Sacrificial Success || Hebrews 12:2 || Manna for the Mind #37

Welcome to Day 37 of my “Manna for the Mind” devotional series! This series takes a passage of scripture (typically 1-3 verses) and builds its understanding through its context and connecting scripture. Doing this helps us understand what the Bible truly teaches us.

Hebrews 12:2

2            We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfect our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

The thing about starting with verse 2 is that we need to verse 1 for context, or else what do we do by keeping our eyes on Jesus.

Hebrews 12:1

1            Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.

What do we do by keeping our eyes on Jesus? We run the race that God has for us. We remove the things of life that slow us down. Jesus showed us the way to do so. Jesus knew of the joy set before him, the cross he had to bear, and looked past the shame. The author of Hebrews says that Jesus initiated and perfected this kind of faith. What does that mean?

The word “initiates” is the Greek noun archégos (ar-khay-gos’), which means founder or leader. It’s used to describe someone who is the originator, founder, or leader of something. In Greek, it’s a compound word that combines “the first” and “to lead.” Jesus was the first to share this faith, as shown here. Jesus showed us what it means to share our faith as he did: head towards joy, bear your cross, and move past your shame. We know the joy set before us, an eternal life with God in heaven. We must carry our crosses to Jesus and lay them on his feet. Jesus told us to take his cross, which is lighter and easier to carry than our own. We need to move past the shame that comes with our cross. We must remove the thought, “I’m not good enough for Jesus to love me.” “I’ve done too many bad things for Jesus to forgive me.” Jesus encourages us to come as we are to him and allow God’s grace and mercy to transform our hearts and lives.

The word “perfect” is the Greek noun teleiótés (tel-i-o-tace’), which means a completer or finisher. It describes someone who perfects, completes, or finishes something. Simply put, it’s someone who brings the process to the finish. Jesus, brought the life of faith to its complete conclusion. During Jesus’s time, the punishment for sinners was to suffer a crucifixion death. We no longer have to do that today because Jesus bore all our sins on the cross. We are forgiven if we believe it. We are redeemed if we believe it. We must believe that our almighty Father has forgiven us. It’s a lot different than how we experience forgiveness person-to-person. Yet, the forgiveness that comes from God covers us completely. Jesus showed that. Paul reflected on that.

Philippians 2:8-9

8            he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

9            Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names.

Crucifixions, i.e., what Jesus went through, was the form of capital punishment that the Roman government used for its most notorious criminals. It was excruciatingly painful and humiliating. Prisoners were nailed to a cross and left there to die. Death might not come for many days, and it came by suffocation when their weight led to labored breathing. He suffered this punishment. Jesus died as the one who sinned, but he never sinned. How amazing that Jesus should die this most horrible death so that we would not have to face eternal punishment.

This is something we don’t often focus on. The fact that Jesus’s sacrifice protected us from eternal punishment. We often look at the present or the earthly lifetime because that is all we know. We don’t honestly know what lies outside of our earthly life. As Christians, we are to trust that following Jesus will lead us on the path that leads us to eternal life. We need to have our spiritual selves live in heaven with God and others. That comes through faith and belief. We should believe that Jesus did what he did for us and have faith that what he did includes you and that the benefits that came from it include you. His suffering was not for nothing.

Hebrews 2:9-10

9            What we do see is Jesus, who for a little while was given a position “a little lower than the angels”; and because he suffered death for us, he is now “crowned with glory and honor.” Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone.

10          God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.

God’s grace, his crazy love, to us led Christ to his death. Jesus didn’t come to the world to gain status, political, or military power like that people wanted from the coming Messiah, but to suffer and die so that we could have eternal life. When we find moments of difficulty in identifying with Christ’s servant attitude, we may need to evaluate our motives. What does that mean? Why are you helping others? Why are you sharing your money and resources with people experiencing poverty? Why are you listening to a stranger share their burdens with you? Are you doing it because you share compassion with them, or do you know “it’s the right thing?” The reason you do something is not revealed by what you know but by what is in your heart.

Jesus was made the perfect leader of our salvation through his suffering as our complete sacrifice. Jesus didn’t need to suffer for his own salvation, for he was sinless and the Son of God. God saw humanity’s struggle trying to be like him and knew that the older sacrificial system was becoming routine and meaningless. God saw that he needed to send Jesus to save us. To endure the painful suffering to save us from our slavery to sin. Jesus’s ministry was full of suffering. When we suffer, we carry on Jesus’ work.

I’m not saying that God creates moments for us to suffer from, but God uses those moments to help us help others. Our suffering makes us more sensitive to the needs of others. People who are hurting can reach out with compassion to others who are hurt. Ask God to use your experience to help others if you have suffered. If you have suffered, ask God to use what you went through to help others. Use your tests to become your testimony. What I shared at the beginning of the year was my testimony. I share it to show others that they aren’t alone. I share it to connect with others and encourage them to share their story. Humans weren’t made to do life alone, so I wanted to connect and communicate what my life is about. My tests turned into many paths, some good and some not, but God always directs my life. It may not have worked in my time, and it seems Peter also felt that.

1 Peter 1:11

11          They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward.

The Spirit of Christ is the Holy Spirit. Before Jesus finished his ministry and returned to heaven, he promised the Holy Spirit would come to teach, help, and guide his followers. The Holy Spirit would share about Jesus and reveal his glory. The Old Testament prophets, writing under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, described the coming of the Messiah. Through the inspiration of the same Spirit, the New Testament apostles preached the crucified and risen Lord.

The idea is the same as the Old and New Testaments. The Bible preaches on the same Jesus. The Bible shares with us the same inspiration from the Holy Spirit. We can’t find out anything new about the Holy Spirit. It may be new to us as we walk our Christian walk, but the Bible has the source of all answers. Finding those answers takes work, research, discernment, and community. The Holy Spirit will get to those answers for you. The Holy Spirit will guide you toward people with the answers you want. It may not be the people you’d expect or the words you’d expect to hear, but that’s where the gift of discernment comes from. Where will you allow the Holy Spirit to guide you? Who will you allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you through?

Father God, we thank you for the sacrifice of Jesus. We know that it wasn’t easy to send your own son to die for us sinners. Yet you loved us so much that you were willing to do this. You knew that Jesus would suffer, but glory would be seen on the other side. Help us invite the Holy Spirit into our lives as Peter did. Please help us use the Holy Spirit’s gifts to accomplish the goals and plans you have for us. It’s in your name, we pray. Amen.