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.)
Some folks express trepidation about the book of Revelation because portions of it are challenging to understand. It is instructive to note that Revelation is the only book in the Bible that has a specific blessing promised for reading and heeding it: “Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book” (22:7). The opening words of the book should be enough to encourage us to study this final part of God’s Word: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ.” Throughout this book, then, much about Jesus is revealed. For example, the general theme of Revelation is simple: Jesus wins. He is the winner in the broadest sense of the word, for He is sovereign; that is, He is in control. Jesus “is…was…and is to come” (1:4). In other words, Jesus is eternal and is thus fully God and in complete control. Including in control of time. II Peter 3:8 states, “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” The context of this verse is the end of the world, with people laughing at the possibility of God’s direct and final intervention. Revelation 1:7 echoes this promised return of Jesus: “Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen.” Jesus is not controlled by time; He controls it and is victorious over it.