Recently, I had the honor of preaching during our Good Friday service; During the message, I made a quick reference to a passage from the Hebrews that seemed to resonate deeply with some people in the church. It was one of those unpredictable moments, when a Bible verse cuts through the chaos of turmoil and slows down so we can be quiet and listen.
In Hebrews 4. 15, the author writes: “For we have no high priest who cannot feel sorry for our weaknesses; on the contrary, was he tempted in all things, in our likeness, but without sin?The high priest we have is Jesus Christ, who descended from heaven to become the sacrifice and mediator of his people. But here we learn that this remarkable function has a very unusual trait, especially for those who assume this?High Priest?real life.
Jesus, our High Priest, can sympathize with our weakness
Don’t rush to leave this statement. It invites us to pause and meditate, like a sweet and fragrant breeze that enters the balcony on a spring day. It tells us something about ourselves; a dark reality that can be painful to see and hard to admit. Jesus assumes that we are weak.
If you’re a shepherd, you’re weak.
Think about that fact. It refers to you, me and every living being who has a soul. We are weak pilgrims in a fallen, fragile, subdued and imperfect world. All of us. This verse is not aimed at any specific subset of human beings who have the misfortune to have flaws. If you breathe, you’re weak. Specifically, if you’re a shepherd, you’re weak. It’s not about whether that’s true; the question is whether you are aware of it or if you ignore it.
Not long ago, I was leaving Starbucks and trying to unlock my car with my sophisticated electronic key, but nothing happened. My mind immediately darkened, instinctively irritated by the lost day in front of me if I needed a new battery for my key (do these things still have batteries?), a new battery for my car (it has a new battery!), or if other unexpected repairs were needed (I hate cars!). As I sank emotionally through the hours lost for a day that hadn’t started yet, I noticed another car in the parking lot that looked exactly like mine. In fact, it was mine. It’s a bad sign when a man starts his day and realizes his key is fine, his brain is faulty.
I’m weak and there’s more and more evidence every day
Weakness describes the places in life where we are reminded that we are not conquerors of the kingdom exercising omniscience, omnipotence, and complete competition at will, not even close to that!We are fabulously fallen and fragile people who forget about meeting times, smash our cars and leave the doors open to call all kinds of animals and insects to become the occupants of our house. We are the sleepers, the forgotten stories, the people who say “O Lord, what is that smell?”We’re weak.
And in case you’re wondering, it’s not about sin. Of course, all sin reveals a weakness, but any weakness is not sin.
For leaders who have this seal of weakness, this passage offers an overwhelming message: Jesus knows us. I am not talking about a kind of selflessness, in which Jesus listens well, but is really disconnected from the real frustrations we face, Jesus is not a Pharisee, turning his eyes when we fail, tolerating us externally, but insulting our interior. Debilidad. No, Jesus really sympathies with us when we are weak. As a loving high priest, he is empathetic in areas where we suffer from deficiencies or defects.
But that’s not all. Jesus does not feel sorry for a stranger. It wasn’t he who read a book about weakness, or searched quickly on Google to get acquainted. No sir, the Savior knows him from experience. As our perfect high priest, Jesus “was tempted in all things, in our likeness. “
Pastors, slow down a little more and think, “it’s been tested on everything, in our likeness. “Was it a bad week for you in the fight against lust?Jesus understands. Are you struggling with bitter thoughts about how he was abused?Jesus understands. He was really impressed by the people and fought those same temptations. Are you afraid of a church problem?Do you feel forgotten? Jesus knows all this, are you tempted to throw in the towel, to leave your flock?Are you tempted to say you’re not made for that?Jesus understands that too. He understands the battle because he went to war. Regarding Christ’s temptations, Raymond Brown said, “No one on earth, before or after, has been plunged into such spiritual desolation and human anguish. For this reason, he can help us in our moments of temptation. Are you aware of our needs because you have fully experienced the pressures and trials of life in this wicked world?
Always remember: Jesus knows how a fallen world affects you, how temptations compete for supremacy in your soul. Jesus knows the shame, the demoralizing feeling that accompanies the conflict between what you feel and what you are called to be. Jesus understands and sympathies with you.
Leaders of the church, here is one last thought to animate your soul: Because Christ is able to sympathize with our weakness, we do not need to feel sorry for ourselves!If you are like me, any awareness of weakness becomes an immediate invitation to my celebration. self-pity. ” Come and join Dave, while he spends another day complaining about not being God!?But through this passage, God says another word. “Hey, Dave, ” he said, “Today we’re going to change your compassion a little bit. Remember, am I the perfect high priest? Sympathizing with you is my job. Why don’t you think about how to love me and appreciate me today?
In all walks of life, the gospel changes everything. With regard to self-pity, the gospel invades my tendencies of self-pity and reminds me that because of Christ’s death and resurrection, I receive much more compassion than I receive. I don’t deserve it The Gospel proclaims a double exchange. On the cross, I not only stop having the righteous judgment that my sins deserve, but instead of God’s wrath, I receive His adoption, His loving affection, and His compassion for my weakness. Instead of the hostility I deserved, I received compassion from Heavenly Father as a child.
Do you feel weak today?Did you just print some invitations for your own celebration of self-pity?The good news of the Gospel includes a High Priest, a Savior with such immense love who reaches the worldly moments of our weakness and temptation and says, “I know and understand you. “Then, at the right time, provide the output (1 Corinthians 10:13).
My Savior knows me. And from this perfect knowledge, including all my DNA, he announces this invitation that transforms life: “Come with confidence to the throne of grace, to receive mercy and find grace to help in due time”. (Hebrews 4:16).
What goodness and grace of the God who knows me, I believe that is what makes him the perfect High Priest (Hebrews 9:11-12).