Who Shall Separate Us?
There are many things that can separate one from various possessions and persons. Another woman can separate one from the husband, or another man can divide the marriage partnership. An enemy may tell lies about us and this will separate one from his friends.
But this is not what the question is all about. Paul is asking, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" This question deserves consideration.
Romans 8:35-39 says, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Even as it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor 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."
You will notice that all the things mentioned by Paul are external in nature. There is no outside force that can remove us from the love that we have for Christ. But we can lose our love for the Lord, for we have all seen instances of people that once were loyal to Him go back into the beggarly elements of the world. Why? Some will say that hypocritical Christians, caused them to lose their love, or it was because of the family who was constantly "at" them, or some other similar reason. But these are mere cover-ups. What was it that really separated these people from the love of Christ?
There is only one thing that can separate us from the love we have for the Lord. That one thing is "self." There is no force known to mankind that can drive a husband and wife apart against their wishes. Likewise, there is no force that can drive a wedge between us and the Lord, if we don't want that wedge to be driven. When Christ was tempted by the devil, look at all He was offered. But the Lord would not permit the wedge to be driven between Him and His Father. Consider the temptations that came upon Jonathan that would have resulted in alienating him from his friend David. There was the love and companionship of his own father in addition to having the throne that was rightfully his by birth. None of these barriers were allowed to separate the two friends.
There are many forces in the world, and in the church, that we can allow to drive us from the love for Christ. These things must be overcome and used instead to strengthen our faith. Read I Cor. 10:13 and James 1:2-4, 12. These wedges that would separate us come in many forms, shapes, sizes. It is our responsibility to sharpen our ears and our eyesight so as to be on the alert for them.
Who shall separate us from Christ? No one, nor anything as long as we remain faithful and loyal to the Lord. We can be just like the old prophet Elijah in his battle on Mount Carmel with spineless Israel on one side and the prophets of Baal on the other side. The odds were on Elijah's side, because that was where the Lord was. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? No one but "self." We must examine ourselves day by day to see that "self' does not come between us and God.
— 100 Woodrow, Bedford, Ohio