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Hebrews 2:16-18

¹⁶We all know that Jesus came to help the descendants of Abraham, not to help the angels. ¹⁷Therefore, it was necessary for Jesus to be in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. He then could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. ¹⁸Since he himself has gone through suffering and temptation, he is able to help us when we are being tempted.

Reflect

One of the benefits of being in the military is that there are always others who have gone through similar situations and are more than willing to share what they have learned with you. As a Marine in a combat profession, it was nice to know that those who were doing the training had gone through similar situations before - sometimes learned in a trial-by-fire situation.

Likewise, Jesus, who is fully God, had to come to earth and become a man in every respect. He came to this earth to show us how to deal with temptation and suffering. He also came to sacrifice himself for us so that we wouldn’t have to pay the price of our sins.

Respond

Why was it necessary to be just like us?

When you think of Jesus, do you think of Him as a regular person?

Think of a difficult time in your life. Do you think, based on your own experience, you would be able to empathize with someone else who is going through the same experience?

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