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.)
It is a relief to turn back to Jesus after spending time on the horrible Herods – and relief is exactly what He offered His twelve closest disciples. Mark 6:30-32 records, “And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught. And He said unto them, ‘Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat. And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.” Mark 6:7-13 detailed the short-term missions trip of these men, a tiring ministry of healing, casting out demons, and preaching repentance. They needed a respite, and Jesus called them to one just as He had called them to the missions trip. This break turned out to be brief, but we learn from this passage that our Savior has a genuine concern for all areas of our lives. He cares about our vacation plans, about our daily times of relaxation, and about our nightly rest (“He giveth His beloved sleep” – Psalm 127:2c). Moreover, Jesus promises eternal rest to each one who trusts in Him for salvation: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest…rest unto your souls” (Matthew 11:28, 29d). Let us enter into His rest and enjoy it now and forever.