“And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. “–Matt. 8:20
So you want to be like Jesus? Are you sure? We sing “To be like Jesus”. We talk about W.W.J.D. We speak about being Christ-like. But do we really mean what we say? What does it mean to be like Jesus? Do you know how Jesus lived? I’m afraid we’re not nearly as spiritual as we think, or as we want others to think. Take contentment for an example.
There is a lot of confusion about the matter of contentment. While many aren’t content regardless of how things are, others are content only because things are as they are– as they please. However they wouldn’t be content if that changed. For example, it’s easy to be content in America, but would you be content to live like the rest of the world? Do you know how the rest of the world lives? If you had to live like the average person in the world I doubt that you would be content.
But let’s stick with the example of Jesus, and stay with our text—“The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. “. Think of that in the light of 2 Cor. 8:9”For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.” Have you ever thought about what all is implied by the phrase He became poor”? While many desire to be like Jesus when it comes to His supernatural power, sinlessness, wisdom, and ability, etc. not many would want to be like Him in his poverty. Put yourself in His sandals. Imagine eating what He ate, traveling in the same manner as He, being subjected to hostility, misunderstood, falsely accused, beaten, and crucified. I don’t have the words to describe the depths to which Christ went when He became poor.
Now notice the transition–“He was”–“He became”. What he was He had always been. What He became was by His choice. It has been called, “The Great Renunciation” and for good reason (see Phil. 2:5-8). Don’t misunderstand what it meant for Him to become poor. He did not change His purity, His perfection, His power, nor His proprietorship. He owns it all and He can do all things, but for our sake He made the choice to limit Himself and subject Himself to suffering so we might “have life, and ….have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). He became poor in the sense of poverty, prestige, physical pain, etc. His greatest suffering was an inward act, an attitude of His heart that was willing to give up whatever was necessary to accomplish the Father’s purpose. That’s what we are to emulate. So now ask yourself again, “Am I willing to be like Jesus?”—HDS
