"Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted."
Hebrews 2:14-18
"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires."
2 Peter 1:3-4
I've been thinking about suffering a lot lately. Mostly because I see a number of my friends going through some really difficult circumstances, but also just because there is so much of it in the world in general. As I think about my own trials and tribulations over the years, I can honestly say that I could have never overcome them without the very real power and presence of Jesus Christ in my life. And those believing friends of mine who are currently walking through floods and fires (literally and figuratively), I know that they are hanging on by their unshakeable faith as well.
As I contemplated this, I began to realize something: to experience joy, happiness, peace and love, is to experience the divine nature of God. Conversely, to experience sorrow, grief, turmoil and hatred is to experience the fallen nature of humanity. When God originally created humans, they shared in His divine nature and only experienced the things He experienced. But when sin entered into the world, this perfect state of existence was marred, and humans began to experience things God could not.
Because God knew from the beginning that He would have to provide a remedy that would correct the sin problem in His creation, He also knew that the perfect solution would have to transcend both the divine and the human. If He were to sacrifice someone who never tasted what it is like to live in this corrupt flesh, that sacrifice would be academic at best ("I will die to save those poor pitiful humans"). But if God sacrificed a person who was fully human, their death would be meaningless, since death is the ultimate end for all humans. So God had to sacrifice someone who was both fully divine and fully human. And so His son Jesus entered into this world in the flesh, taking on the full nature of humanity, minus the sin, while retaining His fully divine nature.
I believe that only when Jesus had experienced all of the conditions of fallen man could He truly empathize with us and understand what it was that He was saving us from. Because Jesus knew what it was like to be angry, rejected, tempted, tormented, tired, hungry, sorrowful, lonely, betrayed, humiliated and abandoned, He could grasp the full extent of our depravity and lost condition. I believe this, as much as obedience to His heavenly Father, motivated Him to go through with His trial, crucifixion and death.
I am thankful that Jesus had to experience everything we experience. Because of this truth, I am comforted in every trial and difficulty I face, because I know that He knows exactly what I'm going through and how I'm feeling. Whenever I am tempted to feel sorry for myself, I have to be reminded that Jesus already walked through this and overcame it. And so I am encouraged to press on.
I love how Peter describes the victorious Christian life, in that we are now able to participate in the divine nature (once again), the way we were always meant to live. This doesn't mean we won't have hardships, sorrow and grief in life, but it does mean that we have the opportunity to experience more of the divine characteristics embedded in our DNA and not have to respond to life the way the rest of the world does.
And for that I am truly thankful.
Have a blessed week!
Pastor David
