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 11:3 presents two prophets that will be anointed for service during the first half of the nearly seven-year-long Tribulation period: “And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days.” Verse 4 adds, “These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.” The background to this imagery is the rebuilding of the temple in Zechariah 4, which occurred in 520-518 B.C. Two men – Joshua and Zerubbabel – led this difficult endeavor. They are likened to candlesticks (or lampstands) and olive trees (verses 2-3). The trees provided the oil used in the lampstands in the Old Testament temple. This oil is specifically used as a symbol of the presence and power of God the Holy Spirit, as Zechariah 4:6b clarifies: “’Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ saith the LORD of hosts.” The “two witnesses” of Revelation 11, ministering in the “holy city” (verse 2) of Jerusalem, the location of “the temple of God” (verse 1), are similarly empowered by the Holy Spirit. Their words and works are thus sanctified; their ministry is made effective not by their personalities nor by their positions but by their yielding to the Spirit. This principle holds for all Christians: “Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God” (Romans 6:13). Our testimony is likely to be smaller – much smaller – in scope than that of this dynamic duo, but the dynamic is the same: the indwelling Holy Spirit.