“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15)
Ever feel like life is throwing one curve ball after another at you? It can seem like sometimes there is no end to the challenges we face. Each one of us, when these streaks come, is also likely to think, “No one knows what I am going through.” In fact, if a friend says, “I know just how you feel,” it may even make us angry. We think, “No one knows how I feel!”
But the image of Jesus we get in Hebrews is one of complete identification with us. Jesus takes on our human form and deals with our human struggles. He is “in every respect tested as we are.” While struggle often makes us want to retreat and find a hole to climb in, there is no escaping this simple truth. In Jesus, God comes to be with us in all things and both stays with us in our pains and knows what it is we are feeling as a result.
This is a critical point. There are times when each of us feels more or less alone. Sometimes it can feel like we are alone, even when there are people around us. In fact, nothing feels so alone as the feeling of loneliness in a room full of people. But the witness of scripture is very clear. We are never alone. And we are never not understood. It may only be God in Christ who understands us and stands with us. But that is the witness of the scriptures. Jesus knows you better than anyone. Jesus most likely knows you better than you even know yourself.
