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.)
Since Jesus is the winner in the greatest and most glorious sense of the word, believers in Him can have complete confidence in Christ’s control of the cosmos. Christians -contemplative Christians, that is – are the ultimate realists on earth right now. We know that our Savior is sovereign, and we have increasing insight into what He is doing. Revelation 1:3 exhorts, “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep these things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” Of course, we must be careful in our interpretation of Scripture, employing the four foundational rules of hermeneutics. First, we interpret literally, considering the plain meaning of the words and recognizing metaphorical language such as figures of speech and poetry. Second, we interpret in context, for a text without a context is a pretext for a prooftext. Words taken out of context can be twisted to mean anything. Thus, we interpret in harmony with other Scripture. If our understanding of a verse is not consistent with clear teaching elsewhere, then we need to abandon our false view and seek the correct one. Fourth, we interpret historically: what did it mean to the first people reading it? I always add a fifth rule: interpret humbly. II Peter 2:20 warns us “that “no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation.” If I am the only one who understands a verse a certain way, then I am wrong. With reverent study of God’s Word, we will certainly reach an accurate conclusion: Jesus wins.