What Can Separate Us from the Love of God?

³⁸For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, ³⁹Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39 KJV

Have you ever had moments where you feel like you can't face God? For me, it's usually when I'm angry. In those moments I feel like I've been cut off; it's a weird combination of shame and pride—shame that I'm displeasing my Father, and pride because I don't want to let go of whatever it is that displeases Him. It's comforting to know that even in those moments, we are not truly separated from God's love. As I've grown in my faith, I have repeated Romans 8:38-39 to myself when I feel this distance and that is what has pushed me away from sin and toward the Father.

Let's take a look at all the things Paul lists as not being able to separate us from the Father's love:

Death

The wages of sin are death (Romans 6:23). If we had to atone for our sins ourselves or through animal sacrifices, we would never earn eternal life. We all deserve death, but our Father has proven His love for us by providing a perfect sacrifice for us in His Son. The Messiah won the victory over death and now, if we accept Christ—His sacrifice and His teachings—we, too, are granted victory over death!

Life

When I first read life in the list, it threw me for a loop. Why would life separate us from the love of God? Almost instantly I realized this is a reference to temptation. We live in a fallen society; everything in life is temptation. Not only are the things of the world temptations against God's Word, but it's so easy to get distracted. There are days when I put all my time and energy in to things I need to survive (my job, fixing something at the house, chores, etc.) and when I finally get to sit down, I'm too tired to give the Father quality time. Sometimes days like this come back to back, stacking on top of each other. However, the Word says for every temptation He gives us a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13). Simple things like listening to gospel while I clean or praying while I work help me regain my focus on Him. He will not let us get lost in the distractions of life.

Angels

Presumably, Paul is referencing fallen angels here. Like Satan, the other fallen angels would love to see us turn away from the Father; but He has not given them power over us. Arguably, since angel means messenger, Paul could be referencing the message itself, but I believe he means fallen angels.

Principalities

We are subject to the powers that be. Whether you are a 5 year old who has to obey teachers and parents, or an adult who is bound to the laws of your government, there's ablways someone calling the shots. These people can easily require of us something we feel is displeasing to God. However, just as He appeared in the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, he will come to us as well.

Time

interestingly, Paul doesn't mention things past, which I think would be most people's concern. Of course the entire concept of baptism and salvation discusses things past. The real pressure is on now and the feature. Onve we have chosen to follow and obey the most High God, however, He will work out our future. Amazingly, we can make that choice at any moment, meaning our present state cannot stop us from expereincing the love of God.

Distance

When I first read this, I assumed Paul was referencing physical distance. The Israelites had feasts that required them to go to the Temple; not to mention sacrifices were to be done at the Temple. This is my mind, Paul was saying it doesn't matter where you go because God goest with you. Though now as I type, I see this less literally. He loves us when we are at or worst (valley or depth) and He loves us when we are at our best (hills or height).

Creatures

This was the one that made me scratch my head. If it could, how would an animal separate us from the love of God? I thouhgt of job in the beally of the some sea creature and then I thouhgt of Leviathan and Behemoth... Perhaps these are the creatures He means.

Quirks Can Show Your Purpose

For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this? Esther 4:14 KJV

When I was a freshman in college, I relished in being able to have my tiny dorm room to myself. Any time my roommate was out, I made excuses to stay in. People would stop by to ask if I wanted to go the cafeteria, or the movies, or some cool event being hosted on campus, and I always had a reason not to go. At the time, I didn't realize that I was an introvert; I couldn't explain why I did this. I liked my friends and when I did hang out with them, I had a good time, so why was I so eager to not hang out with them?

This is a good time to explain what introversion actually is. A huge pet pet peeve of mine is that majority of people I meet think introvert = shy and extrovert = outgoing. What they associate with introversion is actually closer to social anxiety. Introversion and extroversion are not about how anxious you get around people, they're about what recharges or drains your energy. When an extrovert is feeling down, they might attend a concert or go out to eat with friends. An introvert, on the other hand, is more likely to stay in and play video games or read a book. Extroverts get energy from being around people (re: having external stimuli) while introverts get energy from time alone (re: having internal stimuli). You can be shy and an extrovert (I know a shy extrovert, actually) and you can be an outgoing introvert (if I'm in a room of people, I'm going to talk, but I'm going to have zero energy the next day).

Over time, I realized that anytime I didn't get adequate time alone each day, or rather, the more time I spent in a crowd, the more exhausted I was the next day. In Sabbath school, my peers would often remark how humans were created for relationship and community, which made me wonder about my introversion. If God wanted me to enjoy being around people, why did I feel so drained after potlucks and game nights? Was something wrong with me? Introverts around the world are forced to take on extroverted traits to succeed in the world and often we are ostracized and misunderstood. It's very easy to slip into the feeling that introversion is something that needs to "fixed." Even recently as I discussed the desire to make meaningful friendships in my new location, someone repeated it back to me as "hoping to be less introverted"—no, I don't want to hang out every week and have girl chat every night; I just want a few people that I'm willing to drain my battery for once a month or so... I don't want to get my energy from these people.

When COVID-19 forced us home from work, I realized that I was born for a time such as this. I witnessed people struggling with isolation, but after only a week, I couldn't fathom how I had been going in to the office and talking to people every day. I spent those first few weeks thinking about what life will be like during those finals moments described in Revelation. Most of the world will be corrupt and true believers will have to be comfortable holding their own. COVID-19's forced isolation showed me that I would not be bothered by such an existance. During that time I found reassurance that the Father did mean for some of us to be introverts and others to be extroverts. Both have purpose in our society and while introverts may feel drained in large crowds, we're really good at meaningful conversations in more intimate settings, which is also important in a community!

Jeremiah 29:11 says He knew us before we were created in the womb. He knows all that we will have to bear in life and all that He has for us to accomplish and thus He creates us to be successful in that purpose. Esther was placed in the position of Queen to save her people, but it wasn't by chance. Everything from the way she looked to her personality was just so. That is why the king chose her over all the other women. She was created to fulfill that mission. I was created to be comfortable in solitude. You were created for such a time as this as well. Where-ever you are, whatever quirks you have, they have purpose and so do you!

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Jeremiah 29:11 KJV

Ethics and Morality

The Rock! His work is perfect,
For all His ways are just;
A God of faithfulness and without injustice,
Righteous and just is He.
Deuteronomy 32:4 NASB

Back in college I took an ethics class. We discussed different methods and philosophies for determining whether an action is right or wrong. We discussed theories from Immanuel Kant, René Descartes, and Friedrich Nietzsche—but no religious philosphers, regardless of religion.

One topic of conversation was on if the end justifies the means. An example that came up in class was World War II; many of my classmates eagerly suggested that stopping Hitler (end) justified the war (means). That conversation got murkier when it was revealed that one classmate was a descendant of Holocaust survivors and another was a descendant of Hiroshima survivors. Don't worry, this post isn't about the politics of World Wars, I only bring it up to illustrate how perspective and experience made the conversation more difficult.

Another conversation required us to choose our action in a given scenario, where the scenario became increasingly more personal. Let's say there is train track that splits. There are five people standing on the right track and a single person on the left. You are standing too far away to signal to anyone, but you are able switch the track. Do you guide the train to the right or to the left? What if there's an equal number of people on each track? What if the 5 people are criminals? What if the one person is a family member? What if the 5 are the people who bullied you in high school? And so on, the discussion continued.

I enjoyed the class, as it forced me to analyze the larger picture of how I decided what was morally right in a given situation. However, there was one question that never came up...

If scientists are right, and all life is a happy coincidence, what really is ethics?

Human beings are the only species on the planet that concerns itself with the concept of morality. On my family's farm, we've had to separate chickens because they were fighting each other—the chickens don't have a "police chicken" that steps in to break up the fight, nor do they have "judicial chickens" who deliberate whether one of the chickens should be tried for assault. Similarly, my cat shows no remorse when some unfortunate bug finds its way on the screen porch and she kills it mercilessly despite having all the food she could eat inside the house. Buzzards eat roadkill, they don't stop to wonder how or why the animal died. Squirrels steal fruit from our fruit trees and don't concern themselves with whether another animal had lain claim to the tree. So, why is it that human beings—thiest or athiest—have any sense of right or wrong?

So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Genesis 1:17 NASB