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.)
In Revelation 15:5, the Apostle John records, “And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.” “The temple” refers to the inner part of “the tabernacle,” Israel’s original place of worship. This area, called the Holy Place, included the Holy of Holies, which contained the ark of the covenant. Within the ark was “the testimony,” tablets of stone containing the Ten Commandments. These are emblems of the covenant that God has with the people of Israel. The mention of “the song of Moses” in verse 3 reminds us that God continues to care for the Jewish people. In fact, Revelation 4-19 has a strong emphasis on Israel, including the 144,000 witnesses, the two prophets, the physical location of the final battle of the Tribulation, and the importance of Jerusalem. Our Savior God honors all of His promises. “He abideth faithful: He cannot deny Himself” (II Timothy 2:13b-c). When “heaven” is “opened,” then, we see the faithfulness of God displayed.