“For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.”
That just adds colorful sprinkles to my already frosted cookies! LOL
Have you ever heard someone say, “well that just frosts my cookies!” Or maybe you have said it yourself. It fits perfectly when you are frustrated and need a clean version of swearing. But then there are the sprinkles. Why add sprinkles to the frustrating mix?What comes to mind first when you hear the word sprinkles? For me it’s donuts, because who doesn’t like a fresh, cake donut with sprinkles? You may also find sprinkles on cakes and they serve as a popular décor on holiday decorator cookies. They are at my house; they are a must have for the Christmas cookies.
So why associate a phrase of frustration and a decorator food with this verse?
Well, temptation is from the devil and it’s frustrating when he strikes, right? I know for me, that is the last thing I want to have to be dealing with on any given day. But this verse sheds some colorful light on the issue because Jesus has been right where we are! He was tempted and therefore He is able, willing, and ready to come to our aid. The frosted cookies of temptation can be covered up by the colorful sprinkles of Jesus.
So here’s why I find this verse comforting and full of hope. Jesus suffered temptation just like you and me. Verse 17 tells us that “He had to be made like His brethren in all things,” proving that He was fully man in addition to being fully God while He lived among the people on earth. He had to be made like us to fully experience the things that we do, and that includes temptation. We read in Luke chapter 4 that Satan tempted Jesus and verse 13 reads “And when the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from Him {Jesus} until an opportune time.” Every temptation. This tells us that He experienced, then, the same temptations we experience today. And this is where the comfort comes in because He overcame it and with His help, I can too. And so can you! There is no temptation that you encounter that will ever be a surprise to Him. God’s word tells us that the devil tempted Jesus with every temptation, so there is nothing new to deal with, nothing new that Jesus won’t know how to help you with. He can and is willing to help you whenever the devil strikes and with whatever temptation he throws your way.
I hope and pray that you find comfort in this verse as I did when I first read it, and still do today. Because He was tempted, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted. That means me and that means you! He is able, He is willing, and He certainly is able to come to your aid!
