Son of Man
"I know how you feel."
I've said this to friends who are hurting or struggling. My intent is to empathize, to reassure them they're not alone. But I also know this phrase is on the list of "things you're not supposed to say to someone who's hurting or struggling"—and with good reason. No matter how many similarities there might be between what they're going through and what I've been through, no one can really know how another person feels.
No one except Jesus, that is.
The name "Son of Man" displays Christ's humanity. Clothed in human flesh, Jesus experienced every struggle we face and felt every emotion we feel, but without the contamination of sin.
Whatever valley or pit or fire or flood you might be in, Jesus is in it with you and, more than anyone else ever could, knows how you feel. His knowledge is not just head knowledge; it is heart knowledge. He doesn't just know facts; He knows feelings.
The Son of Man knows loneliness: "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed" (Luke 5:16).
The Son of Man knows anger: "Jesus asked them, 'Which is lawful on the Sabbath; to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?' But they remained silent. He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, 'Stretch out your hand.' He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored" (Mark 3:4,5).
The Son of Man knows rejection: "He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not" (Isaiah 53:3).
The Son of Man knows betrayal: "While they were eating, he said, 'I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me'" (Matthew 26:21).
The Son of Man knows sorrow: "As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes" (Luke 19:41,42).
In Jesus—the Son of Man who is also the Great I AM—pity and power collide. He not only understands our struggles, He also undertakes for them. Whatever the battle you're fighting today, hear the voice of the One who speaks with the full weight of both His humanity and His divinity behind Him: "I know how you feel. I'm here with you. I'm here for you. I can and will help you."
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I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to tell me what you really think. Years ago, I explained to my then-two-year-old that my appointment with a counselor was "sort of like going to a doctor who will help me be a better mommy." Without blinking, she replied, "You'd better go every day." All of which is just to say I've spent some time in the school of brutal honesty!