Patti Burris

Hebrews 5:7,8

⁷ During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. ⁸ Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered…

If we want an example of how to live our lives, then we need look no further than Jesus. He was the perfect example of how we should live our lives. No, we will never be perfect, but Jesus gives us an example we can strive to imitate. In Hebrews 5:7,8 Jesus models for us three characteristics that we should incorporate into our daily lives:

1. He Prayed– Jesus prayed. Not only did He pray, He prayed with fervent cries and tears. According to http://www.merriam-webster.com, fervent means felt very strongly: having or showing very strong feelings. Jesus poured out His heart to His Father in heaven. When Jesus prayed, they weren’t just monotone prayers, prayed with a feeling of apathy. Jesus had compassion for the people He met. I can imagine that His prayers were much like a parent praying for a wayward child; filled with deep love and compassion for that person. We need to pray for others with fervent cries and tears. Our prayers need to be filled with emotion. Our prayers need to be filled with that deep passion that Jesus felt.
2. He was Submissive– Jesus was reverently submissive. According to http://www.merriam-webster.com, reverently means to show a lot of respect. Jesus had a deep respect for His heavenly Father and was submissive to His Father’s will. According to http://www.merriam-webster.com, submissive means that a person is willing to obey someone else. Out of His deep respect to His Father, God, Jesus was willing to do God’s will. Even when we can’t see down the road to what God is doing, we need to respect God enough to be willing to submit to His will.
3. He was Obedient– Jesus was obedient. Even when facing death, Jesus was willing to obey God, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.” (Matthew 26:42) It is possible that Jesus didn’t really want to go through what He knew was coming. Jesus knew that God had a plan of salvation and that He must die, for that plan to work. Jesus was human. He had a choice. He could have been disobedient. He knew what was coming and still He obeyed, because God’s purpose is bigger and better than our own. We must live in a posture of obedience to God. Even when the request seems crazy or impossible, we must obey God and trust Him with the outcome. We must strive to ALWAYS put God’s will above our own.

I am challenging you this next week to live in a posture of prayer, submission and obedience. See what happens and how God blesses you because of it. If it was good enough for Jesus, it has to be good enough for us.