Hebrews 12:1-3
“No
Pain, No Gain.” That’s what my high school football coaches used to say to us
in order to motivate and push us beyond what we would have done otherwise.
Human nature, especially teenage human nature, would have said, “This is too
much work”! Then given up. But our coaches pushed us beyond our pain.
Nobody
subjects themselves to pain willingly, but my wife Debbie did. During the past
year, she had full knee replacement surgeries on both of her knees. Although
she is currently making good progress from the most recent one, it has been much
more difficult than the first, as she has suffered excruciating pain at times.
Jesus
willingly submitted himself to excruciating pain. If you ever saw Mel Gibson’s
movie The Passion, you got a very real sense of just how much pain Jesus
would have gone through. Besides the physical pain, he experienced the pain of rejection,
not only of his closest friends, but also his Heavenly Father.
The
pain had to be unbearable, but still he did it. Why?
Therefore, since we are
surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that
hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance
the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer
and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross,
scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider
him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary
and lose heart. NIV
What
was “the joy set before him” that motivated him to endure such pain and
suffering? Being with his Father again? Knowing that he had been faithful no
matter what? Knowing that he had completed his mission so that you and I could
be forgiven and live in eternity with our Heavenly Father?
“No
pain, no gain”. That was certainly true for Jesus. Except, in addition, he
suffered our pain so that we wouldn’t have to; he suffered our pain so that we
might hear the same words he did from our Father God.
“You are my Son (my daughter), whom I love; with you I
am well pleased.” NIV
(If
God has spoken to you through this devotional, please feel free to share it
with others.)
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