We have seen the powerful, confident, miracle working Jesus through the Gospels. He is to be our example…but how? How can he understand our struggles? What does he know about the problems that we face? He had all the powers of Heaven available to him.

Jesus experienced the same struggles as we do. But we fail to recognize those experiences in the Gospels. Here are some of His experiences:

• Misunderstood – People misunderstood his entire life and mission. There was no one on earth who could understand the reality of his struggle. With whom could he share the struggle of being God and Man simultaneously?

• Rejected – As he spoke of his Father, the people understood that as blasphemy because he was equating himself with God. So, here was a truth that could not be spoken. He spoke it anyway, but suffered lots of accusations for it.

• Opposed – Because he was different in his approach to so many things, he was constantly opposed. He was called a drunkard, glutton, and a friend of sinners. The core of his mission on earth was for those who were broken, but that “core” caused so much opposition.

• Inner Struggles – He struggled with his personal desires and his purpose of being on this earth. In the Garden of Gethsemane, we see a glimpse of his personal struggles. So, Jesus did have the desire to so his own will separate from the will of the Father. He did struggle with such desires, but gave himself up for the Father’s will.

• Betrayed – His family and friends knew who he was and his passions, but they could not accept that reality. They simply mocked him.

• Homeless – He said, “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests. But the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” (Luke 9:58) That statement of Jesus was not just a neat saying, it was a reality. Possibly one of the reasons he roamed the countryside was that he had no home to call his own.

• Accused of using Black Magic or Sorcery – The teachers of the Law said that Jesus expelled demons using the powers of the prince of demons.

• Accused of being a revolutionary – Although Jesus clearly expressed that his Kingdom was not of this world, the people could not understand. They were so hopeful of the Roman power being overthrown that they could not grasp the heart of what Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God.

For those who struggle, hurt, and suffer, remember that Jesus was “A man of sorrows, acquainted with grief.” (Isaiah 53:3b)
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