How often do we interpret the life of Jesus from the vantage point of how we perceive our own life? Jesus was a man like us. He “endured such opposition from sinful men” (Heb. 12:3). We know from the Scriptures that He “suffered when He was tempted” (Heb. 2:18) and that “...we have One Who was tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin” (Heb. 4:15). We can identify in a very worldly way with our Savior. However, though Jesus shared the humanity that we understand, it is wrong to believe that He experienced it as we do. Jesus’ visitation in the flesh was not at all common or even similar to us. Basically, He was like us in the flesh, but we are not like Him.
Jesus’ incarnation brought God into the human element. The prophet Isaiah captured the reality of His life as “a man of sorrows and familiar with grief” (Is. 53:3). The incarnation thrust Jesus into a life of extreme sorrow and suffering, from His conception until His death. The aim of this session will be to outline the ways in which Jesus suffered, as described in the twelfth chapter of Hebrews, and to show how His life and success can bring help and encouragement to us as we run the race of faith.
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December 21, 2014 | Pastor John Bayles | Fourth Sunday of Advent: Jesus, the Suffering Servant | Hebrews 12:1-4
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