Embracing Glory Through Christ's Suffering and Salvation
Devotional
Day 1: Jesus' Perfection Through Suffering
The perfection of Jesus through suffering is not about correcting imperfection but about completing His mission through the experience of human trials. This process was essential for Him to fully empathize with humanity and lead us into glory. Jesus' obedience and faithfulness were proven through His sufferings, allowing Him to become the perfect author of our salvation. His journey through suffering was necessary for Him to understand our struggles deeply and to guide us into the glory that God has prepared for us. [08:13]
Hebrews 5:8-9 (ESV): "Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him."
Reflection: Consider a recent trial or suffering you have experienced. How might this experience be shaping you to better empathize with others and grow in your faith?
Day 2: The Fittingness of God's Plan
The fittingness of God's plan is a call to not neglect the greatness of our salvation. By asking why God chose this path, we can see the beauty and wisdom in His actions, which magnify His glory and demonstrate the worth of His glory that sustained Jesus. This perspective invites believers to appreciate the divine wisdom in the path of suffering chosen by Jesus, as it highlights the ultimate purpose of glorifying God. Understanding this fittingness helps us to trust in God's plan, even when it involves trials and challenges. [16:13]
Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV): "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Reflection: Reflect on a situation where you struggled to understand God's plan. How can you begin to trust in the fittingness of His plan, even when it doesn't make sense to you?
Day 3: Unity with Jesus in Suffering
The unity between Jesus and those He sanctifies is profound, as it ensures a deep, empathetic connection with us. This unity is a testament to God's desire for a family bound by shared experiences and love, highlighting the fittingness of Jesus sharing in our sufferings. Jesus, as our older brother, shares in our trials, ensuring that we are never alone in our struggles. This connection is a source of comfort and strength, reminding us that Jesus understands our pain and walks with us through it. [12:37]
Romans 8:17 (ESV): "And if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him."
Reflection: Think of a current struggle you are facing. How does knowing that Jesus shares in your suffering change your perspective on this situation?
Day 4: The Sufferings of Jesus Magnify God's Glory
The sufferings of Jesus magnify the worth of God, as they reveal that everything exists to call attention to God. This showcases His unimprovable nature and emphasizes that our salvation is for the glory of God from beginning to end. Jesus' endurance through suffering highlights the value of God's glory, which sustained Him through His trials. This understanding calls believers to live lives that reflect God's glory, recognizing that our purpose is to point others to Him. [15:53]
2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (ESV): "For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal."
Reflection: How can you live in a way that magnifies God's glory in your daily life, especially in times of suffering or difficulty?
Day 5: The Call to Not Neglect Salvation
We are urged not to neglect our great salvation. For unbelievers, this is an invitation to embrace the salvation offered through Jesus Christ. For believers, it is a call to meditate on the glory of our salvation and to remain vigilant in our faith. This call encourages believers to treasure the profound truths revealed in the book of Hebrews and to continually reflect on the significance of their salvation. It is a reminder to prioritize our relationship with God and to live in a way that honors the gift of salvation. [19:59]
Hebrews 2:1-3 (ESV): "Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?"
Reflection: What steps can you take today to ensure that you are not neglecting the great salvation you have received through Jesus Christ?
Sermon Summary
In exploring Hebrews 2:10, we delve into the profound truth of how Jesus Christ endured the cross, driven by the joy of glorifying God and bringing many sons and daughters to glory. This passage invites us to reflect on the fittingness of God's plan, where Jesus, the author of our salvation, was perfected through sufferings. This perfection does not imply that Jesus was ever imperfect; rather, it signifies His completion through the experience of human suffering, proving His obedience and faithfulness. This journey of suffering was essential for Jesus to fully empathize with us, His brothers and sisters, and to lead us into glory.
The concept of fittingness in God's actions is a call to not neglect the greatness of our salvation. It encourages us to ask why God chose this path and to see the beauty and wisdom in His plan. Jesus' sufferings magnify the glory of God, as they demonstrate the worth of God's glory, which sustained Jesus through His trials. This glory is the ultimate reward and the sustaining hope for believers, as it was for Jesus.
The unity between Jesus and those He sanctifies is profound. It is fitting that Jesus, our older brother, shares in our sufferings, ensuring a deep, empathetic connection with us. This unity is a testament to God's desire for a family bound by shared experiences and love. The sufferings of Jesus highlight the worth of God's glory, as they reveal that everything exists to call attention to God, not to improve upon Him, but to showcase His unimprovable nature.
In light of this, we are urged not to neglect our great salvation. For unbelievers, this is an invitation to embrace the salvation offered through Jesus Christ. For believers, it is a call to meditate on the glory of our salvation and to remain vigilant in our faith, continually treasuring the profound truths revealed in the book of Hebrews.
Key Takeaways
1. The perfection of Jesus through suffering does not imply imperfection but rather His completion through the experience of human trials, proving His obedience and faithfulness. This process was essential for Him to fully empathize with us and lead us into glory. [08:13]
2. The fittingness of God's plan is a call to not neglect the greatness of our salvation. By asking why God chose this path, we can see the beauty and wisdom in His actions, which magnify His glory and demonstrate the worth of His glory that sustained Jesus. [16:13]
3. The unity between Jesus and those He sanctifies is profound, as it ensures a deep, empathetic connection with us. This unity is a testament to God's desire for a family bound by shared experiences and love, highlighting the fittingness of Jesus sharing in our sufferings. [12:37]
4. The sufferings of Jesus magnify the worth of God, as they reveal that everything exists to call attention to God. This showcases His unimprovable nature and emphasizes that our salvation is for the glory of God from beginning to end. [15:53]
5. We are urged not to neglect our great salvation. For unbelievers, this is an invitation to embrace the salvation offered through Jesus Christ. For believers, it is a call to meditate on the glory of our salvation and to remain vigilant in our faith. [19:59] ** [19:59]
According to Hebrews 2:10, what was the purpose of Jesus being perfected through sufferings? How does this relate to bringing many sons to glory? [02:10]
In the sermon, what does the pastor say about the fittingness of God's plan in relation to Jesus' sufferings? [03:15]
How does Hebrews 5:8-9 explain the concept of Jesus being made perfect through suffering? What does it mean for Jesus to learn obedience? [07:06]
What is the significance of Jesus being referred to as our older brother in the sermon? How does this relate to the unity between Jesus and believers? [11:30]
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Interpretation Questions:
Why does the pastor emphasize the importance of understanding the fittingness of God's plan? How does this understanding impact a believer's view of salvation? [03:15]
How does the concept of Jesus being perfected through suffering challenge or affirm your understanding of His sinlessness and divinity? [06:33]
In what ways does the sermon suggest that Jesus' sufferings magnify the glory of God? How does this perspective influence a believer's approach to their own sufferings? [14:56]
How does the unity between Jesus and believers, as described in the sermon, affect the way believers should relate to one another within the church community? [12:37]
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Application Questions:
Reflect on a time when you faced suffering or trials. How can the example of Jesus' obedience through suffering encourage you to remain faithful during difficult times? [08:13]
The sermon calls believers not to neglect their great salvation. What practical steps can you take this week to meditate on and appreciate the glory of your salvation? [19:59]
How can understanding the fittingness of God's plan help you trust Him more deeply in areas of your life where you currently have questions or doubts? [03:15]
In what ways can you foster a deeper sense of unity and empathy within your small group or church community, following the example of Jesus as our older brother? [11:30]
Consider the idea that Jesus' sufferings magnify the glory of God. How can you apply this perspective to your own life, especially when facing challenges or hardships? [14:56]
The sermon invites unbelievers to embrace the salvation offered through Jesus Christ. How can you share this invitation with someone in your life who may not yet know Christ? [20:15]
Identify one area in your life where you may be neglecting your salvation. What specific action can you take to address this and grow in your faith? [19:59]
Sermon Clips
The book of Hebrews is one extended effort not to neglect the greatness of Salvation. It is one long meditation on the magnificence of Jesus Christ and what he has wrought through his death and Resurrection for you and me. So if you want to know how do you not neglect your great salvation, let the book of Hebrews model for you how not to neglect your great salvation. [00:55:52]
For it was fitting for him, for God, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to Glory—that's our great salvation—in bringing many sons to Glory, it was fitting to perfect the author of their salvation—that's Jesus—through sufferings. [02:03:00]
The main problem with that is the book of Hebrews more than any other book in the New Testament insists on the sinlessness of Jesus from the word go. Chapter 4:16, he was tempted like we are, yet without sin. Chapter 9:14, he presented himself as a lamb without blemish. Chapter 7:24, he was offered up to God as one who was separated from Sinners. [06:00:40]
Jesus Christ came into the world as a human being untested through suffering. He'd never known a moment of suffering in all eternity. Would he obey under sufferings? Would he hold true? Would he be a man of Faith? Would he rest in his father? Would he be perfected in the sense that he proves through suffering he is whole, he is complete? [07:56:36]
The captain and the Forerunner needed to experience what we experience and succeed where we failed. We came into the world, were tested, and failed over and over. We just sang it. What did one of those verses say? Tested, tried, and often failing. And when I sang that this morning, I just smiled real big and I said, never Jesus, never Jesus. [08:52:72]
It is fitting for Jesus to be perfected through suffering and Lead many sons to Glory because this is a little bit difficult, hang on if you can get this, it is unspeakably marvelously the will of God the creator of all things. It is the will of God to have a family in which the brothers and sisters, the children, are so United. [10:13:68]
There is a profound Unity between the sanctifier Jesus and the Sanctified us, and that Unity is given as the ground for why it's fitting for the son to be perfected through sufferings. That's the link between 10 and 11, and then it supports it by simply quoting Psalm 22 where Jesus cries out and says I will Proclaim thy name oh God to my brethren. [12:29:68]
The sufferings of Jesus magnify the worth of God more than anything else. Now why? That sounds like it comes out of John Piper's theology rather than out of the text, which is something I'm very afraid of doing, and so I want to show you and see whether you see what I see in this text. [14:56:39]
Everything exists, you exist, I exist, salvation exists, Jesus exists to call attention to God, to call attention to the glory of God, not to improve upon God. I don't improve upon God, my salvation doesn't improve upon God, it gets attention for the unimprovable ility of God. Everything is for God. [15:59:44]
The reason the sufferings of Jesus magnify the glory of God and show that everything is for the glory of God is because what sustained Jesus Through suffering was the worth of the glory he was aiming for and bringing people to, which is the end of my sermon now. [19:24:72]
Here we are, the most precious, the most glorious, the most wonderful thing about our great Salvation. And the reason we should not neglect it is because our Salvation is salvation for the glory of our great God from beginning to end is God in this great salvation. [19:41:64]
Don't neglect this great salvation. Be vigilant. Take what you've seen, let Hebrews model for you how to meditate upon the glory of your great salvation. This is light and Truth, God's centered preaching to help you see Christ clearly and treasure him truly. [20:40:79]