CONSIDER HIM
Hebrews 12:3 NKJV
3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.
Consider Him. The Book of Hebrews, written to Jewish believers under pressure, does not make allowances for self-pity or complaining. You would think the author would be a bit more understanding of the problems these believers were facing. Or is it that we are the ones who need to alter our perspective? And that the admonishment to consider Jesus instead of fixating on their situation was the better call.
The concern was for these believers becoming weary and discouraged in their souls. Evidently, what they were going through was wearing on them mentally and emotionally. And that is understandable. Problems have a way of doing that. But the author of Hebrews is posing a different solution that seems almost counterintuitive. Instead of considering the difficulties, consider Jesus and what He went through.
And Jesus went through major hostility from sinners. Even before the events surrounding the cross, Jesus endured anger and persecution. The Jewish leaders were constantly challenging Him and trying to bait Him into making a mistake. The leadership of Israel would send spies to try and catch Him in His words. The pressure on Jesus had to have been immense. And yet He never cracked. He never went off on the leaders to the point of sinning. He may have called them out, but He never pronounced a curse on them. And He still died for them.
Consider what Jesus went through before the cross. He was spit on and hit in the face when blindfolded. He had an entire squadron of soldiers beat His head with a rod when wearing a makeshift crown made of thorns. That had to have been extremely painful as they slammed the thorns into His head. And He did not fight back. He did not call for angels to wipe the soldiers out, and He could have. Before the cross, Jesus was scourged. I remember in Bible school, we had a class session where our instructor went into detail about how brutal the Roman scourge was. Many men died from the scourging. During the class, some people fainted and some had to leave. It was hard to listen to. And Jesus did this for us. I am so grateful that by the scourging, by His stripes, we are healed.
Consider what Jesus endured on the cross. Even more than the physical trauma, we most likely have no idea of the spiritual trauma inflicted upon Him when He bore our sins in His own body. Only Jesus knows the pain He experienced when God had to turn His face so that He might bear our sins and take our punishment. The author of Hebrews had divine insight. He knew that when we consider Jesus and what He went through for us, we are able to draw strength from His example. And we are able to draw strength from Him personally. Jesus took on the sins of mankind. We deal with problems on a much lesser magnitude. Plus, when we consider that He will never leave or abandon us, and that He promised to help us, we don’t have to give in to weariness and discouragement. Easy? No. But not nearly as difficult as what our Lord endured for us.
PRAYER
Lord, Your example of love and strength speaks to my heart. I am Your follower and desire to live a life worthy of You. Thank You, for helping me and strengthening me.