The
lie that Jesus didn’t really suffer is a lie Satan started to spread
soon after Jesus ascended into heaven. The devil knew it wouldn’t have
worked during Good Friday. Try telling those who saw Jesus on the cross
that He wasn’t really suffering!
This lie has really gained
traction in the last century or two after Satan convinced many Bible
“scholars” to reject supernatural events in the Bible-- or at least
explain them in a way that fit with physical science. They explain the
resurrection away by suggesting that Jesus didn’t really die, but was
unconscious for three days.
Of course, there is nothing
supernatural about pain and suffering, so no one should have a hard time
believing the agonies suffered by Jesus during that Thursday and
Friday. Nonetheless, Satan has found a way to lie about that. He might
tempt us with the suggestion that, since Jesus is God and man, He could
have miraculously numbed Himself to the pain and torture.
The
many graphic details of Christ’s agonies tell us conclusively that it is
a lie that Jesus didn’t really suffer. We see Him bleeding, groaning,
sighing, and dying. And the suffering was also mental and spiritual.
Just as any of us would be if we knew we were about to go through of
that suffering, Jesus was filled with dread in Gethsemane.
Before
His body suffered, Jesus was filled with agony in His soul. That is
because He knew the seriousness of sin. He was about to die because sin
had brought death into the world. He was dying to save sinners, but the
greatest sorrow was that many did not and would not believe that He was
saving anyone.
That is real suffering, and for us who have been
given the gift of faith, we take comfort in the reality of that
suffering. Because Jesus suffered all, there is no suffering that can
come our way which Jesus did not feel and which He did not overcome. He
even suffered hell for us! That suffering ensures us an everlasting end
to suffering when Jesus calls us out of this world. |
