MEDITATING UPON 
AND APPLYING GOD'S WORD
DAILY...

SATURDAY/SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 4 & 5

COMPLETENESS THROUGH SUFFERING
Hebrews 5:8, 9

Suffering is not something any of us voluntarily sign up for.  However, in this life we may encounter some type of suffering whether it be physically, emotionally, mentally etc.  Suffering can be brought on in our lives for various reasons...poor choices we make, abuse, illness, loss to name a few.  Does God enjoy seeing His children suffer?  I don't think so, but He is interested in seeing how we handle it, what we do with it and learn through it.

If we look at Christ's life, He went through suffering and most likely to a greater degree than what most of us have encountered.  He was God's Son but Paul gives us an important clue to what suffering can accomplish by looking at what Jesus endured.  Speaking of Jesus, he says:  "Though he was God's Son, He learned obedience through what He suffered."  (Hebrews 5:8 HCSB)  Jesus willingly chose this life to fulfill the Father's purpose.  As He walked out His life on this earth, it was a continuous process of making the will of His Father to become His own will.  That was accomplished through obedience, even though it meant a path of suffering and death. 

We are to also follow Christ's example in this life...that the Father's will become our will even if it takes us into areas of suffering.  We do this daily by choosing to be obedient in what we say and do.  A life of obedience is what God is looking for from each of His children.  No matter how difficult obedience becomes, Christ can help us to obey because of what He also learned through His own obedience.

What is God's purpose for obedience?  In verse 9, Paul said this of Jesus..."And having been perfected."  Wait a minute!  I thought Jesus was perfect.  The answer to this lies in what the word perfect means.  Christ was always morally perfect.  By obeying He was demonstrating to us His own perfection.  When we read the word "perfect" in God's Word, it usually means completeness or maturity.  The fundamental idea of this word is the bringing of a person or thing to the goal fixed by God.  Just as Christ experienced our human experiences, suffering was one of those.  However, He demonstrated how obedience even in the midst of suffering can bring us each one to completeness.  Christ's completeness through suffering meant He became the author of salvation to all those who in turn obey Him.  Our completeness by means of obedience will bring victory as its final outcome for us as well when we have completed God's will in our life.  "If anyone wants to be My follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me and the gospel will save it."  (Mark 8:34-35).  That is the path that we must journey to reach completeness.

Past devotionals can be viewed on the Archives Page:  January - June 2010
July - December 2010.