"Though he [Jesus] were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered."
Hebrews 5:8
Since Jesus Christ is God, why does our verse for today say “yet learned He obedience?” Jesus, has always been God, and He will always be God, and yet He learned!
Unlike all other humans, Jesus is the God-man. He is 100 percent God and 100 percent man. When He took on human flesh, He voluntarily laid aside the use of some of His attributes (His rights of Deity) as He lived on earth with men during His humiliation (Philippians 2:7). He was no less God, but He added humanity to His divine nature.
Like other human beings Jesus had to develop as a human. “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man,” (Luke 2:52). As a man He grew mentally, physically, spiritually, and socially. In fact Jesus had to deal with His human flesh as we do, minus all the sinful problems we face because of our sin nature. As we do, Jesus also knew what it was to get tired and hungry. And yet His flesh never led Him into sin.
How did Jesus “learn to obey?” When we sinful humans learn to obey we have to learn it from the standpoint of our disobedience. Not so with Jesus, He had never disobeyed, so He learned obedience from the standpoint of obedience. We had to learn “how to obey,” not Jesus. He learned the “what” of obedience, that is, “what is involved in obeying.” His suffering taught Him this. God the Father allowed suffering to be a part of His Son’s experience on the way to Calvary for us. “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief…” (Isaiah 53:3).
If the Father let His Son suffer for us, why should we be surprised to find that suffering is a part of the believer’s life also? As we go through times of suffering we need to let our Father teach us the lessons we need to learn. He gives us the opportunity to suffer, and sometimes we get to suffer for Him.
Believer, are you dealing with suffering now? If so, what are the lessons you are learning about yourself, and your God? (Keep a Journal…)