For one who has loved sincerely and truly, who has been true to his/her marriage vows, to be betrayed and rejected by the one you have loved—this is a very painful experience.
Such have not asked for divorce; they have pleaded with God to spare them that humiliation and pain. And He has heard their prayers.
But He cannot force a human heart, even if many people join in prayer.
The one who is rejected will not be forsaken by the Lord, even if he/she has made mistakes; his/her prayers for forgiveness are recorded at His throne.
Christ has an especially tender regard for such because He has known the exquisite pain of such rejection by one whom He deeply loves in a conjugal sense, yes, His Bride-to-be, His church.
All through the Bible, Christ’s relationship to His people is likened to that of a Bridegroom waiting for the consummation of the wedding. Ezekiel writes of how the Lord fell in love with this attractive, delightful girl and proposed to her (16:8, 10-14). Hosea’s painful ordeal with a woman whom he loved but who was unfaithful is a classic in love literature; his sufferings are a picture of Christ’s sufferings because of His people’s infidelity. Even to this day, the “marriage of the Lamb” has been long delayed (cf. Rev. 19:7, 8). Jesus has become one of us; He has become incarnate in humanity, never to cease being human as well as divine. But therein is all the passion of His love betrayed.
The one among us who has loved and lost must not throw away his life in despair. As surely as the Father resurrected Jesus from the grave, so surely will He resurrect your life, you who have been betrayed. “Fear not,” He says especially to the rejected one, giving special assurance of forgiveness and understanding cf. Isa. 54:4, 5).
There is a special promise of forgiveness extended to people who have been healed of wounds, whether physical or emotional: “The prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him” (James 5:15).
Cherish that word: “the Lord shall raise him [her] up.” You have all the rest of your life before you in which to be “raised up.” Even in the excruciating pain of divorce there is something to thank the Lord for, some little spark of gratitude to shine on still, and to grow.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
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