Life is full of struggles of various kinds. Some are like a tug of war that goes back and forth several times until someone pulls hard enough to knock the other party off their feet and are declared the winner. Another struggle I think of is someone who is drowning and struggling to stay above water and catch another breath. An athlete struggles to keep going when they are near exhaustion but the race isn’t over yet. Then there’s the inward struggles of emotions that tug on our heart strings.
I can see these struggles in Jesus. His tug of war was with the religious leaders who were constantly trying to trip Him and find fault with Him so they could arrest Him. After Jesus’ arrest, He was literally struggling to stay alive and breathe until it was His time to die. He was near exhaustion but spent all His energy on staying focused on the task before Him. The inward struggles of emotions sure didn’t help. He had so many thoughts and feelings for those He was leaving behind, those who needed to know Him for Who He really was, as well as those whom He loved and felt pain and sorrow for as they watched the struggles He was going through.
The human side of Jesus surely must have wanted to avoid the pain and struggle He knew would come, but He knew He had to submit because it was part of His Father’s plan. That’s what a struggle is in essence—a pull between two opposing forces, forces that can be tangible or intangible. When you experience a struggle of some kind, who or what wins out? You have to make the decision as to who or what is going to win the struggle. Is it the flesh or the spirit? Will you allow yourself to be tempted to do wrong or submit to Jesus for strength to do the right thing? No one else is going to make that decision for you.
It’s not a game. Think of it as you having to decide your last move in a game of Chess or Checkers. What do you do? Make a haphazard move? No! You look at all angles, consider what your opponent would be able to do or if you have them cornered. If you make the wrong move, the game is over and you’ve lost, but if you make the right move, you win! Life (while there is a real board game called Life) is not a game, and we don’t get a chance to play another game to see if we can win the next time. There is no next time after death, so we need to make sure we make good decisions the first time around.
“And just as it is destined for people to die once,
and after this comes judgment.”
Hebrews 9:27, NASB
What can we learn from Jesus’s struggles?
- Jesus kept His eyes focused on the Father and the plan laid out for Him.
- The path will not always be easy or smooth.
- Don’t be shocked when you hit roadblocks.
- We don’t need to know the end result; just follow what we know at the moment.
- At times we will feel lonely and isolated, but He is always there with us.
- We need to be resolved before struggles come to follow the Lord and make good decisions.
- Prepare and pray! Spend time with your Heavenly Father.
- Rest in Him and draw strength from the Word.
- Trials will come. Be ready with answers from Scripture.
- Accusations need not surprise us. Respond with a soft answer and calm spirit, not in anger and frustration.
- Jesus is waiting for us on the other side, in Heaven.
- Look at the end picture. We have healing, forgiveness, and eternal life because of all Jesus went through for us.
- Life isn’t pain-free and the time of death may not be either, but peace and rest for eternity are the end results.
- The road may be long and dusty and full of potholes, but those streets of gold will make it worthwhile.
- Just remain faithful to Jesus and He’ll take care of the rest.
- Light the way for others through the darkness of life.
Make these lessons personal. Meditate on how you can apply them to your specific struggles. Pray for the Holy Spirit to teach you.
Tomorrow we rejoice with millions of others as we think about our Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on what we now call Palm Sunday.
PRAYER POINT FOR TODAY:
Lord, help me apply these lessons to my own life and struggles. It’s easy to look at them now, but when struggles arise, it’s more difficult. Teach me how to learn from these lessons and internalize them so they’re ready to draw on when I need them.
- Week 1 – temptation
- Week 2 – confession, forgiveness, and fasting
- Week 3 – listening to God and answering when He calls
- Week 4 – God’s love for us
- Week 5 – waiting, anxiety, and trust
- Week 6 – suffering (W), pain (T), and struggles (F-S), rejoicing (Palm Sunday), Trials (M-T-W), Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Silent Saturday
- Easter – resurrection and salvation