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 15:2 provides a picture of “victory in Jesus”: “And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.” This is not an actual sea (note the comparative expression “as it were”) but is a representation of the holiness of God. Revelation 4:6a says, “And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal.” When we add “mingled with fire,” we have a reflection of the holy justice of Jesus as He delivers divine judgment at the end. The believers here near the throne are the saints of the Tribulation period (see Revelation 14:1-2). They “stand” as justice is being dispensed; in other words, they are fully exempt from this judgment. “The harps of God” remind us of the importance of music in heaven as part of the worship there. This ultimate victory is an encouragement to all believers, for even Satan’s worst cannot alter the settled certainty of eternity that we have in Christ Jesus.