Jesus was a Poor Man

I was reading through the Desire of Ages and I ran into this quote speaking about the early life of Christ;

"The parents of Jesus were poor, and dependent upon their daily toil. He was familiar with poverty, self-denial, and privation. This experience was a safeguard to Him. In His industrious life there were no idle moments to invite temptation." 

I don't think we realize that hardship was part of Jesus' life.  He didn't come from a household of comfort, and ease.  Rather the opposite.  He understood what it meant to be unable to afford things, and work for even the simplest of goods.  In fact, that very struggle was what kept him busy in life and far from the many temptations many of us would go through.  But in the end of the day, what does this have to do with anything?  

According to statistics, 25 percent of the world lives on less then $2 a day, 28 percent of children in developing countries are underweight or experiencing stunted growth, 22,000 children die from poverty each day, and the stats go on and on.  Living in a decorated house with a car or two is not a norm when we're talking globally.  So imagine telling a rural farm worker that the streets of heaven are paved with gold, or that they will never go hungry anymore.  What do you think that means to them?  

One evening in Indonesia, I had dinner with a poor family.  The whole family was composed of farmers including their oldest son, who I originally assumed would be going to college.  However, he said it would take a miracle for them to be able to afford college.  But we talked late into the night and they were urging us to stay longer just so they can hear stories about America.  What it was like to live in a place that had clean running water, and cars that were not twenty years old.  Then it started to ring in my mind.  Maybe this is why Jesus was a poor man. 

I am fortunate to not have to be brought up in a background of poverty and lack of resources.  However, I realize that many people are not.  Many people still wonder where their next meal is coming from or how are they going to afford new clothes. But it's assuring that Jesus can relate to them.  He knows what its like to have everything against Him.  If you think about it, nothing was really on Jesus' side.  He was poor, He wasn't described as being a physically attractive guy (according to Isaiah 53), and He was far from receiving a good education through the Jewish school system.  Yet it was this Man that redeemed lost humanity.  The very Man that had everything against Him overcame.  Maybe you have some things against you.  Lack of money, not the most popular, not the smartest, the list goes on and on.  Well, that's alright.  Because Jesus has been there and overcame even through those circumstances, so you can too.