“During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.” Hebrews 5:7-9
“God, the perfect Son – Jesus – didn’t start out perfect!” It came as a shock to me as I read Hebrews chapters 2-5! But there it was! And it didn’t surprise me that God was showing me this at Christmas time! The verses go on to say that Jesus BECAME perfect through OBEDIENCE! Which implies that he WASN’T before He was! Even for me, that was a very big pill to swallow!
Obviously Jesus, being begotten of the same substance as God, WAS perfect in Heaven. No sin, no temptation, no bent toward imperfection! He was one WITH His Father because He WAS, by nature, His Father! They had created angels then men. Then fallen angels had deceived and led disobedient man, to death! Man needed a SAVIOR from their divorce from God. Death came because MAN chose it!
It doesn’t take intelligence to know that imperfect and perfect cannot coexist. A perfect hog cannot act as a heart transplant donor to a needy man! They are not made from the same STUFF! If death was the penalty for Man’s choosing to disobey God, then their Savior, a substitute, must first become a man. THEN… He must be tested and tried as a man to ensure that he WAS perfect. That meant this substitute had to be tempted and tried, and LEARN to be obedient under the same rules the first Adam faced. And THAT, God was showing me, was the Boot Camp drill for Jesus!
Hebrews says Jesus offered up cries and petitions while learning obedience to become the perfect man! Cries and petitions implies that Jesus didn’t like the process! The difference was, THIS man was born to LEARN to be the perfect man, die, then serve as the perfect Priest to administer the sacrifice on behalf of the people He died for!! A TALL order indeed! But one He completed!
So this Christmas, as I think about the gifts, joy and wonder of the Holy-day… I think I’m going to focus on the reality of what Jesus REALLY came here to do and become. May God show me that MY obedience to Him is truly important… if I want to serve Him well!
DO YOU see what I see?
