Have you
ever stopped and really considered this? Whatever the Lord Jesus passed through
in this world, He always had this thought in mind.
Let's
look at the setting in Hebrews 12:1-3 where we find the saying.
(1) "Therefore we also,
since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside
every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with
endurance the race that is set before us,
(2) looking unto Jesus the author
and finisher of [our] faith, who for the
joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has
sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
(3) For consider Him who endured
such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and
discouraged in your souls."
Life is
like a marathon race; it will take endurance, stamina and courage to run the
race and finish it. Verse 2 encourages us to keep looking to Jesus as
our supreme example of endurance and patience.
Four
things in verse 2 stand out
1. The
joy that was set before Him.
2. He
endured the cross.
3. He
despised the shame of being crucified.
4. He
sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
What was
the basis for this joy; the joy that was set before Him? It is like the crown
the victor knows he will get when he wins the race. With the Lord Jesus there
was a present joy and a future joy. The present joy was His because he
delighted to do His Father's will, and all that entailed.
His
future joy would come as a result of enduring the cross at Calvary. What is His
future joy? Surely it is redeemed, blood bought sinners saved as a result of
His sacrifice at Calvary for them. It has been said, "The fields of redemption will yield a far greater harvest than
the fields of creation." He will spend eternity with all His redeemed
people from Old and New Testament times. What a joy is His!
This
blessed, perfect man whom the world hated and crucified, "...endured the cross, despising the shame..." The end
result was He sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. As God the Son
the throne was already His. As the Son of Man He acquired this exalted position
as His right; because of what he endured, and because of His great victory over
sin, death, hell and Satan
Are you
part of His joy? If not, why not?
Jon Peasey
Ebooks author page https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/JRPeasey
[All
Scriptures quoted are from the New King James version; unless otherwise noted.
Words enclosed in [ ] are inserted
for clarity. Words in bold type
emphasise a point]
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