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“For
consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself,
lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.” Do you consider
Jesus in your Christian walk? Are you interested in what He tells us or are
you more influenced by your presuppositions to living the Christian life?
When Jesus commissioned Peter, Jesus made the basis of Peter’s work to be
Peter’s love for Jesus; not Peter’s recognition of a ministry.
"Lovest thou
Me? - Feed My sheep."
Jesus did not say, “Make converts to your way of thinking.” He told
Peter, “Look after My sheep and see that they get nourished in the
knowledge of Me.” We tend to count as service what we do as our
Christian work. Jesus Christ calls Christian service what we are to Him,
not what we do for Him. Discipleship is based on devotion to Jesus Christ,
not on adherence to a belief or a creed.
When Jesus said, "If
any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and
children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he
cannot be my disciple.." There is no argument and no
compulsion, but simply - If you would be My disciple, you must be devoted
to Me. A man touched by the Spirit of God suddenly says - "Now I see
Jesus," and that is the source of his devotion. The eyes of his devotion
are on Jesus.
Many today have substituted creedal belief
for personal belief, and that is why so many are devoted to causes
and so few devoted to Jesus Christ. People do not want to be devoted
to Jesus, but only to the cause He started. Jesus Christ is a source of deep
offence to the educated mind of today which does not want Him in any other
way than as a Comrade (“my friend”). Our Lord's first obedience was to
the will of His Father, not to the needs of men. The saving of men was
the natural outcome of His obedience to the Father.
If I am devoted to the cause of humanity
only, I will soon be exhausted and come to the place where my love will
falter; but if I love Jesus Christ personally and passionately, I can serve
humanity though men treat me as a doormat. The key to a disciple's life is
devotion to Jesus Christ.
“Consider
Him.” Astronomers, before the days of telescopes, used to lie on
their backs on the ground and study the stars all night. The word they used
for what they did was a form of the word in our text today: “consider.”
Merriam-Webster says, “Consider is to give serious thought to.” Synonyms
and related words are: contemplate, excogitate, mind, ponder, study, think
(out or over), weigh, muse, ruminate; cogitate, reason, reflect,
speculate, think; examine, inspect, look (at), scan, scrutinize, see, bestow
thought to, chew the cud over, revolve (or turn over) in one's mind.
When the writer of
Hebrews tells us to be “Looking
unto Jesus,” he
supports his admonition with “consider
him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be
wearied and faint in your minds.”
As the CEV puts it, “So
keep your mind on Jesus, who put up with many insults from sinners.
Then you won't get discouraged and give up.”
When we face any trial of any kind, it would be a good practice to ponder,
reflect, inspect, revolve and turn over in our mind the experiences of
Jesus, Who “was
in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”
A. T. Robertson says, “Understanding
Jesus is the key to the whole problem, the cure for doubt and
hesitation.” Consider him; meditate much on the character and work of
Christ, especially His patience under sufferings, that you may be
strengthened and encouraged in following His example.
Matthew Henry says, “The example
of our Lord Jesus Christ is set before us. We must resemble Him in His
life, if we would have the benefit of His death.”
Albert Barnes says, “Consider him.
Attentively reflect on His example, that you may be able to bear your
trials in a proper manner. The best means of leading a faithful
Christian life, amidst the opposition that we may encounter, is to keep the
eye steadily fixed on the Saviour.”
Adam Clarke says, “See then that ye
have the same disposition that was in Jesus: he was ever humble, loving,
patient, and laborious; his meat and drink was to do the will of his Father,
and to finish his work. Attentively observe and analyze every part of
His conduct, enter into His spirit, examine His motives and object, and
remember that, as He acted, ye are called to act; He will furnish you with
the same Spirit, and will support you with the same strength. He bore a
continual opposition of sinners against Himself; but He conquered by
meekness, patience, and perseverance: He has left you an example that ye
should follow his steps. If ye trust in Him, ye shall receive strength;
therefore, howsoever great your opposition may be, ye shall not be weary: if
ye confide in and attentively look to Him, ye shall have continual courage
to go on, and never faint in your minds.”
The battleground is “our
minds.” If we
are going to “faint”
it will begin in our minds. Proverbs tells us, “For
as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.”
If your mind is always ruminating on Jesus, no matter what comes, “Thou
wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because
he trusteth in Thee.”
“Only
fear the LORD, and serve Him in truth with all your heart: for consider
how great things He hath done for you.” “Wherefore,
holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the
Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus.” “Take
My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart:
and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” “He
that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He
walked.” “Forasmuch then as
Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with
the same mind.” “For I have
given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.”
“For even hereunto were ye called: because
Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should
follow his steps.”
You may ask, “How do I do this?”
I do not believe it can be done well apart from the Word of God. There is “another Jesus” (2Cor.11: 4) that is preached. To avoid the
counterfeit, we must stay in the Word. It has been my practice for many,
many years to go through the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) once a
month or at least once every two months. Why? So I can see, consider,
contemplate, mind, ponder, study, think (out or over), weigh, muse,
ruminate; cogitate, reason, reflect, etc. on Jesus and “learn”
of Him. I want to know how He responded to different situations, answered
different questions, treated different people, etc. As I study the genuine,
the counterfeit will become all the more obvious.
My
wife’s method is to read a different version of the Word of God completely
through each year, reading every day. She has read the KJV, NKJV, NIV,
NASV, CEV, ESV, NLT, Amplified Bible and more. This daily practice year
after year has brought her into greater awareness of Jesus Who lives His
life in her. She often brings to my attention a new revelation of Himself
He has given her from the Word of God as she "considers" Him.
Don’t have a “microwave” mentality.
It takes time, but it is a most delightful discovery: discovering
more and more about Him as we become more and more “conformed
to His image.”
So beloved, the only way to succeed
in your Christian walk is to “Consider Him.”
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