JC Blog

“During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered” ( Hebrews 5:7-8 )

On this side of the cross we are used to hearing about Jesus' sacrifice for our sins so we forget this important truth, Jesus had a choice. The choice to redeem mankind, or let mankind pay the price for Adam’s choice in the garden. Adam chose death, suffering and sin over God. As result, he plunged the entire world into this pattern of life and we were subjected to the destructiveness of un-regenerated  man. Mankind needed someone to intercede which is why Jesus volunteered for the role as Savior of the world ( I Corinthians 15:22, II Corinthians 5:19, I Peter 1:20, I John 2:2 ).

God is big on giving choices and letting us choose for ourselves. He does not force His will on us. In the same way, He did not force His will for redeeming mankind on Jesus. He gave Him the choice. This is beyond comprehension because God and Jesus are one and the same. They exist in a triune being of perfect love and unity. Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three distinctly different entities yet one in the same. II peter 3 tells us that God is not willing that any should perish and desires everyone to come to repentance ( II Peter 3:9 ). This means that Jesus holds this desire as well. Hebrews 1 tells us that "The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being..." ( Hebrews 1:3a ). Meaning He is the exact image and picture of God. Everything God is, Jesus is. Everything God desires, Jesus desires. God's will is Jesus' will.

The plan was Jesus from the start. As he submitted to God's will, He became the lamb slain from the foundation of the world ( I Peter 1:20 ). Jesus undertook this role before there was even a world to redeem. Then at the culmination of history He was made manifest in the flesh to complete this work once for all. It was a choice. No one took Jesus' life; He willing laid it down for us. John tells us, "The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” ( John 10:17-18 ).

The grace of God is more profound when you consider that Jesus could have backed out of this arrangement at any time. During His time on earth, Jesus could have said one word and God would have honored it. In the garden when Jesus was betrayed, Peter cut off the ear of the of the High Priest's servant. Jesus responded in this way, “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?” ( Matthew 26:52-54 ). Jesus understood the choice and knew God would honor and respond to His decision at any point in time. Which is why he submitted to God and learned obedience through this type of suffering.

Jesus' suffering was more than the physical aspects of being crucified. His suffering far exceeded this because he had the entire weight of sin, sickness and death placed on him and then he was completely and totally separated from the presence of the Father. It took an act of obedience for a holy God to undergo this type of suffering. This is the point the writer of Hebrews is highlighting in this passage. The Amplified Bible puts it best, “In the days of His flesh [Jesus] offered up definite, special petitions [for that which He not only wanted but needed] and supplications with strong crying and tears to Him Who was [always] able to save Him [out] from death, and He was heard because of His reverence toward God [His godly fear, His piety, in that He shrank from the horrors of separation from the bright presence of the Father]. Although He was a Son, He learned [active, special] obedience through what He suffered” ( Hebrews 5:7-8 Amp ). The price Jesus paid was extremely high. He was removed from the very essences of God the Father and literally became sin, the very thing he abhorred, so that we could be righteous in God's sight ( II Corinthians 5:21 ).

When looking at the accounts of Jesus in the Garden to Gethsemane right before his betrayal we see how the anticipation of being separated from God affected Jesus. Yet during the entire time he readily submitted to God's will in spite of what He was facing. Mark's account is extremely insightful, "He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” ( Mark 14:33-36 ). Jesus knew that on request God would save him from this horrible death and from taking the weight of Adams choice on himself as mankind's representative. In the same way, He knew that God had chosen Jesus as the first and only way to redeem mankind. So Jesus actively submitted to God's will and plan so that it would be finished.

Jesus completed everything that He was instructed to do. He fulfilled every scripture written about the promised Messiah. John records, "Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit" ( John 19:28:30 ). What an amazing picture of the love God has for us. Mark gives us more detail on what happened, "It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last" ( Luke 23:44-46 ).

This act of obedience perfectly equipped Jesus for His role as our eternal high priest, he accomplished everything God desired and became the source of eternal salvation for everyone who puts their trust in Him ( Hebrews 5:9, Hebrew 7:25 ). Jesus has been exalted to His rightful place as Lord and will remain in this position eternally. "And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" ( Philippians 2:8-11 ). This confession of Jesus' lordship brings glory to God because it was His desire from the beginning that we would be reconciled through Jesus. And Jesus honored God's request.

Jesus had a choice and He chose us. God still offers this choice today. The work of salvation has been accomplished and now it is freely given to us as a gift through faith in Jesus. It is His desire that we accept this gift, but God does not make us choose him. "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God" ( John 1:12-13 ).

Jesus accomplished so many things upon the cross. Through him, we have total victory over sin and death. Paul stresses in this verse, that there are three very important ideas and truths to take away with us and understand. First, Jesus was betrayed and deliver over to death as the payment for our sins. Secondly, as he was raised to life, he conquered death once for all. Lastly, he ascended to heaven to acquit us before God and declare us justified before him.

Although it is true that Jesus was betrayed and delivered over to death, it is equally important for us to recognize that he had authority in the matter. He life was taken, only because he had already laid it down for us. We were without hope before God because sin had corrupted us, but Romans 5 says, "... when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." ( Romans 5:6-8 ) We were without hope and enemies of God but Jesus still laid his life down for us, to take away our sin once for all. ( Hebrews 9:28 ). Through his death, sin had been completely paid for.

The resurrection of Jesus is the pinnacle of history as we know it. Jesus is the first person to rise from the dead and conquer death permanently. Romans 6:8-9 says, "For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. " He conquered sin in his sacrifice upon the cross and then he conquered death in his resurrection from the dead.

Lastly, after his ascension, he now intercedes for us at the right hand of God. Hebrews 10:14 says, "because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy." So the end result for us if we believe in Jesus by faith, is justification. Justification is the act whereby Jesus makes us completely holy before God. To do this he not only forgives our sin, but he imparts righteousness to us, so that it is as if we have never sinned.

Both Abraham and David saw glimpses of this incredible feat that Jesus would do for us and they called us blessed. Today, if you believe in Jesus as your savior then have complete victory over sin and death because he purchased it for you. Today, we are completely blessed having been redeemed from the curse of the law and made righteous and holy before God. Praise Jesus for his love and this precious gift to us.

What marvelous grace is this that we should be called sons and daughters of the living God? What a wonderful thing to be called not only from among the Jews but from the Gentiles as well. God's amazing redemption plan has provided a way for us to come to him and receive grace and mercy when we alone were hopeless. Paul started this chapter with a desire that his own people of Israel would recognize Jesus as their Messiah and come to him ( Romans 9:1-3 ). However as a whole they have rejected this and so Paul lays out evidence that only those who belong to Jesus belong to the promise spoken to Abraham ( Romans 9:8 ). Paul shows the severity of rejecting salvation through Jesus and demonstrates Gods patience towards them in turning away from such a gift ( Romans 9:22-23 ).

In today's passage he shows from Old Testament scripture that the Gentiles redemption through faith in Jesus has always been a part of the plan. God has called and chosen a people both from the Jews and from the Gentile nations. Hosea prophesied this very thing, "I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called 'Not my loved one. ' I will say to those called 'Not my people, ' 'You are my people'; and they will say, 'You are my God.' " ( Hosea 2:23 ). What an amazing truth this is. God calls the nobodies and makes them some bodies. Previously everyone outside of the Jewish nation was disregarded as completely separate and incapable of being part of the promise. But God looked upon us and called us His beloved and then went one step further and called us sons of the living God.

This is a hard thing for the Jews to understand and reconcile in their hearts. They do belong to a wonderful heritage of covenants, promises and patriarchs but this alone does not save ( Romans 9:4-5 ). John the Baptist told the teacher of the Law who questioned him, "And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire" ( Matthew 3:9-10 ). It is not the natural children that are Abrahams seed and heirs of the promise, inclusion in the promise only comes by faith in Jesus ( Romans 9:8 ). And God has opened this offer to all of humanity and has raise a people set apart for himself.

There is a parallel for us today, many people think that just because they go to church and recite liturgies, the Apostles Creed and the Lord's prayer that this is all that God desires from them. Many rest securely in belonging to a church and attending regularly. However Jesus said in Revelation, "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth" ( Revelation 3:15-16 ). What an awakening this will be. God does not desire your rituals and obligation, he desires your heart. He looks over the multitudes of people which cannot be counted and says to those who put their trust in him, you are my children ( Hosea 1:10 ). He has redeemed us from and empty way of life such as this, Peter said, "For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God ( I Peter 1:18-21 ). Our hope is in Jesus not in attending church and responsive readings, belonging to God only comes through faith in Jesus and in a changed heart.

Today, I am blessed to be counted among God's children and among his chosen people in the world. It is my prayer that you understand your position of grace in His kingdom and that everything you do flows out of a heart for the Lord. May you continue to grow in His grace, amen!