The Sufferings of Christ and Our Response

"Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God." I Peter 4:1-2 I mentioned in an earlier blog about how my physical pain has made me so much more aware of the true physical pain that Jesus endured to save us from our sins. I also mentioned that it has made me sorrowful over my sins in a way that I've never experienced before. I think I've had sorrow over my sin more along the lines of the pain it has caused me or others. I'm not sure how often I've really considered the pain that it caused to Jesus. Sometimes I think that when we hear the Bible stories over and over from childhood, they tend to become commonplace and we forget the magnitude of them. We say, "Jesus died on the cross for our sins," but do we really think about what He suffered? Matthew Chapter 26 records the account of Jesus' arrest. First, He was betrayed by one of His disciples for 30 pieces of silver. Then the rest of His disciples deserted Him and fled. Jesus was then taken before the Sanhedrin and accused of blasphemy. Those surrounding Him struck Him with their fists and spat in His face. Imagine that for a moment, the Almighty God of the Universe being struck by human fists and the One worthy of all reverence being spat upon. After this is the account of Peter denying Jesus just as Jesus had told him he would. Jesus was then brought before the governor who found no basis for charges against Him but gave in to the people who called for His crucifixion. Once again, Jesus was spat upon and mocked and a crown of thorns was placed on His head. It's interesting to remember that thorns were part of the curse for the sins of Adam and Eve in the garden, a correlation I believe I learned from a Beth Moore Bible study. John chapter 19 records that Jesus was scourged. The Roman scourge was an instrument of torture often used before crucifixion. It was a whip with several leather straps with bits of bone and other objects attached to them. It would not only bruise the flesh but tear it as well, causing deep wounds into the muscle and much bleeding. After the scourging, it is recorded that Jesus was forced to carry His cross for some time toward the place of crucifixion. At some point, the soldiers compelled Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross for Jesus. Then Jesus was nailed to the cross by His hands and feet. From what I've heard in the past, Jesus would have had to push Himself up on His nail-pierced feet just to take a breath, not to mention that His torn back was against the cross. Even then, people were hurling insults at Him. I believe, though, that the most painful part of all of this was when He cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Obviously God did not forsake Jesus. To quote from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, "Since Jesus was dying for our sin as our substitute, He was experiencing the agony of separation from His Father. It was the agony of hell." So, what is my point in bringing all of this up? What I've been convicted of through this time of pain is how reluctant I am to actually follow Christ the way He tells me to. In Luke 9:23, Jesus says, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." We live in such a "me first" society. We are told that self-fulfillment is our right and goal and that we should fight for our rights. But, God calls us to be like Jesus who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped but He made Himself nothing and died on the cross for us. The one person in all of history who had a right to defend Himself instead chose to be the sacrificial lamb so that we could have the chance to be reconciled to God. I Peter 2:23-25 says, "When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 'He himself bore our sins' in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; 'by his wounds you have been healed.' For 'you were like sheep going astray,' but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls." We are not to excuse sin in our lives, but I have. I have fought for "my rights" when I should have been serving others and entrusting myself to God. May we remember what Christ has suffered for us to give us salvation that none of us could ever earn or deserve. May we be more concerned with being righteous than in standing up for our rights. May we be like Jesus who came not to be served but to serve and give His life a ransom for many. Martyred missionary, Jim Elliot is quoted as saying, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." Our eternal reward in Heaven is worth so much more that anything we can gain on this earth.