| Private
pains, deep hurts, shameful addictions. You may think that nobody
understands what you are going through, but God does. He can identify
with all your pains and is able to help you. (Hebrews 2:18, 4:15) |
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| In
the Old Testament, the grain offering brought to God speaks of Jesus’
life on earth. The fine flour, which the grain offering is made with, is
flour that has been pounded, ground, beaten and sifted through to get
it consistently even and fine. Therefore, it typifies the humanity and
sufferings of Jesus. |
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| One
of the ways the Jewish women prepared the grain offering was to bake
it. The baking done in the depths of the oven speaks of the “hidden”
sufferings that Jesus went though. I believe that Jesus faced sufferings
that we cannot fully understand. Even as a young boy, He must have gone
through sufferings that prepared Him to die for all humanity at the
cross. And during His ministry years, it must have grieved Him when time
and time again, He found unbelief not just in the people around Him,
but even in His disciples. |
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| Jesus
also suffered at the hands of men — slanderers who misunderstood Him.
Once, the Pharisees insinuated that He was born out of wedlock because
His mother was with child before she married Joseph. (John 8:39, 41)
That scandalous remark, probably not the first, must have hurt Him. |
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| Consider
also the temptations He faced. There were not only three. God’s Word
says that He was tempted for 40 days! (Luke 4:2) Not all the temptations
were recorded. Those 40 days must have tried Him sorely. |
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| What do all these mean? |
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| My
friend, Jesus went through all those temptations and sufferings for
you, yet He did not sin. (Hebrews 4:15) There is no temptation or
suffering that you are going through that He cannot identify with. So
come to His throne of grace today and receive His superabounding grace
to face and overcome those trials in your life! |
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