God’s Education Plan
although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered Hebrews 5:8
Suffered – Have you ever considered just how strange this verse is? Jesus, the perfect Son, the fully dependent man, the sinless example for us all, still had to learn obedience through suffering. Why? If Jesus is the God-Man, why was this necessary? What can it mean to say that Jesus suffered on the journey of obedience?
Few people doubt the agony of the cross. That was suffering! But even fewer consider the fact that Jesus did not learn obedience on the cross. He came to the cross already obedient. He learned obedience all the way up to the cross, but at the point of death, obedience was no longer an issue. The cross was suffering, but it was not a teaching moment. It was the fulfillment of a life of learning.
So, if the cross is not the focus of this passage, then what things did Jesus suffer on His journey in obedience? Surprisingly, we discover that the things He suffered that taught Him obedience are exactly the same things that we endure. The difference is that we do not usually consider them obedience training. We think of them as trials to avoid, annoyances and injustices. God provides opportunities for obedience training for us just like He did for Jesus, but most of the time we turn away or complain.
Consider ten things Jesus suffered:
1. Finances – He had almost no earthly possessions in a world that counted blessing in terms of accumulation
2. Shelter – He had no home of His own
3. Family – He had no helpmate, no children, no sexual intimacy
4. Reputation – He was rejected, abused, insulted and eventually killed by His own people
5. Retirement – I don’t think so. Jesus’ retirement was the grave
6. Leisure – His life was filled with unceasing demands, daily toil and political danger
7. Security – Hunted, baited and plotted against
8. Friendship – and where were they when the soldiers came?
9. Doubt – how would you act if literally no one believed you, even your mother?
10. Abandonment – Psalm 22:1 (but not quite what we think it is)
How do you score on these common, human opportunities to be obedient? God’s education plan always begins with the ordinary, converting it into a window into the divine. Don’t expect to be nailed to a cross if you cannot first walk along a dusty road.
Oh, in case you wanted to know, the Greek word is epathe, past tense (aorist) of pascho.
