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 Bible tells us to pray for specific people, for “the prayers of all saints” arise “before the throne” of God (Revelation 8:3-4). We are commanded to pray for preachers. In Ephesians 6:19-20, Paul writes, “And for me [referencing praying – see verse 18), that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds, that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” Paul, imprisoned for preaching the truth, asks for prayer so that he can continue to preach! Of course, perhaps some long-winded preachers should be arrested! I am just joking, and I will also point out from close to forty years of preaching that it is much more difficult to deliver an effective short sermon than an effective long one. The Biblical teaching is clear, though: we need to pray for preachers. In so doing, we become an integral part of the message. I hope that tomorrow’s is a short one.