Consider Jesus
Consider Jesus
Hebrews 12:1-3
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that it set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or faint hearted.
In the previous chapter (Hebrews 11), Paul talks about faith and how it is the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen. Meaning that faith is needed for what we cannot visibly see or physically touch.
What I often see in my life and in this world is filled with heartache, disappointment, evil and sin.
I can’t pick up my phone or look at the news without seeing something devastating, something so evil and so sorrowful. My husband and I often ask each other how the world could possibly get worse than it already is.. sometimes.. well almost always, it feels so hopeless.. so heavy.. so dark.
I, like you, have so many questions.
Why doesn’t the Lord give us the answers to our prayers?
Why do we lose loved ones too soon, why do babies die before they’re even born and why do so many suffer daily?
Why aren’t people healed more often when we pray?
What do we do with the gray areas in life? The things that the Bible doesn’t actually give us a black and white answer for?
Why does He seem so far away sometimes?
Those are just a few things that run rampant in my mind.
To have faith is to trust the word and the character of God, despite what we do see or even experience.
No wonder Paul tells us to look to Jesus.
It can be easy to flip through the Bible and think about Jesus sitting at the right hand of God, in all of His glory.
But when we hear this verse, do we also consider and look to the son of suffering?
His triumph did not come without pain.
“Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising its shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2
Perhaps Paul tells us to look to Jesus because He simultaneously is the most relatable and yet perfect example for us to follow after. What’s wild about the son of man, word made flesh, promised Messiah.. is that He didn’t have to struggle. He did not have to come to earth and walk these roads, face adversity that we cannot even fathom and pain that we cannot comprehend.
He didn’t have to.
But He chose to.
He saw the joy set before Him and He CHOSE to endure the pain ahead of Him.
Just think about it.. the emotional sorrow that He must have bore from the moment He was born, the physical torment and the grief as He carried the entirety of humanity’s sin upon Himself..
That would’ve crushed anyone. It would defeat anyone.
But Jesus?
He was crushed on our behalf. But He was not defeated.
He knew the joy that laid beyond the cross.
So His weary, bloodied and worn feet took each step to Calvary.
“Consider Him who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself so that you may not grow weary or faint hearted.” Hebrews 12:3
Perhaps He knew that without giving up, with each weary step that He took, He was giving us the hope that we’d need so we ourselves wouldn’t give up. For without Him, we have no reason to carry on. We are defeated. But with Him, we have every reason. We are victorious because of what He has done.
The son of suffering is so worthy of our trust. He endured the unfathomable, even to death, so that the word of God could be accomplished. And in His resurrection, we have a LIVING hope to cling to. So that in our suffering and our pain, we have reason to hope. One day, He will return and make things right again. One day, we will see Him in full. But in the meantime - may we consider Jesus.
In our doubts, may we look to Jesus.
In our suffering, may we look to Jesus.
In our pain, may we look to Jesus.
In the valley, may we look to Jesus.
In the victory, may we look to Jesus.
Even in our unanswered prayers, may we look to Jesus.
If indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. (Romans 8:17)
Maybe our circumstances themselves don’t offer us the joy we desire.. but if we choose to consider Jesus in the middle of it, we can experience a joy and a peace that makes no sense.
Isn’t He all that we are after anyway?
Something the Lord has been teaching me lately is how personal He really is. He wants me to invite Him into my doubts, my hopes, the gray areas of my life. He doesn’t want me to run this race carrying all of that on my own.. because truthfully, it’s too heavy. I’ve tried.. and I can’t. Frankly, Jesus is more concerned about having my whole heart - no matter what it includes. No weight is too heavy for Him, no doubt too complex, no pain too deep. He wants it all.
We have to make the daily choice to surrender all that is within us over to Him. Remembering that HE is the joy set before us. He is our reward. He is our most precious gift.
When we keep our eyes focused on Him, things become lighter.
They become clearer.
The pain still hurts, but it isn’t ours to carry alone.
We still wrestle with doubt, but in our doubt is where He can strengthen our faith.
It’s in the questions where we learn to trust Him in ways we’ve never had to before.
What an opportunity.
But we only have one. One life to choose Him over and over through our highs and lows. One life to relate with the son of suffering in a way that we won’t be able to in Heaven. More often than not, faith doesn’t make sense. But isn’t that the beauty of it? Learning to trust Him, rely on Him and commune with Him in ways only the trials here allow us to?
So how do we do this?
Surrender
“let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely..”
What is weighing you down? What is heavy on your heart? What thoughts are all consuming? What sin is clinging so tight?
Surrender those to the Lord. It may be hard, painful and even scary, but truthfully He already sees and He already knows. He wants you to surrender them to Him so that you can run lighter, so that you can be free.
Just have a simple conversation with Him. Talk to Him like you would talk to a friend, let Him in.
2. Endure
This word means to remain under, to wait, to hope and to expect. What’s interesting is it is specific to steadfastness in trials and difficulties. God doesn’t ask us to endure anything that He has not endured Himself. This is why the thought of considering Jesus as the son of suffering is so powerful. I believe God doesn’t just want us to endure with our heads down, our lungs out of breath and our hearts broken. I believe He wants to give us an endurance that is filled with hope. And endurance that is actively communing with Him, full of expectancy and passion that He is going to do what He said He will do. I believe He wants to give us an endurance where He becomes strong in our weakness and is glorified even more.
Read His word. Dwell on it. Read the pages filled with stories of those who have gone before us and how God fought on behalf of them. Let His word become your sustenance and your life line. Let it fill you with hope and expectation! Meditate on His word day and night. Speak it out when the lies come in like a flood. When your circumstances say one thing, let His word be the defining truth in your life.
3. Don’t run alone
Sometimes running with endurance can feel so lonely. I love that Paul tells us that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. We are not the first, nor the last to walk in faith. We are surrounded by so many brothers and sisters who have gone before us and who have completely devoted themselves to Jesus. Even to the point of death… because they knew that He was worthy of everything.
Don’t run this race alone, friend. Find a community of believers who will encourage you and support you when you feel like you can’t take one more step forward. Let others breathe life into you and remind you that whatever you are facing is not too much for the Lord.
Consider Jesus.
This road may be hard, but He is truly worth it all. He is with you every step of the way.
Let’s run, friends.
