Jesus, Our Empathetic High Priest

The other day, I walked into my son’s room to see him holding his bloody hand in his blanket.  I panicked because I had absolutely no idea what had happened.  He plainly told me that he cut his hand on a broken piece of glass, but then (probably because I was freaking) he immediately started crying. But I mean the cut was significant, I thought we might have to go to the ER.  (Anyway, why there was even broken glass is a completely different story)

As I tried to help, Ezra fought me tooth and nail.  He didn’t want me to look at it, or touch it, or help him at all.  He didn’t even want a band-aid.  But I knew that cleaning it, wiping away the blood, applying pressure for a good long while, and putting a band-aid on it would really be the best thing for him, even though initially it would hurt.

He continued to fight me, and eventually I had to use a very stern voice and finagle my way around his squirming body.  Toddlers are strong y'all.  I asked him if he knew that mommy loved him.  I asked him if he trusted mommy.  Finally he relinquished control and let me help him. He looked at me, sighed, and  said “ahh, much better mommy”.

If me and you are Ezra, this is a picture of our relationship with God a lot of times. 

After a few minutes of having a paper towel and 3 bandaids (which were probably wrapped too tight) I asked him if he was okay & he said that he was.  He also said, “I am sorry I got cut.”  It wasn’t his fault that he got cut; it was just an accident.  But I was still there to help him with his cut, his injury, his boo-boo.

About 20 minutes after getting bandaged and back to playing with his trains, he looked at me and said “Jesus got cut too.”  Ezra wasn’t asking a question, it was just a statement that, in fact, Jesus had gotten cut before.  So right there, I thought of how Jesus probably did get cuts, and scraps, and boo-boos as a child, and his mom probably bandaged him a few times (except Jesus was super compliant and perfect and all, but still, in his humanity he felt all the physical pain of a boo-boo).

So I told Ezra that Jesus is our empathetic high priest. I know, I know, he has no idea what the words “empathetic” and “high priest” even mean, but it was a wonderful reminder to me that Jesus understands every thing we go through. From boo-boos to loneliness, and broken relationships and loss, Jesus understands.

Jesus, who was God in the flesh, became a human and lived a perfectly obedient life that we were meant to, but couldn’t because of our sin.  Any hardship or struggle we find ourself in in this broken world, Jesus can empathize because he suffered in the ultimate way—bearing the wrath of God on the cross, on our behalf because of our sin, our disobedience against a holy God.  

Jesus even understands the successes and victories, because he conquered death.  

When I told Ezra that Jesus understands the pain that he feels in his finger, I really meant it, Jesus does understand the pain that Ezra is experiencing right now because what could be more painful than absorbing all the wrath of God for all of mankind from past, to present and future.

So this is good news as we enter into this holiday season, or maybe for you tonight.  Because whatever hardship, frustration, pain you are facing, Jesus understands.  And I totally get that things might be smooth sailing and nothing is wrong, but something might happen soon, and you need to know that even then, Jesus understands.

Hebrews 4:14-16 says: 

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 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. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

So Jesus, our high priest who has suffered on our behalf, can understand all our hurts and weaknesses and pains and struggles and temptations.  We can be confident when we call upon our God we will receive exactly what we need in these trying times.  

I don’t know what is going on in your life.  Things might be all around great, but they might not.  Chances are there are things through out the week that just don’t seem to work out the way you thought they would. 

So if you are in the midst of any type of physical pain, Isaiah 53 says that Jesus’s physical body was actually pierced for our transgressions and completely crushed for our iniquities. 

If you’re hurting from the loss of someone your love, remember in John 11 how that Jesus grieved and wept because his friend Lazarus had died.  

In 2 Corinthians 8,  Paul reminds us that though Jesus was rich, he became poor for your sake.  He became poor so you might be rich in him. So this is incredibly good news if you are feeling the weight of finances and struggling to see how ends will meet.

As I go through this list of real life situations, I am sure you can think of times in Jesus’ life that he would have experienced them: loneliness, abandoned by friends, betrayal, humiliation, physically violated, cheated, physical stress, excluded from things.

As Jesus experienced the greatest broken relationship in the world — being separated from the Father on the cross “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me” we can rest in the truth that because Jesus endured the separation and brokenness from the Father, we now can have a restored and whole relationship with God himself.

Jesus understands.  

Jesus is our great, empathetic high priest.  

Whatever strain in your life there may be—even a little boo-boo like Ezra—Jesus calls us to draw near to his throne, cast our cares on him because he cares for us, and he will give us his real grace in our time of need.  That is demonstrated by the cross.  Thank you for the cross.

Let All That You Are Praise Him: Psalm 104

I ran across Psalm 104 as I was practicing praying the psalms as proposed by Donald Whitney in his book Praying the Bible.  After reading Jen Wilkin's book None Like Him and The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer, I have a richer theology and a better understanding of the Lord's attributes which cause me to stand in awe and utter fascination of who Jesus is.  But to say I fully understand tings like omniscience and sovereignty and transcendence would be absoutely foolish, because there is still so much to the Lord that is a sheer mystery; however, these characteristics of God cause me to just say, "Wow!" before the Lord.

I hope reading this Psalm causes you to worship the Lord and stand with your mouth open wide in sheer amazement.

Let everything, all that you are, praise Him.

Psalm 104New Living Translation (NLT)

Let all that I am praise the Lord.

O Lord my God, how great you are!
    You are robed with honor and majesty.
2     You are dressed in a robe of light.
You stretch out the starry curtain of the heavens;
3     you lay out the rafters of your home in the rain clouds.
You make the clouds your chariot;
    you ride upon the wings of the wind.
4 The winds are your messengers;
    flames of fire are your servants.[a]

5 You placed the world on its foundation
    so it would never be moved.
6 You clothed the earth with floods of water,
    water that covered even the mountains.
7 At your command, the water fled;
    at the sound of your thunder, it hurried away.
8 Mountains rose and valleys sank
    to the levels you decreed.
9 Then you set a firm boundary for the seas,
    so they would never again cover the earth.

10 You make springs pour water into the ravines,
    so streams gush down from the mountains.
11 They provide water for all the animals,
    and the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 The birds nest beside the streams
    and sing among the branches of the trees.
13 You send rain on the mountains from your heavenly home,
    and you fill the earth with the fruit of your labor.
14 You cause grass to grow for the livestock
    and plants for people to use.
You allow them to produce food from the earth—
15     wine to make them glad,
olive oil to soothe their skin,
    and bread to give them strength.
16 The trees of the Lord are well cared for—
    the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17 There the birds make their nests,
    and the storks make their homes in the cypresses.
18 High in the mountains live the wild goats,
    and the rocks form a refuge for the hyraxes.[b]

19 You made the moon to mark the seasons,
    and the sun knows when to set.
20 You send the darkness, and it becomes night,
    when all the forest animals prowl about.
21 Then the young lions roar for their prey,
    stalking the food provided by God.
22 At dawn they slink back
    into their dens to rest.
23 Then people go off to their work,
    where they labor until evening.

24 O Lord, what a variety of things you have made!
    In wisdom you have made them all.
    The earth is full of your creatures.
25 Here is the ocean, vast and wide,
    teeming with life of every kind,
    both large and small.
26 See the ships sailing along,
    and Leviathan,[c] which you made to play in the sea.

27 They all depend on you
    to give them food as they need it.
28 When you supply it, they gather it.
    You open your hand to feed them,
    and they are richly satisfied.
29 But if you turn away from them, they panic.
    When you take away their breath,
    they die and turn again to dust.
30 When you give them your breath,[d] life is created,
    and you renew the face of the earth.

31 May the glory of the Lord continue forever!

    The Lord takes pleasure in all he has made!

32 The earth trembles at his glance;

    the mountains smoke at his touch.

33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live.
    I will praise my God to my last breath!
34 May all my thoughts be pleasing to him,
    for I rejoice in the Lord.
35 Let all sinners vanish from the face of the earth;
    let the wicked disappear forever.

Let all that I am praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord!

What verses cause you to gaze in wonderment at the Lord?

Day 9 Not My Plan

Today's verses:

Isaiah 55
Romans 8:15-30

Lots of things happen in life that aren't in our plan.  It can be everything from big events like sickness to small things like a car accident.  We all have these things in life that just aren't "planned" by us.  For me, six separate injuries in college athletics weren't exactly planned, both pregnancies weren't planned, and moving to Virginia wasn't necessarily the plan; but in all and through all, God was faithful and provided and it was for my good and for his glory. 

What are things in your life that weren't in your 5 to 10 year plan but ended up being for your good and for God's glory?

My best friend was getting married in a matter of hours and I was so excited to get to stand next to her on her big day as a newlywed myself.  Mark and I had made a 2-hour trip to Memphis, Tennessee for a late afternoon wedding.  As we finished up the girly pre-wedding festivities, I called my husband to make sure he knew what time to be at the venue and how to get there.  About 30-45 minutes before the wedding started, Mark called me to tell me that the car was overheated and he couldn't drive but 30-seconds at a time.  He was all the way across an unfamiliar town, and there was no way he was going to make it to the wedding.

He finally made it to the wedding, but he missed the ceremony and almost all of the reception.  The hot, southern, summer day turned to a humid, thunderous, rainy night in a hurry.  My car's radiator hose was busted.  It was 10 at night.  How in the world were we going to get back home!?

We had no other option but to call a tow truck and ride the 150 miles home to Starkville, Mississippi in the cab with our driver.  This was not how I wanted to spend the night of my best friend's wedding.  I didn't want to deal with my car.  I didn't want to pay the expensive repair bill.  All I could do and that point was cry.  I was overwhelmed.  It was not what I wanted, nor was it what I have expected.  It was inconvenient and frustrating.

But even in this God was working.

Mark reassured me that God would take care of us.  Mark reassured me that this was an opportunity to glorify him.  Mark reminded me that God was in control and that he saw us in our distress.  Mark reminded me that God was at work despite the situation. (By the way, ladies, marry a man who is more concerned with the things of the Lord and how to give glory to Christ than whether or not his night is ruined by uncontrollable circumstances.)

So Mark started the conversation with our driver, realizing that she probably didn't want to make the long trek either.  We used this opportunity to ask about her.  She loved this.  Our driver had a pretty tough life.  We talked with her the entire way back, and I was just trying not to fall asleep.  Mark shared the gospel with her.  We finally arrived in Starkville and parted ways after praying with our driver to have a safe trip back to Memphis.

Even though the night hardly went as desired, God was working; and God used us; and God took care of us.

God promises that for those that love God, the out of reach circumstances in life are for our good and for his glory.  In the midst of the chaos with the car and the rain and making sure my best friend got off to her honeymoon, it didn't seem like any good could come out of it.  But it did.  And when it didn't seem like God could be glorified in the situation, he absolutely was.

Oh, and guess how much we had to pay for my car to get fixed?  The repair bill was $463.11, but what you don't know is that we had $463.10 left over from our wedding budget.  God provides, especially when you are faithful to your calling.  We paid one penny for a ride back to Starkville and an opportunity to share the gospel with an unbeliever.  I can't make it up.  This is when you get to see your faith grow and are reminded that God is truly in control.

Look for opportunities to make the most out of terrible situations.  It will be for your good and God's glory.

Love,

Take a minute to listen to All Sons & Daughters' "Called Me Higher." You can find more great songs at the back of your New Bloom devotional.



How can you trust God at his word that your good and his glory will result from an unexpected circumstance?



For more on New Bloom:

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 
Day 5 | Day 6+7 | Day 8

Day 6 Serve + Day 7 Prayer and Journaling

Serving is the definition of humility; however, if we are not careful we can get in the habit of serving for the wrong reasons or to solely make ourselves feel better.  Christ, God in flesh and eternal king, came to serve others.  This is completely opposite of what you would expect of a king (and what we see in culture).  He is a holy God, if anything we should be the ones serving him; yet, he came not to be serve, but to humble himself and serve others.  As Christ-followers, we are called to reflect his glory.  One surefire way of doing this is to serve others with a heart made righteous by Christ.

Humbling ourselves doesn't come naturally, or even comfortably.  Maybe it does to you, but having teeth pulled feels easier some days.

Today's passages:

Philippians 2:1-11
Ephesians 5:15-21
Galatians 5:16-26
Romans 12:9-21
Matthew 20:26-28

If I am honest with myself and honest before the King of kings, I would have to say my lifestyle tend to disagree more than agree with the following:

• I go out of my way to serve others
• I want to know Jesus more
• I submit to authority/others easily
• I believe others are worth my time
• I have the mind of Jesus
• Spiritually, I use my time wisely
• I demonstrate great self-control

And my heart tends more to agree with the following:

• I have a prideful spirit
• I get jealous easily

Now I don't know what number you gave yourself in the self-evaluation, but humbling ourselves starts with a right picture of who were without Christ and who we have been made to be in Christ.

Ephesians 2 tells us that without Christ we were dead and considered children of Wrath.  To quote Landon Dowden from a BSU sermon at Mississippi State, "When you're dead, you can't get deader than dead. "  Without Christ, we are dead.  A dead person can't do anything, but be dead.  There is no life within.  We were children of wrath, completely isolated from the great redeeming love of Christ.  As children, our father was not Christ, it was Satan.

But because of God's great mercy and incredible love, he rescued us out of darkness and became our Father.  We are now children of the Light.  If you are in Christ, you have no reason to boast because there is absolutely nothing that you did to deserve Christ's love.  You didn't jump high enough or have a good enough voice. You didn't give enough money or say enough kind words.  You didn't serve enough or make good enough grade on every test.  You can't do anything enough.  If you have submitted to the Lordship of Christ, it is because Christ so graciously opened your eyes to his majesty.  You did nothing to win his grace.  He bestowed that grace on you freely.  And because of his great redeeming work in your life, we are to demonstrate Christ's love to others by serving them.

I don't want to disagree with the points above.  I don't want to agree with the points above.  I have done an awful job at serving others and reflecting the salvation that Christ provides.

Tomorrow is Day 7 of the New Bloom devotional.  It is designed for you to have a quality prayer and journaling time.  If any specific thing resonanted with you and the season you may be in right now, I encourage you to go back to that scripture and write it down.  Commit it to memory. Mediate on it. Use it as a guide to pray.  Whatever you use Day 7 to do, the Lord is patiently waiting for you to call on him.  He has so much to say to you.


Love,

Will you join me in committing to serving others with a right heart?

How did you evaluate yourself?

How did these scriptures challenge you today?


Here is Sovereign Grace's "Behold Our God."  Find more great songs on your suggested song list in the New Bloom devotional.



For a recap of New Bloom week 1:

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5

Day 5 Love

The scriptures for today:
Psalm 107
Romans 5:8
1 Corinthians 13

Love is a pretty incredible thing.  We get to extended it to our spouses, our friends, our families, and coworkers.  However, our society seems to be obsessed with the idea of love, but not willing to commit to love or even sacrifice for love.  We are surrounded by ideals of love and ideas of what would make someone love expertly.  Don't believe we are frantically searching for love and obsessed with it?  Look at your TV.  Almost every TV show idealizes or glamorizes the worldly concept of love in romance and friendship.

But what does God's infallible word say that love is?  How can we know if we are loving others in a godly way?  How can we know that God is absolutely for us and wants the best for us? 

This answer can be found in a supplemental scripture for today's devotional: 1 John 4:7-21

I count at least 29 "love" words in just a few short verses.  If you haven't read this passage, go read it now.  It will truly comfort your heart.

God is love.  It is who he is.

So in 1 Corinthians 13, we can replace love with God.  God is patient, and kind, and rejoices with truth.  God doesn't envy, or boast, or rude.

We get to see in Psalm 107 how, despite their constant rebellion, God loves his people actively.
He delivers, he leads, he satisfies, he fills, he brings, he shatters, he sends, he heals , he changes, he blesses, and he rescues.

And despite our constant rebellion and chronic sin nature, God actively is pursuing us in love.  He is waiting for us to surrender our lives to him so his love may be perfected in us.

---

Be renewed by the words in "Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery" by Matt Papa.  Find more great songs at the end of your New Bloom devotional.



Love,

How has today's study on biblical love impacted you?


For more:

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4

Day 4 The Word

Today's passages are:

Psalm 139:23-24
Psalm 119

There are only two passages to read today; however, Psalm 119 is the longest book in the entire bible.  It is longer than some books in the bible.  Take time to really read through all 176 verses in Psalm 119 and let it transform your thinking today.

Psalm 119 "reflects the view that the Lord, who abounds in steadfast love and faithfulness and who therefore freely and fully forgives his people when they confess their sins, loves his people without limits, and therefore also guides the faithful in the way of life that is genuinely good and beautiful." 
(from ESV study bible notes)

Psalm 119 illustrates that if you meditate and walk steadfastly in obedience to the Lord's commandments, you will not easily forget them or go astray.


Did you know that you can listen to the bible being read out loud?  I encourage you to listen to Psalm 119 as someone else reads it and you follow along.  It's incredibly powerful to just listen to scripture.

Take a minute to listen to Bethel's "I Will Exalt."  You can find more encouraging songs at the end of the New Bloom devotional in the suggested song list.



What is the one word or phrase you are taking from Psalm 119 and meditating on today?

For me, it is "steady my steps" in verse 133.  I pray that as I meditate on the Lord steadying my steps, that I would be able to resist temptations and sin that it would have no dominion over me as I walk in the statues of the Lord.


Love,

If you have not had the chance to download the New Bloom devotional, you can download it by clicking on the logo.

Day 3 Freedom + Video Introduction

Romans is my favorite chapter in the entire bible.  Reading it through this time, I found so many more things that spoke to me at this season in my life.  That is what I love about God's word: it is active and living and able to speak to you wherever you might be.  I hope as you complete Day 3 that you are able to hear from the Lord and apply his Word to your life.  

Take a minute to watch the short video below for additional scripture and a defining question to think about while you meditate on Christ's Word.



Romans 6
Matthew 6:24
John 8:31-38 

Additional verses:

2 Corinthians 5:17
Ephesians 4:1
Ephesians 2:1-5
Ephesians 4:22-24
Colossians 2:6-7
Colossians 3:12-13


Take a minute to listen to "No Longer Slaves" by I Am They from the suggested song list from the back of your New Bloom devotional. 




Don't forget to ask the Lord to reveal any sin in your life that might be hindering your relationship with him.  He knows we will struggle with sin for as long as we are on this earth, and Jesus still willingly laid down his life for you so that you would walk in the newness of life, forgetting the old.  Thanks be to God that he gave us a way to be forgiven and free from our sin through a relationship with Jesus.


Love,

Day 2 High Priestly Prayer

If you have not downloaded your FREE copy of New Bloom, I encourage you to do that by clicking the New Bloom logo on the sidebar.

This is supplement to DAY 2: THE HIGH PRIESTLY PRAYER.  I have walked through the questions relating to the passage John 17.

Take a moment to listen to Phil Wickham's version of the "Doxology."  You can find more great songs from the suggested song list at the back of your New Bloom devotional.

John 17 is known as the high priestly prayer.  These verses make it clear that the only way to know God is to to know Jesus.  Jesus prays for himself, his followers, and also those who will believe in him in the future (us).

After reading John 17, I went back and looked for everywhere the words "give" or "given" where written.

God has given Jesus:

• authority on earth. (verse 2)
• the power to give eternal life 
• the people who will believe in him (verse 2)
• Everything is given to Jesus (verse 7)
• the name of God because he is God himself (verse 11)
• the glory of God (verse 24)

Jesus gives us:

• eternal life (verse 2) 
• the words from the Lord (verse 8, 14)
• the glory of God when we surrender our lives to him (verse 22)
• himself in the name of God (verse 26)  

"I am praying for them.  I am not praying for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.  All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them." John 17:9-10

Jesus is praying for those that already trust him with their life.  He isn't praying for the world, those that won't repent and follow him.  While Jesus desires that everyone would follow him, he knows that there will be some people who still refuse to bow their knees to him on this earth.  If you are a Christ-follower, Jesus is praying for you!  You are Jesus's and therefore you are God's.  The end of verse 10 makes me think, "Does my life glorify the Lord?  Does what I say, how I act, the way I treat others, and the way I repent of sin glorify Jesus?"

I am glad that Jesus is praying for us, he intercedes on our behalf.  

Intercede means to intervene on another's behalf.  It means to act or interpose in behalf of someone in difficulty or trouble.  It means to plead or petition.  It means to act as a mediator.  It means to reconcile differences.  It means to interpose a veto.

That means that Jesus is going before the God of the universe on our behalf!  Jesus is praying-to God-for us.  He is making our prayers eloquent, what they should be in the first place.  He reconciles us with God.  He is praying that his will, whatever is best, be done in our lives.  He vetoes our request and does his will as he sees fit.

While hard to swallow at times, how incredibility comforting it is to know that Jesus, the one who loved us so much he died in our place, is going before the Great I AM on our behalf!  If that doesn't blow you away, are you even breathing?

Jesus asks the Father to:

• keep believers, to preserve them in their salvation until Christ's return (verse 11)
• specifically protect from the enemy (verse 15)
• sanctify Christ-followers in truth (verse 17), this means that Jesus is praying that our walk with him would grow closer to him each day, and that we would walk and live in his Word daily
• unite believers so that other people would surrender their lives to Christ (verse 21), we are to be one just as Jesus and the Father are united

If I am honest, verse 14-16 stirs a variety of emotions.  It really makes me anxious because it is not fun to be hated by other people, but it is comforting because if Jesus was hated for standing on God's Word and biblical principles and abhorring sin, then I am in good company.  I am not of this world and that makes me happy because all I see in this world is division and corruption and hatred.  It is so good to know that my home is not this earth.

As a Christ-follower, I am sent into the world.  Meaning I am to go and share the incredible, most wonderful news of Christ to those around me.  What am I doing about that?  Most days.....I am not.  There are two people in my life that God has specifically shown me to with whom I must share the gospel, and each chance I get in person, I do commit to that.  I can't say that it is easy, or comfortable, or even fun.  But every time I walk away with an invigorating sense of awe and wonder at the Lord.  My faith is grown out of my obedience. And it allows me to marvel at the Lord even more.

I am so glad we have a mighty Savior who is constantly intervening on our behalf.

How did today's High Priestly Prayer devotion go for you? Let me know in the comments below.  I can't wait to grow more with you over these next 2-weeks.


Love,