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.)
The busy ministry of Jesus continued in Mark 10:10-13: “And straightway He entered into a ship with His disciples, and came into the parts of Dalmanutha. And the Pharisees came forth, and began to question [dispute] with Him, seeking of Him a sign from heaven, tempting [testing] Him. And He sighed deeply in His spirit, and saith, ‘Why doth this generation seek after a sign? Verily I say unto you, “There shall no sign be given unto this generation.”’ And He left them, and entering into the ship again departed to the other side.” Comparing this account to Matthew 15:39, we find that Dalmanutha (otherwise unknown) was located near Magdola on the western side of the Sea of Galilee. Because this was a Jewish region, the antagonistic presence of “the Pharisees” is explained. These religious leaders had heard Jesus before and had seen many of His miracles – but had attributed His work to Satan (Mark 3:22-30). I have pointed out often that it is not wrong to ask questions of God: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, [Who] giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him” (James 1:5). Moreover, Jesus always answered legitimate queries. However, a questioning attitude is not acceptable. It is dishonoring to our holy God; and it is extraordinarily illogical, for only He has the answers that we need. Let us avoid the sniffing and snide superiority of the Pharisees, for their carping critiques of Jesus and His followers (and, by extension, us) are unmerited and reveal base, selfish motives.