Devotional Thought: Things Become Clear

 

“Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death.” – Hebrews 2:14 (NLT)

Big Idea: The Son of God became the Son of Man so the sons of men could become sons of God.

We live in between God’s promise and its fulfillment. We know that we are joint-heirs of Jesus and that we will reign with Him forever. But that is a far cry from the world we experience every day.

 I almost wrote: “The world we see when we walk out our front door,” but we know that sin affects our families and marriages too. So how do we reconcile these two ideas?

We have been adopted by the King of Kings into His household and have been born again by the blood of the Son of God but we still feel more like a mess than a message. Hebrews 2:8-9 makes it incredibly clear: “But we have not yet seen all things put under their authority. What we do see is Jesus…because he suffered death for us, he is now ‘crowned with glory and honor.’ Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone.”

We do not see all of the fulfillment yet, but we see Jesus. We see the trailblazer of our destiny, who humbled Himself to become a Man so that He could taste death for humanity. We see the Risen Savior, who conquered death to break its hold over us. We see the sinless life and perfect obedience of the Son, who gives us the power to follow Him. We do not see everything as we wish it would be, but we see the One who will make it so.

In the middle of such a stressful ministry season, I think there is good advice here. My life, my family, my church, my community, and my world are not what I wish they were. But if I keep my eyes on Jesus, everything else is okay. Helen Howarth Lemmel probably only wrote one song that you have ever heard, but it is a good one: “Turn your eyes upon Jesus/Look full in His wonderful face/And the things of earth will grow strangely dim/In the light of his glory and grace.” 

I understand what she meant, and it is a powerful thought. But I think I might quibble with the details. When we look at Jesus, the things of this life do not grow dim, but infinitely more clear. We do not just see things as they are, but as they will be – as they must be. We realize that what He has started, He will finish. Since He became like us, if we place our faith in Him, we can become like Him.

 He died in our place, rose on the third day, and ascended up to Heaven from whence He came. But He did not go there to be alone, but so that we could follow Him as His brothers and sisters. We don’t see it yet, but we see Him. 

 

Discussion Idea: Jesus humbled Himself by becoming like us, so that we could become like Him. What are some lesser ways that we can come to people on their level, to show them God’s love through us?

 

Prayer Focus: Pray for opportunities to follow Jesus’ example of humility and compassion, whether sharing the gospel, meeting a physical need or just being there for someone.