Hebrews 2:18

“For because he himself has suffered and been tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.” Hebrews 2:18

To really understand how anyone else feels in a situation, one must have had a similar experience. Thus Christ – God himself – put himself deliberately in a situation which would identify himself completely with those He desired to help. But in doing this, He not only was totally assured of knowing completely how His beloved felt, but He also assured that they know He understands, through actual experience, how they feel. It is this knowledge that opens a heart and a mind to receive His advice, and to be willing to do as He suggests.

How do we, who are not with Him as He was in the flesh, come to know what He advises, and how do we actually do what He suggests?

As one who is blind develops the other senses to a higher degree, we must develop our spiritual sense to a greater degree, so that we may perceive Him – and do, by His help, as He suggests.

The Word is a vital aid in developing our spiritual sense. Practicing doing what the Word suggests helps prayer and meditation. But all of these hinge on the development of faith. Faith does not burst full-blown just because we decide we want to believe the Word and follow the way.

We must, experiment by experiment, find the paths which lead us to greater faith – greater confidence that God is who He reveals Himself to be in Christ: loving, kind and concerned – and we must believe that He does desire to provide us a more abundant life – a life that focuses our attention so raptly on Him that we start to automatically imitate Him – in loving, in kindness, and in concern.

We will have good experiments and bad ones – but as long as we keep trying to develop our spiritual sense, we will also develop more faith in the one promise which is always true – that God is, God is who He expresses as the life of Christ, and we are His beloved offspring – a part of all He created, and thus dear to Him. In fact, He has revealed that as humans we have more privileges – thus more responsibility – than other parts of His creation. He is eager to help us develop into spiritually mature people, just as we develop physically and mentally. The spiritual is the highest attribute we possess – for it affects all other attributes. But it is a special treasure for us to have the joy of discovering and to help others discover.

Even our sense of curiosity and desiring to overcome challenge are considered in the manner in which we are formed, and the opportunity which is placed before us.

We are not merely cells which respond to stimuli, but thinking creative creatures formed in God’s own image! When we realize the potential of this, we come to have an exuberant faith that totally believes “nothing is impossible with God.”