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.)
Revelation 21:23 says of the heavenly city, “And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb thereof.” On earth, we know that we need the sun. It provides – through God’s intricate, intelligent, and irreducibly-complex design – the energy needed for the process of photosynthesis and thus for the perpetuation of life. However, the sun will not be needed in eternity. As I write these words in early July (I always work ahead), it is 88º, with a dewpoint of 75º. I am no fan of heat: a year-round temperature of 50º would be fine with me. Thus, it is a great comfort to me to know that “neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat” (Revelation 7:16b) in our future home. Let us not miss a larger point: this absence of heat is in direct contrast to “the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone” (Revelation 21:8). Some years ago, a mother told my wife that her little boy had asked to receive Jesus as Savior. He had said to her, “I don’t want to burn.” That is sound Biblical reasoning, for the Bible makes it clear what we are saved from and what we are saved to. May we flee from the “fire” into the light of “the Lamb.”