Jaw-dropping Jewels about Jesus
Rarely does Jesus, God the Son, do exactly what we expect of Him. It seems odd that He so frequently surprises us, given that He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 makes this absolute statement: “Jesus the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Still, though He is blessedly consistent in His goodness, Jesus does unforeseen things. Even when He does what is expected, He does not always do it in the way that we anticipate. Let us join with Jesus on a jaw-dropping journey. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
We return today to “the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8). We have considered three New Testament “God is” statements that help us to better comprehend “the riches of His glory” (Ephesians 3:16). To “God is Spirit” (John 4:24), “God is love” (I John 4:8, 16), and “God is light” (I John 1:5), we must add Hebrews 12:29: “For our God is a consuming fire.” This verse is a quotation from Deuteronomy 4:24. The context there focuses on the complete holiness of God and His absolute right to our allegiance and worship. We should note that the word “holy” is applied to Father, Son, and Spirit (see, as three examples of many John 17:11, Mark 1:24, and Mark 1:8). Thus, we are again directed to the Trinity. We should also be directed to worship God reverently, putting aside all modern idols (Deuteronomy 4:23) and teaching the next generations to do the same (Deuteronomy 4:25). For example, the current fascination with entertainment in church rather than worship must be thoughtfully and soberly repudiated. All of us were taught as children not to play with matches. How much more should we not play with our Savior God, Who is a holy and “consuming fire”!