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.)
Through “the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 12:11), each Christian is redeemed – bought back by Jesus Christ, God the Son. The imagery of a lamb is interesting, for we know that the blood of an animal cannot save anyone: “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us” (Hebrews 9:12). It is not possible to be redeemed by the sacrifice of an animal, nor is it possible to have a personal relationship with a thing. A lamb is not sufficient for our redemption, but “the Lamb” is, and we can have a genuine relationship with Him. John 1:14 tells us that “the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” Yes, Jesus became our Kinsman-Redeemer by becoming fully human. Like the Old Testament kinsman-redeemer, Jesus had the requisite redemption price – His “precious blood” (I Peter 1:19) – and the willingness to redeem (as Boaz did for Ruth). Mark 10:45 reveals His willingness: “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Furthermore, the kinsman-redeemer must not be in need of redemption himself, and Jesus is “a lamb without blemish and without spot” (I Peter 1:19). We are indeed “bought with a price” (I Corinthians 6:20) to enter into an eternal relationship with “the Lamb,” Jesus Christ.