Loneliness 04 – God Will Deliver You
Abandoned by friends, without their support, as the apostle Paul sat all alone in prison, the Lord himself stood by him and gave him inner strength.
He tells us further: “And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth” (2 Timothy 4:17).
Some see this as a metaphor for evil people like the Emperor Nero whose fury was increasing toward the Christians, or his accusers who stood before him in the court. Psalm 22:21 carries a similar image: “Rescue me from the mouth of the lions; save me from the horns of the wild oxen.”
Some see this referring literally to wild animals that killed Christians in the Roman Coliseum. In the Old Testament, Daniel was thrown into a lion’s den for his faith in God. But “God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions,” so they did not hurt him (Daniel 6:22).
Some see this as a physical comment about death itself. Though death was coming soon, this is understood as escaping death at that time.
Some see this as a spiritual reference to Satan. “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). He schemes to defeat followers of Jesus and hinder the advance of the gospel.
Some see this as a proverbial saying. Being “delivered from the lion’s mouth” means being “delivered from great danger.”
Whatever the “lion” represents, the point Paul is making is that God delivered him!
Practically speaking for us, we won’t face real lions. But we can encounter evil people who come against us. And physical and emotional pressures can feel like the jaws of a lion or death itself clamping down upon us. And Satan can take advantage of our weaknesses and press us lower.
We feel all alone in our struggles needing deliverance from dangers and from the terrible strength of evil and the evil one.
In this Paul was confident: “The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (2 Timothy 4:18).
As you lean upon God, he will draw you to himself away from every evil work against you. He will bring you safely to heaven. He will deliver you from danger and from evil, both now and forever.
Action Step – Affirm: “I am never alone. Christ is before me. Christ is within me. Christ is behind me. Christ is with me always.”
~ Pastor Dave
