«Although He (Yeshua) was the Son, He learned obedience through suffering, and having been made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him.» (Hebrews 5:8–9, RBO)

Yeshua is our King, who gave His life as payment for our sins and secured for us forgiveness and a close relationship with God! This passage from God’s Word emphasizes precisely this fact: even Yeshua, the Messiah-King and Son of God, suffered. He, too, experienced various kinds of suffering, including the most profound.

No, there’s no need to go out of your way to seek suffering or challenge the coronavirus right now. On the contrary, we should act cautiously and wisely, and strive to do what’s best for ourselves and others. But no matter how hard you try, it’s impossible to completely avoid suffering in life: neither money, nor knowledge, nor optimism, nor even a medical mask can provide complete protection. So what should we do?

And what did Yeshua do? Yeshua decided, in the midst of his suffering, to put his trust in God and, all the more, to live in obedience to Him. It turns out that even (or especially) in suffering, a person can grow as an individual, improve their character, and learn to overcome weakness, fear, temptation, and doubt. Of course, this doesn’t happen automatically. It all depends on our decision. Yeshua chose obedience to God. He had already been living a full, sinless human life. But nothing revealed this more clearly than His obedience during those difficult times.

The result? His sacrifice was accepted by God as atonement for the sins of all people who have believed or will believe in Him. Their reward is eternal life in the Kingdom of the Messiah, which neither man, nor accident, nor—much less—a virus can take away, either now or ever. This is the promise of Yeshua Himself (In. 11:26).

But, unfortunately, this is by no means true for everyone. So who is it true for? And what exactly does it mean to «believe in Yeshua,» «know Yeshua,» and «follow Yeshua»? It’s very simple: it means obeying Him in everything! Especially when it’s not easy. Maybe even right now. He Himself says: «Why do you call Me «Lord, Lord,» but do not do what I command?» (Luke 6:46).

Ask yourself this question: Do you obey Yeshua?