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Women in Discipleship (sm)
Devotionals for 2005
Week 11
Scripture to ponder: Hebrews 12:2 - "fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
During this time of year when we remember the passion and suffering of Jesus on our behalf, there are a number of thoughts that come to my mind and heart. The first is from the verse above. Jesus had His eyes fixed upon us since before the beginning of time. We are told specifically that He is the author and perfector of our faith. When He bore our sins at Calvary, He was completing a promise God gave in Genesis 3:15. Without the shedding of blood there can be no remission of sins. Jesus had to die as the perfect sacrifice. The book of Hebrews explains all these things.
Jesus knew the cross would be extreme. It wasn't so much the physical pain that was hard, as it was the separation from His Father. Jesus is part of the Trinity. For Him to be separated in any way from His Father was extreme agony and something we can never comprehend. Pain is too mild a word to describe what Jesus endured that fateful day for you and me.
How did Jesus do this? He is God - perfect, holy, and filled with glory. We can't imagine what it took for Him to lay aside His glory to become a God-Man. This is another one of those things I ponder from time to time. We get a glimpse into His glory at the transfiguration. The human flesh that contained Him also held in the majesty of His Spirit. Yet He willingly humbled Himself to become a man, all for the sake of redeeming you and me. Wow, talk about a loving God made flesh!
The reason Jesus could endure the cross and the shame was because of Who His eyes were fixed on. He was focused on His Father. He knew that His Father would not leave Him in the grave. We have God's Word to prove this and the prophesies to testify to it. This is the best thought of all. Jesus had joy because He knew that what He was about to do was eternal. It was also the desire of His Father. Jesus knew that when His work was completed, He would be reunited with His Father and sit at His right hand. The author of Hebrews gives us these thoughts so that we can also "fix our eyes on Jesus." In understanding these truths we have "fullness of joy" because of Jesus. (John 15:11)
May we each keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, our risen Savior and Lord.
Blessings to all,
Sandra Davis and the Women in Discipleship team
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