But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed.
(Isaiah 53:5)Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.
(Hebrews 12:1-3)If we would only ponder the example of our Savior himself, that example alone should be enough to encourage all true Christians to bear the loss of worldly goods, to submit to captivity, slavery, and imprisonment, and to gladly endure worldly shame…
If we would only consider his incomparable kindness, our cold hearts would become inflamed with the fire of his love.
(St. Thomas More, Dialogue, 227)
In steeling ourselves to suffer with Christ, our best help is to consider the way Jesus suffered before us.
He showed the way, and he promised that he would be with us.
Today we are going to look at and ponder some of the ways the Lord suffered, willingly, for each of us.
Read the below slowly.
Then sit and consider each paragraph one at a time.
Christ suffered failure.
He had organized a national movement, he had flouted the authorities and incited their hostility, and he had gathered devoted followers who put their trust in him and in the success of his mission.
But he was taken by those who hated him, and his movement was left in shambles.
His followers were shocked and dispersed, while his enemies gloated over their success.
Christ suffered betrayal and isolation.
One of his closest associates betrayed him to his enemies for money.
Another, his hand-picked leader, denied even knowing him.
His close band of apostles ran away when the decisive battle came.
He was left to face the great crisis of his life alone.
Christ suffered shame and degradation.
He was the true King of Israel, yet he was mocked, jeered, and spit at as if he were a sham and a buffoon.
They dressed him in a fake robe with a painful crown.
A rabble of hostile and laughing soldiers pitilessly made fun of him, calling him names and treating him like a fool.
Christ suffered false accusation.
He was treated as an outlaw, dragged before the Jewish Council, King Herod, and Pilate, accused of evil, insulted, degraded, and convicted.
He was ultimately executed as the worst of criminals.
Christ suffered physical torture.
He was beaten, scourged within an inch of his life, and then crucified, dying in one of the most brutal ways humanity ever devised.
Christ suffered the unimaginable torture of carrying the weight of all the world’s sin, and being delivered into the grip of that dark and malignant spirit who hated him and desired his utter destruction.
Let us keep before our eyes the image of our brave Lord, who suffered and endured so much hostility to save us.
When it comes to the thought of embracing suffering, where do you find yourself weary and fainthearted?
