much. The God cannot look at you.

You're too dirty. You're what? These are the lies of the devil that make us feel the sense of rejection and abandonment. He reminds himself of the mercies of God, the salvation of his God. He sings to the Lord and remembers his treasure that he's given him.

It's precious. And it's an example for us of how to be, first of all, honest with that adoption or that sense of grief that we have. Having that conversation and bring it before the God, bring it before God.

The Dark Night of the Soul and Sanctified Abandonment

There's a road map that I see that I've seen some people fame different writers through history. Speak of this road map of what happens to us often in our spiritual journey. Turn to Song of Solomon chapter two.

Sometimes this passage has been called called by some like, for instance, John of the Cross as the dark night of the soul. He's a John of the Cross has a book called The Dark Night of the Soul, and others have talked, spoken of this passage.

And Wesley and Spurgeon and different ones have have spoken of this. And there's something. This is why I gave him the title, the sanctified abandonment. There's there's kind of a poor me abandonment, and that's real, too.

That's real. I mean, I think David sometimes, you know, you're just saying, I don't like what's happening. So God, you know, and he's speaking to himself, but here's something that many people, many writers through history has looked at.

Song of Solomon here as something as a road map of a journey that God may be taking you on in this sanctified spirit of abandonment and adoption. So I pick it up at verse seven. I love this. I would have written the numbers differently of Song of Solomon to seven, and then I take it down to Song of Solomon three, five.

And here's the road map. First of all, you have the road map of a new believer in Jesus Christ. You have the sense of joy. You have the sense of just everything goes right. And there is absolutely nothing that can go wrong.

And Song of Solomon to verse seven. You have the lover of the beloved crying out. I charge you, oh, daughters of Jerusalem. These are like her. What do you call those maids of? Yeah. Oh, daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles and by the does of the field.

Do not stir up nor awaken love until it pleases. Verse eleven. I skip down for low. The winter is past. The rain is over and gone. Praise God. The flowers appear on the earth. Verse twelve. The time of singing has come and the voice of the turtle dove is heard in the land.

The fig tree puts forth her green figs and the vines with the tender grapes. Give a good smell. Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. Oh, my dove. Verse fourteen. And the cleft of the rock in the secret places of the cliff.

Let me see your face. Let me hear your voice for your voice is sweet and your face is lovely. This is just gushy. It's beautiful. It's just that incredible when things are just going just right feeling.

I find it interesting. The verse fifteen. We know if we heard the expression, it's a common expression. The little foxes spoil the vine. So what this expression means is it's the little things that begin to get you down.

So everything's going fine and everything's going great with your whatever you're involved with your relationship or your activity, your job or whatever. And then suddenly there's this little things that keep nagging at you that finally whoop you.

And this is what she gets into here. She says, catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines for our vines have tender grapes. She's not wanting anything to mess this up. This is too good.

This is too great of a relationship. Verse sixteen. My beloved is mine and I am his. He feeds his flock among the lilies until the day breaks and the shadows flee away. Turn my beloved and be like a gazelle or a young stag upon the mountains of better.

And it's just this rejoice in this praising. And then very strangely, the next chapter. Chapter three, verse one. She wakes up now the next day. By night on my bed, I sought the one I love. I sought him, but I did not find him.

So this this idea here is that if you have a real relationship with God and you have an intimacy and you have something that's real in your life and he's really there and you really have that. Then there's times where you may not.

You probably will not feel that continual closeness all the time. Many writers who have taken this passage have seen that there's something on purpose in the whole thing. So she does something about it, though.

And the way she responds is what's important. The idea is this. If God was just to continually to give us great feelings and everything was gonna go good and there's no little foxes to spoil you and there's nothing to ruin your day and there's nothing to go bad and you have this relationship.

That's great. But God wants us to love him more. How would you respond if it's not so sweet? How would you respond if the little foxes began to mess things up? How would you respond in your relationship to Jesus Christ if those things happen?

Let's see how she responds. Verse two. I will rise now, I said, and go about the city and the streets and in the squares. I will seek the one I love. I sought him, but I did not find him. So here, instead of just saying, poor me, is here just saying and saying, well, I guess that relationship didn't work or whatever terrible thing you could have done.

The pursuit thing is happening is that it's causing within this, the beloved here, the sense of chasing of coming after God and running after him. And this act of coming and seeking of God is beautiful.

And he takes pleasure in this. And she did. She went to the city. So we go and we start to think, well, where did things go wrong? Is this what happened? And is this what happened? And she didn't find him in these ways.

And sometimes when we start to maybe feel bad with some of these emotions or some things that go in our life, we're gonna begin to wonder in the wrong places. Is this why I don't feel... Is this why God is not present?

No, I didn't find him in that. Verse three, the next one. So she didn't give up. The watchmen who go about the city found me. It's like you get the idea. Are you okay? Are you all right? What are you doing here in the middle of the night?

What are you doing? And she's asking the watchman, have you seen the one I love? And it's interesting. Maybe these would be like certain even leaders. Maybe he even wants to take you back. Many of you, maybe in your life, have had a leader fail you.

A parent fail you. Someone that can't give you the answers that you wanted. And do you give up at that point? Is that when you give up? She didn't give up. The watchman didn't apparently know. She didn't give up.

And then after that, scarcely had I passed by them. When I found the one I love. Oh, I held him and I would not let him go until I brought him to the house of my mother. And if the chamber of her who conceived me, then back to that ending of that poetical, beautiful strain, I charge you daughters of Jerusalem by the gazelles and by the does of the field, do not stir up nor awaken love until it pleases.

Isn't that beautiful? The response of the way we have the response of how we behave in this is so beautiful. It creates this chase in us of chasing after God. Is that your testimony? Is that your life?

Are you in a pursuit of chasing after more of God? And does the bad things that happen in your life cause you to go further chasing him? Or does it cause you to give up? In Philippians 312, we have this idea where he gives us this beautiful passage after he talks about chasing after God and giving up everything for him.

And he says in verse 12, Philippians 312, not as though I had already attained Philippians 312, not as though I had already attained either were already perfect. But watch what he says is here. But I follow after.

I love the King James. I love the King James on this one. I like the wording better. If that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus, we get the idea that Christ Jesus is chasing him and his life and his soul and his life.

And finally, he turns around and apprehends that for which also he is already apprehended of Christ Jesus. And it's this beautiful concept of chasing after God. This is the sanctified abandonment followed by the beautiful adoption.

The Spirit of Adoption in Galatians 4

The sanctified abandonment followed by adoption. The adoption is real. The adoption is very serious. I think I already gave you this parable, but it's so beautiful. I'll just paraphrase it. The story, it's a true story.

True history story is that when John Wesley was on that boat heading over as a missionary to Georgia, and as he was on the boat, there was a hurricane that broke off. I told you the story and it felt the whole mass fell through and he saw the Moravians praising God through the midst of a hurricane.

And he's there in the next day. He's talking to Bishop Spangenberg about how did these people keep praising God during this sort of tragedy? And that's when Spangenberg said, do you know God? Wesley writes in his journal.

Yes, I know God. He's the savior of the world. Yes, he's the savior of the world. But do you know that he saved you? Wesley wrote in his journal. I know I said that he did, but I think he saw through me.

And then he says, do you know yourself? Spangenberg went on to say, do you know, does the spirit bear witness? Does your spirit, as in Romans chapter eight, say, bear witness with God's spirit that you are a child of God?

This spirit of adoption is real. It's not necessarily as we can see in the different expressions, our feelings may come and go, but there does need to be this settled sense of adoption of a believer trusting in what God has done for us.

In Galatians chapter four, it is given to us as a promise of those who are children of God. And Revelation, excuse me, Galatians chapter four, look at that. Verse one, absolutely precious passage. Galatians chapter four, verse one, I say that the air, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is a master of all, but is under guardians and stewards into the time appointed by the father.

Even so, we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his son born of a woman born under the law to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

He's talking to the Gentile church. He's talking to that. There's something that you didn't have until now, and now you do. And then he, and there's a bigger context here, but then he gets real personal with it.

And because you are sons. Now, watch this. Now, here comes a promise. And because you are sons, verse six, and because you are sons, God has sent forth the spirit of his son into your heart, crying out, Abba, father.

Therefore, you are no longer a slave, but a son. And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. That's a promise. That's a beautiful promise because you are sons. So when we become followers of Christ, when we are baptized, when we are born again of his spirit, when we are walking in him, he's telling us that it is an absolute promise because you are sons.

He has sent forth the spirit into your heart, crying out, Abba, father. There's the sense. I'm yours. You're mine. You're my father. The passage that Spangenberg gave to Romans to Wesley was taken from Romans eight.

Adoption and Assurance in Romans 8

And these two passages in Galatians four and Romans eight, we get this idea of this adoption spelled out very clearly. In Romans chapter eight, listen to this. This is so powerful. And it also gives some qualifications to where we rest our security to this actual working of God in our life.

Romans chapter eight, verse six. Romans chapter eight, verse six. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace, because the carnal mind is enmity against God. For it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.

So then those who are in the flesh can not please God. But here comes the promise again. But you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if you hear that. But you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if indeed the spirit of God dwells in you.

This is not just a rational consent to spirit, to Christian doctrines. As important as that is. Peter tells us it is by the knowledge of God that we have these promises that give us all things of life and righteousness and goodness.

But in the midst of all that understanding, that is so important. He then gives us through this adoption, the spirit of Christ. Now, if indeed the spirit of God dwells in you. Now, this is what Spangenberg was meaning.

Now, if anyone does not have... Watch out now. Now, if anyone does not have the spirit of Christ, he is not his. Please listen to it again. Your eternal salvation could be awakened by this very passage.

Now, if anyone does not have the spirit of Christ, he is not his. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin. But the spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who dwells in you.

So he's telling us in the context of coming out of Romans seven down to Romans eight, a life of holiness, a life of following Christ is the evidence spirit given evidence that you're a child of God. And you see those changes in your life.

You see that your life has been changed. And you're like, this is God working in me. This is powerful. And he's given us this reality that your life is truly changed. And then he goes on in verse twelve.

Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die. Now, watch now. It affects our life and practice and teaching.

But if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. And here's the passage that Bishop Spangenberg was given to Wesley. For as many as are led by the spirit of God, these are the sons of God.

For as many as are led by the spirit of God, these are the sons of God. Can I read it one more time? For as many as are led by the spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you receive the spirit of adoption by whom we cried out of a father.

The spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God and of children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together.

So this idea of the importance of being honest with the sense of abandonment, being honest with where we feel lacking and not settling for anything less than chasing after God, grabbing a hold of him, that I may apprehend him that is also apprehended of me experiencing that and getting that and not letting it go.

And we've seen the example he does have us to go through that. But then the last emotion that I wanted to give to you in the series is the spirit of anguish. There's there's a lie. The devil wants us to believe that we're always supposed to be glib, always supposed to be everything going great.

Spiritual Anguish and Mourning

I don't like it when sometimes you feel that somebody, how's it going, brother? Oh, it's fine. I'm pressing on. And that's good. We need to keep pressing on during hardship. But we also need to realize that sometimes you're going through something that God has put in your heart, and it's an anguish.

And I'm telling you that God, if we look through the scriptures, this is part of the Christian walk. Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount, in one of the Beatitudes, blessed are those who mourn. Blessed are those who mourn.

There's something to it. Is there something? Can you go through life and looking at the sins of the things that are around you? Can you go through life and not just caring about your family or what's happening with your children?

Can you go through life and looking at our country or what's happening abroad? That God wants people that he can put his spirit in, that can anguish with him over these things and take a burden up for prayer until they make a difference.

Blessed are those who mourn is necessary for the Christian experience. As Samuel Chadwick, as a writer, preacher, he mentions this and he goes on to say about this idea that many of the saints of God, how God has used them and anointed them, taken their life and poured this through them.

And he says this as Samuel Chadwick says, there is no power like that of prevailing prayer of Abraham pleading for Sodom. Jacob wrestling in the stillness of the night. Moses standing in the breach. Hannah intoxicated with sorrow.

David heartbroken with remorse and grief. Jesus in sweat and blood. Add to this list from the records of the church, your personal observation and experiences. And always there is the cost and passion unto blood.

Such prayer prevails. It turns ordinary mortals into men of power. It brings power. It brings fire. It brings rain. It brings life. It brings God. This anguish. Have you allowed yourself to be moved of God for our city here in Boston?

Have you allowed yourself to be moved of God with your family? Have you allowed yourself to cry out? Amos in the chapter six of Amos verse one through seven. He gives a rebuke of just living a total life of complacency and Amos chapter six.

He says, woe to you who are complacent in Zion and you who feel secure on Mount Samaria. I'm reading from an NIV for this language here. Woe to you who are complacent in Zion and to you who feel secure on Mount Samaria.

You notable men of the foremost nation. Verse four, you put off the evil day and bring near the reign of terror. You lie on beds in laid with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs and fattened calves.

You strum away on your harps like David and improvise on musical instruments. You drink wine by the bowl fools. You use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph. Therefore, you will be among the first to go into exile.

Therefore, you will be among the first that go into exile. You're feasting and lounging will end. And so when God was about to give judgment and God was about to... He's tired and he's... And these people are sinning.

They're just giving up. They're stopping living for me. And you just don't even care. You're singing your songs. You're drinking your drink. You're walking in all your pleasures. You will be the first to go into exile.

And then you're feasting and you're lounging will end the message. It's just a paraphrase. It's not a scripture, but it's a message. Anyway, paraphrase is the passage. I am a six four through six with this.

Woe to those who live only for today and different to the fate of others. Woe to the playboys, the playgirls who think life is a party held just for them. Woe to those addicted to feeling good life without pain.

Those obsessed with looking good life without wrinkles. They could not care less about their country going to ruin, going to ruin from the message through the saints in the Old Testament and through the scriptures.

We see this. You think of Moses numbers 11. If you treat me like this, please kill me here. And now, if I have found favored in your sight and do not let me see my wretchedness. Second Corinthians four 10, Paul reads out, always caring about in the body, the dying of the Lord Jesus that the life of Jesus also may be manifest in your body.

Do you have the burden for souls that are here in Boston? Do you have the burden of the souls for people in Africa and Europe? Just today, there are thousands trying of Muslims pouring over into the European borders and with both Europe and them rushing to hell.

Are we trying to do something about it? Romans nine, Paul put it this way when he was crying out in burden, for I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen, according to the flesh, Jesus in Luke 19, verse 39, and some of the Pharisees called to him from the crowd teacher, rebuke your disciples because they were praising him.

And he answered them and said in verse 40, I tell you that if these keep silent, the stones will immediately cry out. And we talked about that joy of the first sermon. If you don't rejoice, I'm going to find someone to rejoice.

If you don't praise me, I'm going to find somebody to praise me. And that's what the whole first sermon was about rejoicing. But then right after that, that's first 40 verse 41. Now, as he drew near, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, if you had known, even you, especially in this day, the things that make for your peace, but now they are hidden from your eyes.

Christ's Suffering and Communion in Grief

There's a something I read once. I'm coming to a close. I'm going to end with Isaiah 53, the man of sorrow. There's something I read once years ago. I was looking for the exact quote, but I couldn't find it.

But it was written by Count Zinzendorf. Count Zinzendorf was a leader of the Moravian movements. They came here to Bethlehem. Incredible missionaries went around the world, and he was very passionate.

I mean, almost in a weird way. And there's something I read once. He was really getting into focusing on the wounds. And I will confess it to an excess. But something he said there struck me. Apparently, I get the idea that Count Zinzendorf was a very passionate man.

He felt the high passions of life. He felt the highs and he felt the lows. And when he was low, he was low. But he said that in there, that he realized that this was the communion in the suffering of Christ.

Quoting Philippians 310, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection. And we want that, don't we? And the fellowship of his suffering, the fellowship of his suffering of God is looking like they're in the prophet Amos.

He's looking those who care. He's looking for those who don't just want to live their life and just they're living for this world. The fellowship of his suffering being conformed to his death. And then with that idea of death, he made a meditation on Isaiah 53 that I'm never forgetting it.

I'm gonna close with this passage. We know Isaiah 53 is a beautiful passage. It talks about our sins and talks about the different things there. And there's so much treasure and so much beautiful thing that's in there.

But the thing that struck me and knew with the count Zinzendorf treatment of this is the emotions. The sorrow that Jesus take took Isaiah 53 verse three, Isaiah 53 verse three. He is despised and rejected of men.

A man of sorrow. That's what we're saying today. He is despised and rejected of men. A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. So he's telling us that our Lord Jesus Christ felt sorrows. He was acquainted with grief.

It's not a new thing for him. He wept over Israel. He wept over my sins. He's weeping over your sins now as he intercedes before God in heaven. And he's feeling this. And we hid, he goes on, as it were, our faces from him.

He was despised and we did not esteem him. But here's the passage. Surely, verse four, he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. So wait a minute. So we all, we talk all years. We have entire nations probably formed after the concept of the atoning parts of Isaiah 53 and the differences of people.

Look at that and all the different ways and here, but let's not miss this. He bore our griefs. Do you have sorrow today? Do you have burdens? Do you have? Are you burdened over your city? Are you burdened over your family?

Do you anguish for your children? Do you anguish for the church? Do you anguish for these things? Are you burdened over your own griefs that you have? He surely, surely, it says in Isaiah, he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.

Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our inequities. The chastisement of our peace are Shalom right now. Let's just focus on that part of it.

The chastisement of our Shalom, our peace was upon him and by his stripes, we are healed. So Zinzendorf figured it this way. When he feels that really, really, really, really, really hard pain, he has, he knows, surely Jesus Christ has borne this grief.