"We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin" Heb. 4:15.
The first two things that pop out to me in this verse is the utter difference Jesus was to my plight in sins grip, and the fact he came to earth and was empathetic in my plight, to the point of allowing himself as God-man, emphasizing Man here, to be actually tempted by the Devil. What a loving act on my behalf to show the path for my future. And to qualify the connection of our differences to Himself.
My point in this blog is to understand the part in this passage that says how similar we now are to Him in this context, not how different our stance was in sin in the past.. One must ask themselves when they read this verse; ..."is the cup half full or half empty here?"
Satan would have us see the vast difference in the sinless Christ to our sin- bound slavery, and tell us that for our journey God can win some of our battles, even many of our battles, but because of our difference in the sinlessness issue; for us--not every battle. But if it is Christ winning the battles why do I figure in the equation at all if I remain in Him and His word remains in me? If I remain in Him I have adopted His past sinlessness not my own sinfulness as my abridged past. True I am weak, but as the famous song concludes .....but He is strong!
If sin has been striped of its power and I am recognized dead and consequently reborn into a new life in Christ, by way of belief and confession, the measurement of my success coinciding with sin is now predicated on Christ Himself.
Am I to doubt the Lords ability to finish His work in me? Of course not. Yet, even when Satan would pull me aside to reinstall passion for my past desires, and cultivate doubts in myself, God is right there to fill in the gaps. Open-armed and graciously awaiting me to let Him fight the fight for me.
Now, Until we are born-again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, "Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed." But thru regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced.
The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lords temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born-again and become His family.
The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as man. Thru regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us....Gal.4:19,...and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to do wrong things--he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us thru regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us do sins, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil. This is the recruiting prowess of Satan's subtle lies, and the transforming power of the Spirit of God, simulcast in Spiritual Warfare.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, Spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable.
After Jesus' baptism, having accepted His mission of being "The One"...."Who takes away the sin of the world"....John 1:29...He "was lead up by the Spirit into the wilderness"...Matt.4:1...and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted (as a new man in Christ -- are we attaching this to ourselves?). He went thru the temptation"without sin" and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely in tact. Proof not of His victory alone, but a victory now found in us as we sit in things already accomplished in Christ. A victory He had predestined for each of us to gain in our Christ-like disposition.
We need to see the clear exchange of our dead self of old; completely and utterly useless, not just damaged; To the new regenerated- self found with the power and authority of Christ in us. This is powerful stuff! This is no simple thing. This is no almost finished work. The only unfinished work is the adherence of that total victory to ourselves as he fills the areas of our lives with this "more than conquering," victory, helping us understand what we have had from moment one of accepting Jesus into our lives.
* May God richly bless His Saints.
The first two things that pop out to me in this verse is the utter difference Jesus was to my plight in sins grip, and the fact he came to earth and was empathetic in my plight, to the point of allowing himself as God-man, emphasizing Man here, to be actually tempted by the Devil. What a loving act on my behalf to show the path for my future. And to qualify the connection of our differences to Himself.
My point in this blog is to understand the part in this passage that says how similar we now are to Him in this context, not how different our stance was in sin in the past.. One must ask themselves when they read this verse; ..."is the cup half full or half empty here?"
Satan would have us see the vast difference in the sinless Christ to our sin- bound slavery, and tell us that for our journey God can win some of our battles, even many of our battles, but because of our difference in the sinlessness issue; for us--not every battle. But if it is Christ winning the battles why do I figure in the equation at all if I remain in Him and His word remains in me? If I remain in Him I have adopted His past sinlessness not my own sinfulness as my abridged past. True I am weak, but as the famous song concludes .....but He is strong!
If sin has been striped of its power and I am recognized dead and consequently reborn into a new life in Christ, by way of belief and confession, the measurement of my success coinciding with sin is now predicated on Christ Himself.
Am I to doubt the Lords ability to finish His work in me? Of course not. Yet, even when Satan would pull me aside to reinstall passion for my past desires, and cultivate doubts in myself, God is right there to fill in the gaps. Open-armed and graciously awaiting me to let Him fight the fight for me.
Now, Until we are born-again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, "Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed." But thru regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced.
The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lords temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born-again and become His family.
The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as man. Thru regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us....Gal.4:19,...and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to do wrong things--he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us thru regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us do sins, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil. This is the recruiting prowess of Satan's subtle lies, and the transforming power of the Spirit of God, simulcast in Spiritual Warfare.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, Spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable.
After Jesus' baptism, having accepted His mission of being "The One"...."Who takes away the sin of the world"....John 1:29...He "was lead up by the Spirit into the wilderness"...Matt.4:1...and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted (as a new man in Christ -- are we attaching this to ourselves?). He went thru the temptation"without sin" and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely in tact. Proof not of His victory alone, but a victory now found in us as we sit in things already accomplished in Christ. A victory He had predestined for each of us to gain in our Christ-like disposition.
We need to see the clear exchange of our dead self of old; completely and utterly useless, not just damaged; To the new regenerated- self found with the power and authority of Christ in us. This is powerful stuff! This is no simple thing. This is no almost finished work. The only unfinished work is the adherence of that total victory to ourselves as he fills the areas of our lives with this "more than conquering," victory, helping us understand what we have had from moment one of accepting Jesus into our lives.
* May God richly bless His Saints.