Hebrews 4:15
This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.
When you say this statement is true, as you walk through life with someone and get to know them more deeply over time, you are increasingly more aware of their weaknesses. And as your love for that person grows, you become more able to sympathize with their weaknesses. As your knowledge of that person grows, you're more able to come alongside him or her and share in their pain in difficulty, waiting and lack, weariness and weakness. Look at a wife and her husband.
As knowledge of your spouse grows, you learn the difficulties they face day in and day out. You see what drains them throughout their week. You learn what temptations they are most vulnerable to. As you grow in love for your spouse, you learn their weaknesses. C.S. Lewis once said, to love it all is to be vulnerable. No mask, no disguise, no facade, just honesty and openness.
To love it all is to be known, and to be known is a good thing. When God created us from the beginning, this is what he desired of us, that we would be known and loved by him. But sin came into this world through Adam and the effects of sin spread through all creation. We see it every day. But God didn't let sin have the last word, did he? He sent his son to this earth as a needy baby boy, as all children are.
And Jesus grew up to be a man of sorrows and suffering. As Christ went throughout his life on this earth, he experienced what we experience now, but without sin. Christ knows everything about you. He knows your weaknesses, and he cares for you. You can find the verse for this evening on the front of your bulletin, or you can turn to page 1003 in your pew Bible. We're looking at Hebrews 4.15 this evening.
Hebrews 4.15, it says, For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. The main point of this verse for us this evening is, Jesus experienced weakness in this sinful world, just like us, but he never sinned.
So rest in his ability to save you from your sin. Jesus experienced weakness in this sinful world, just like us, but without sin. So rest in his ability to save you from your sin. This main point breaks up into two simple points, the one who understands our weaknesses and the one who saves us from our sin. So looking at point one, the one who understands our weaknesses, the author of Hebrews here is trying to encourage his brothers and sisters in Christ who are probably Jewish Christians to press on in the faith. Temptation to turn away from the gospel was pressing in on them. Persecution for believing in Jesus and who he said he was was right at the doorstep. The author spills out the riches of the gospel and who this Christ, who this high priest is, so that their faith might be
bolstered amidst their weakness. I don't think we will ever fully recognize or realize the gravity of the Son of God's incarnation as a man because we're not God. But Paul in Philippians 2 describes it this way who though he was in the form of God did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of men Jesus was as much a man as a man can get he took on humanity when he came here but without sin You know what else he was? He was as much of a boy as a boy can get but without sin. He probably played around with his dad Joseph when he was younger. He got dirty and sweaty and he probably smelled as a teenager. When he went exploring in the hills he probably jumped off a few rock
formations and got cut up when working outside. Jesus knew what it was like to be a human because he became a man. He experienced what we experience right now. Jesus felt the weaknesses we feel day in and day out. Jesus got tired and worn out from a long day and spent time rejuvenating by himself, even in his youth. Jesus needed water to stay hydrated. He needed food to be energized.
Jesus' hands were probably calloused and rough from working with his dad. Jesus got righteously angry at those defiling the temple. Jesus wept and felt lost, just like we feel lost for loved ones when they pass away or when friends move out of the city. Jesus knows exactly what we go through in this life, The long days, the sleepless nights, the realization that this world lacks what is not perfect because it's tainted by sin.
So what should be our response to Jesus sympathizing with our weaknesses? Christ's sympathy towards us should encourage us to rest in him because he lived in the same world that we live in, but without sin. christian do you not think that god that jesus does not realize the trial you are going through right now he lived the life that we lived but without sin god wants to take our weaknesses and use them to drive us to jesus because who else do we have to go to for help the problem is is that we don't always run to jesus in our weakness do we we still have a flesh in our flat and in our flesh we run to ourselves we run to our own strength
our own abilities, our own skills, our own wisdoms, thinking we are able to finagle our way out of this life's problems on our own, thinking we are strong enough in ourselves to avoid temptation when it's right at our doorstep. If we are not careful, we can react to weakness by becoming bitter and angry and envious towards others, even in this church, who have relatively more comfort and ease than we do.
The battle is looking to Jesus when we are tempted to question and doubt God. Why did you make me like this? Why am I going through this? Why did you allow this to happen to me? Can't you see my lack? In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul writes about this thorn in his flesh that was harassing him. He called it a messenger of Satan. In my opinion, this messenger of Satan, it's a physical or mental ailment that he carried with him in his body.
Paul prayed three times for God to take this thorn away from his life. Did he take it away? No. We can safely say, though, that this thorn drove Paul to his knees in his weakness. God's grace overflowed in Paul, and his weaknesses displayed God's strength in him. Paul goes on to say later in 2 Corinthians that he delights in weakness, for when he is weak, then he is strong in Christ.
Paul was equipped in Philippians. Paul was equipped to do all things through Christ in times of need and in lack, pain, and weakness because his strength was found in Christ, not himself. Christian, God knows you are weak in this life. And that's why he has given us a helper, the Holy Spirit, to strengthen us and comfort us in our weakness. God allows us to experience human weakness in this life so that we are driven to Jesus, so that our reliance upon our Savior grows.
One thing that weakness does in all of us is it breaks our pride. Our weakness breaks it. Weaknesses are meant to make us more like Christ. They are even meant to prepare us to be with him in heaven. But for the one who has not believed in the gospel, these are not realities for you. You don't find strength in God.
You try to find it in yourself and in other worldly means. There's only the weight and burden of your sin upon you. There's no helper. It's just you. There's no comfort, only burden. That is why we need to be saved from our sin. And Christ is the only one who can do that. Brings us to our second point, the one who saves us from our sin.
Jesus was tempted to sin against his father constantly when he was living on this earth. He was tempted by Satan. He was tempted by the sinful pleasures of this world. He was even tempted by others who wanted him to fall. But from the time that Jesus came into Mary's womb to the time he died on the cross, he never sinned. Not once was he selfish. Not once did he envy what someone else had.
Not once did he lash out in impatience. Not once did he dishonor his mom and dad. Not once did he handle his finances in his workplace sinfully or cheat on his taxes. Not once did he lust or commit adultery or steal or lie or murder in his heart. In Christ's humanly weakness through all the times he was tempted to sin, he responded by acting out in love for the Father.
and by acting out in love for those he was going to die for on the cross. He's the only one who can be our perfect high priest. He was the only one who could offer the perfect sacrifice on the altar on behalf of his people to redeem them from their sin. When Jesus came to earth, he brought nothing with him. He didn't bring along some lambs or some goats from heaven. He brought nothing but himself.
Want to know one of the amazing things about the gospel? It's that the highest of high priests went to the altar, to the cross, with nothing but himself as the sacrifice. The perfect lamb who knew no sin took on our sin so that we might be called children of God. but the only way to draw near to God is through Jesus Christ there's nothing we can bring to the altar and say to God hey God would you take this from my sin we have nothing to bring to God that will atone for our sin we need God's mercy we can't gain favor before God by good works or by social status, or by our financial portfolio, or by how many A's we get in school, or how many degrees we have hanging on the wall. We can't gain favor by how many books we have stored in our
libraries, or how much knowledge we have stored in our minds. We can't gain favor before God by how much money we give to the local church. We can't gain favor before God by how many Central park cleanups we go to but please give financially to the local church that's how we do ministry here and if you're available and willing please come to the central park cleanup on may 10th it's a way we can love our community but there's nothing you can bring to the table to satisfy the wrath of god only by believing in the perfect life christ lived in the death he died on the cross and his resurrection can you be forgiven of your sin and then you can always know that Christ is with you by a spirit in your weakness so when you are experiencing weakness or temptation church look
to Jesus and he will give you strength to endure to endure third avenue our weaknesses even as a church are sanctifying us to prepare us for heaven where we will be strong in the Lord forever because he will be with us and he will be our God. Let's pray. Lord Jesus, we are weak people in ourselves, but you promise us by the Holy Spirit to give us strength in time of need. And so for all of us right now who are weak, we pray that you would give us strength in all the circumstances that we are walking through. We pray all these things in your name. Amen.