...For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” —Hebrews 13:5
THERE WAS A time under the law in the Old Testament where God would be with you only when you were in complete obedience. But when you failed, He would leave you. Today, however, you and I are under a completely different covenant and God will never leave us. Why? Because of what Jesus did on the cross. At the cross, He became our burnt offering. He bore our sins and carried our punishment. God’s judgment against our sins fell upon Jesus, who was forsaken at the cross by His Father so that today, we can have God’s constant, unceasing presence in our lives.
When you are doing right, He is with you. Even when you have failed, He is still with you!
Jesus cried out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” so that you and I will know exactly what happened on the cross (Matthew 27:46). That is where the divine exchange took place. At the cross, Jesus took our sins and gave up the presence of God, while we took Jesus’ righteousness and received the presence of God that Jesus had. God’s presence is now ours for eternity. What a divine exchange!
Take a look with me at what the Bible says about our inheritance in Christ: “...For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we may boldly say: ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?’” (Hebrews 13:5–6). What confidence we can have today! Do you know what “never” here means? It means that when you are up, He is with you. When you are down, He is with you. When you are glad, He is with you. When you are sad, He is with you. When you are doing right, He is with you. Even when you have failed, He is still with you! That is what it means when Jesus said that He would never leave you nor forsake you!
In case you are still not convinced, let me show you what it says in the original Greek text. When God said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” a “double negative” is used to convey the strongest sense of “never” possible in the Greek language. The Greek words ou me are used, which in essence means, “never never” or “never ever.” And this double negative appears twice in this one statement from the Lord. Ou me is used for both “never” and “nor.” In other words, God is saying, “I will never never leave you and I will never never forsake you!” The Amplified Bible brings out the strength of what God really meant:
I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] —HEBREWS 13:5, AMP
Wow, that is what Jesus has done for us! He has given us the constant presence of God! My friend, settle it in your heart once and for all—God will never leave you! God will never forsake you! And if you hear anyone telling you that you can forfeit the presence of God, stop listening. Don’t let that person rob you of the certainty of God’s presence in your life. When God says “never ever,” He means “never ever,” and our God cannot lie! This means that Jesus, your prosperity, peace, provision and wisdom, is always with you. You cannot help but prosper!
Today’s Prayer
Father, I am so glad that I have Your constant, unceasing presence in my life because of the divine exchange at Calvary. Whether I am up or down, happy or sad, have done right or done wrong, You are with me. Your help, protection, provision, strength and shalom are on my side. I have nothing and no one to fear. Thank You!
Today’s Thought
God will never ever, in any way, in any degree, leave me helpless or forsake me!
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Prince, Joseph. 100 Days Of Favor, Daily Readings From Unmerited Favor.