For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)
If you’ve ever been controlled by hurt feelings and offenses, you know it’s a miserable state to be in. Everyone has opportunities to get offended, upset, or “ticked off” at someone. Take a moment to think about a time when a friend or family member did something disappointing to you. How successful were you at dealing with it? Be honest!
It can often be very difficult to rein in your emotions when you’ve been hurt, but the good news is that Jesus understands. Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” This verse emphatically declares that although Jesus was God in the flesh when He walked on this earth, He still faced every temptation you and I face in life. As a result, this verse says that Jesus is “…touched with the feeling of our infirmities….”
That phrase “be touched with” comes from the Greek word sumpatheo, which means to share an experience with someone or to sympathize with and have compassion for someone. What a comforting thought! Jesus empathizes with every temptation and struggle you face in this life. He identifies and sympathizes with you, and He has compassion for you regarding what you’re feeling and the situation you’re facing.
Jesus has been where you are. He has felt what you feel. He has overcome the temptations you are now trying to overcome.
And because of His experiences, He understands the emotions, frustrations, and temptations you face in life. There is no need to feel too embarrassed to go to the Savior. If anyone can understand what you are going through right now, it’s Jesus! He has been tempted in all points just like you, yet He never succumbed to temptation. As a result:
- He understands your dilemma.
- He has experienced your problem.
- He is familiar with disappointment.
- He knows the temptation to get frustrated.
- He sympathizes when you get upset.
Jesus never fell into one of Satan’s traps, but He definitely faced the same frustrations we do in life. In fact, if Jesus hadn’t been tempted in every realm that we are tempted, He wouldn’t be able to understand us and serve as our great High Priest!
For instance, I can only imagine the frustration Jesus must have felt in the Garden of Gethsemane. He had invested three and a half years of His life into His disciples, and for the first time, Jesus needed them. Jesus asked three of His disciples to pray for Him during His hour of temptation (see Matthew 26:37-45). He asked them for only one hour of prayer, but instead of praying, they fell asleep. He came and pleaded with them a second time to pray with Him, but once more they fell asleep. For a third time, Jesus came and besought His disciples to pray, but again they fell asleep on the job.
What if you had been in Jesus’ position that night? What if you had given three years of your life to these disciples—but when you asked them to help you for the first time, they failed you again and again?
It would be normal for a person in this situation to be tempted to become resentful, upset, or even offended. Anyone in that position would be tempted to think, How dare you sleep on the job after all I’ve done for you! I’m sorry I ever did anything for you bunch of ingrates! However, Jesus never fell into the trap of bitterness, resentment, and unforgiveness. In fact, even as He hung on the cross, He prayed for those who had perpetrated this evil on Him, “…Father, forgive them…” (Luke 23:34).
Jesus is on your side! Hebrews 4:16 goes on to promise that when you go to Him for help, you will obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. So the next time you feel tempted to get upset or frustrated with someone, run to Jesus! He’s your faithful High Priest, inviting you to come boldly to Him to receive the grace you need to resist that temptation. Remember, Jesus understands precisely what you’re going through because He experienced that same temptation when He walked on this earth. But He also knows how to help you walk in love and forgiveness—just as He did in every situation, without fail!
MY PRAYER FOR TODAY
MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY
Rick and Denise met while they were each on an individual quest to wholeheartedly follow God's plan for their lives. Rick was a college student, growing in his teaching ministry. Denise was a talented vocalist. She chose not to pursue a course that held the prospect of performing with the Metropolitan Opera so that she could instead pursue a relationship with Rick and fulfill her heart's desire to enter full-time ministry.
Rick and Denise's friendship has led to lifelong love and a powerful partnership in building the Kingdom of God. After a decade of ministry, first as pastor and then as itinerant ministers, Rick and Denise Renner embarked on an adventure of a lifetime. In January 1991, the Renners and their sons Paul, Philip, and Joel left behind all they knew to relocate their family to serve the region that only weeks earlier had become the former Soviet Union.
Rick and Denise remember kneeling together as a family and kissing the ground when they arrived at the airport in Latvia on that cold January day. At that moment, they all committed their lives to the will of God and to the people of their new homeland. The following year, Rick moved forward to launch and establish the first of its kind, and eventually the largest, a Christian television network in that region of the world.
Over the years, Rick and Denise pioneered three churches, a Bible school, and a ministerial association that serves thousands of Russian-speaking pastors throughout the former USSR as well as parts of the Middle East. As Rick began training and mentoring leaders in the early days, Denise also developed a women's ministry that is actively involved in changing the lives of women and their families today. Specifically, they minister to the needs of orphans, women prisoners, the homeless, and drug-and-alcohol addicts.
Rick, Denise, and their children began as a small circle of five, willing to go beyond their comfort zone to reach the uttermost parts of the world. Today that circle includes their sons' wives, six grandchildren, and a large ministry staff that helps the Renners extend their reach as they exalt Jesus Christ as the Hope of all nations.