Spiritual Desertion


Introduction

Spiritual desertion is the painful experience of feeling forsaken by God, when His presence and comfort seem withdrawn. The believer may pray and hear no answer, read Scripture and find no sweetness, or worship and feel no joy. David cried, “Why hidest thou thy face from me?” (Psalm 88:14). Even Christ endured this in Gethsemane and on the cross: “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).

Richard Baxter, following the Puritan tradition, distinguishes between God’s actual withdrawing of comfort for wise purposes, and the believer’s mistaken sense of abandonment. He stresses that desertion is never total for those in Christ. The covenant remains sure even when feelings fail. God hides His face to test, to humble, or to draw the soul into deeper faith, but He never utterly forsakes His children.


Scripture Focus

  • “For the Lord will not cast off for ever: But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.” (Lamentations 3:31–32, KJV)


List of Relevant Scriptures

  • Psalm 13:1 – How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord?
  • Psalm 22:1 – My God, why hast thou forsaken me?
  • Psalm 42:5 – Why art thou cast down, O my soul? Hope in God.
  • Psalm 77:7–9 – Will the Lord cast off for ever?
  • Isaiah 8:17 – I will wait upon the Lord, who hideth his face.
  • Isaiah 54:7–8 – For a small moment have I forsaken thee, but with great mercies will I gather thee.
  • Matthew 27:46 – Jesus’ cry of abandonment.
  • Hebrews 13:5 – I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.


Overview of the Biblical Teaching on This Issue

The Bible acknowledges seasons when God’s people feel abandoned. These may come through sin (Isaiah 59:2), through trials meant to refine faith (Job 23:8–10), or through spiritual weakness. Yet God never utterly forsakes His elect. His covenant promises hold secure even when assurance wavers.

Christ Himself endured desertion so that His people might never be truly forsaken. Through Him we learn that God’s silence is not absence, His hiding is not rejection, and His delay is not denial. Desertion drives believers to deeper dependence on God, to earnest prayer, and to longing for heaven where desertions will be no more.


Pastoral Guidance

Drawing from Baxter’s counsel:

  • Do not measure God’s love by your feelings: “Our sense of His presence is variable, but His covenant-love changeth not.”¹
  • Examine the cause: Sometimes desertion is the fruit of neglect or sin. If so, repent and return quickly. At other times it is God’s testing, not punishment.
  • Resist despair: Baxter warns against concluding that desertion equals reprobation. A soul grieved at God’s absence proves its love for Him.
  • Hold fast the promises: Cling to God’s Word, even when comfort is gone. Faith often shines brightest in darkness.
  • Continue in duty: Do not forsake prayer, Scripture, or fellowship. Baxter notes that withdrawing from means of grace prolongs desertion.
  • Use desertion as a tutor: God may use it to humble pride, teach the value of His presence, or wean us from earthly props.
  • Look to Christ’s desertion: Since He was forsaken for our sins, our forsakenness is never final or condemning.


Further Reading

  • Richard Baxter, A Christian Directory, Part I, Ch. IX (“Directions for the Melancholy and Deserted”).
  • David Clarkson, Soul’s Need of Christ (on comfort in desertion).
  • Thomas Goodwin, The Child of Light Walking in Darkness.
  • John Owen, Communion with God (on withdrawing and returning of God’s felt presence).
  • Samuel Rutherford, Letters (letters of comfort to deserted souls).


Footnote

  1. Baxter, A Christian Directory, Part I, Ch. IX.


Assurance in Times of Desertion


Introduction

When believers experience spiritual desertion, their assurance of salvation often wavers. They may question whether they truly belong to Christ, whether their faith is genuine, or whether God has abandoned them. Yet the doctrine of assurance is rooted not in fluctuating feelings but in the unchanging promises of God and the finished work of Christ.

Richard Baxter emphasises that while God may hide His face, He never breaks His covenant. The believer’s safety rests in Christ’s intercession, not in the clarity of their present comfort. Baxter urges Christians to distinguish between the reality of salvation (which is secure in Christ) and the sense of salvation (which may be eclipsed for a time).


Scripture Focus

  • “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6, KJV)


List of Relevant Scriptures

  • Psalm 23:4 – Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, thou art with me.
  • Psalm 73:26 – God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever.
  • Isaiah 49:14–16 – Zion says, “The Lord hath forsaken me,” yet God has engraved His people on His hands.
  • John 10:27–29 – None shall pluck Christ’s sheep from His hand.
  • Romans 8:38–39 – Nothing can separate us from the love of God.
  • 2 Corinthians 4:8–9 – Cast down, but not destroyed.
  • Hebrews 6:19 – We have a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul.
  • 1 John 5:13 – These things are written that ye may know ye have eternal life.


Overview of the Biblical Teaching on This Issue

The Bible teaches that assurance rests on three pillars:

  1. The promises of God’s Word — salvation is guaranteed by God’s covenant.
  2. The finished work of Christ — our standing is based on His righteousness, not our performance.
  3. The witness of the Spirit — He testifies with our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:16).

Though desertion may obscure assurance, the reality of union with Christ cannot be broken. Feelings of forsakenness are temporary; the foundation of salvation is eternal. Assurance may be weak, but faith as small as a mustard seed still lays hold on Christ.


Pastoral Guidance

Drawing from Baxter’s counsel:

  • Distinguish between sense and reality: “The want of assurance is not the want of salvation.”¹ Salvation stands firm even when comfort is absent.
  • Rest on Christ’s sufficiency, not your feelings: Baxter urges troubled souls to live more on the covenant of grace than on their own apprehensions.
  • Examine marks of true grace rightly: Look for love to Christ, hatred of sin, and desire for holiness, but do not demand perfection before believing.
  • Resist Satan’s accusations: Baxter warns that Satan magnifies small faults into damning evidence. Answer him with God’s promises, not your own strength.
  • Continue in the means of grace: Do not abandon prayer, Scripture, and fellowship, even when they feel dry. Assurance often returns through persevering obedience.
  • Look to Christ’s intercession: Our assurance rests in His ongoing advocacy at the Father’s right hand, not in our fluctuating experience.
  • Wait patiently for God’s return: Baxter reminds believers that God may hide His face “for a small moment” but with everlasting kindness will gather His people again (Isaiah 54:7).


Further Reading

  • Richard Baxter, A Christian Directory, Part I, Ch. XI (“Directions for Troubled Consciences and the Scrupulous”).
  • Thomas Brooks, Heaven on Earth (a classic on assurance).
  • John Owen, The Forgiveness of Sin and Communion with God.
  • Thomas Goodwin, The Object and Acts of Justifying Faith.
  • Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections (on signs of true grace).


Footnote

  1. Baxter, A Christian Directory, Part I, Ch. XI.