Imagine if you knew for sure something unspeakably horrific would happen to you one day. Undoubtedly it would define and overshadow your life. You may even feel tempted to commit suicide to avoid the impending anguish and pain.
Think about Jesus and the reality He lived with each day on this earth. He knew He was "born to die" and not just any death. No wonder He was a "man of sorrows." (Isaiah 53)
When Jesus got to that DAY, He endured to the end--the suffering of the cross and despising the shame (Heb. 12:2). All the sins of all time were laid on His shoulders--the punishment and the shame of every sinful act ever committed or still to be committed in the future of every human being ever to live who would call on His name--clung to Jesus. And, the Father looked on His Son for the first time with absolute wrath and divine judgment. Jesus, at the cross, experienced Hell for us--"outer darkness, weeping, gnashing of teeth." (John MacArthur: The King Crucified - Luke 23)
He did it so we could escape that divine wrath and eternal punishment--so I could go free. He did it for the "joy set before Him."
All the days of Jesus' earthly life and mission were lived with you and me--those drawn by the Holy Spirit--in mind. He experienced crushing fatigue, hunger, and poverty without uttering an unkind word. He put up with proud, arrogant, selfish people every single day and still looked with love and pity upon them. What a bittersweet but perfect life Jesus lived for me!
Think of Jesus in His final earthly hours as Peter denied Him vehemently. As Peter's words were leaving his mouth, Jesus looked upon Him fully knowing He was about to go to the cross to atone for this very sin. This is our Savior.
