“For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”
– Hebrews 2:18
Oh, what a powerful picture we have of Jesus, really, in Hebrews chapter 1 and chapter 2 and Hebrews 2:18. What a practically encouraging verse that Jesus himself, this is part of the beauty of the gospel is that God has not left us alone in this world of temptation and sin and suffering. But God has come to us in the flesh. Jesus, the exact radiance of the glory of God. Hebrews 1:3, has come to us. He has lived among us and was tempted like us in every way. And the Bible teaches he experienced temptation to the full. And yet Jesus did what none of us has done. He totally overcame temptation. He never once gave in to temptation.
The One who was tempted in every way yet did not give into sin, lives in you. There is no temptation that you cannot overcome in Christ. Through Jesus, we are no longer under sin’s bondage.
Hebrews 2:18 Asks God For Help With Temptation
So when we pray, we are praying to the God who is familiar with the temptations we face, and not only familiar with the temptations we face, but who has conquered those temptations, who lived a perfect life. And then the beauty of the gospel, that he died on the cross for our sins as a substitute for us. Then he rose from the dead, showing his victory over sin, his victory over death and the grave. And now he has sent his spirit to live in us.
So Hebrews 2:18 is a reality for you and me today. He is able. It almost feels like a dramatic understatement. Absolutely he is able to help those who are being tempted. So you and I will face temptations today and there is an adversary who is tempting us, who wants to convince us that we cannot overcome or escape those temptations, that we will succumb to sin, that we can not conquer this or that temptation. And it’s not true.
This Verse Prays For Our Battles With Temptation
Jesus is able to help those who are being tempted. Jesus lives in you. The one who was tempted in every way yet did not give in to sin once, he lives in you, his power is in you. The one who has risen from the dead in victory over sin, his power lives in you right now. That means there is no temptation that you cannot overcome in Christ.
So I just want to encourage you to live in that today. So many Christians live defeated Christian lives like we are still slaves to sin. We are not slaves to sin anymore. We are in dwelled by the presence of Jesus Christ. There’s a Holy Spirit in us and he is able to help those who are being tempted in every single circumstance.
So God, I pray. I pray for my own battles with temptation today and for those who are listening right now, God, when we are tempted, help us to see it, help us to recognize it and help us to realize your power in us. We praise you Jesus, that we are no longer slaves to sin, that we are free from the bondage of sin, free from bondage to self, that we are free to live according to your word, to live in the life that you’ve created us for. So help us to live in it today.
Hebrews 2:18 Prays For Victory Over Temptation
God, I just pray. I pray for your victory over temptation. In fact, I pray that over every single person listening to this right now and the temptations we will face in the next hour, in the next 24 hours. So God, please by your grace, remind us of the power of Christ in us and help us to live in holiness. Help us to choose your ways by your grace over our ways. Help us to reflect your character, not our flesh, God. We pray that the power of your spirit, the spirit of the one who is able to help us when we are being tempted, would empower us to resist temptation and to walk in obedience you, to experience the life you’ve designed for us to live. The good life, the abundant life of walking with you, worshiping you, honoring you and enjoying you.
God, we pray for that and we praise you for making this possible for us today. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
