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.)
In Mark 13:21-23, Jesus warns of future dangers: “And then if any man shall say to you, ‘Lo, here is Christ’; or, ‘lo He is there’; believe him not: for false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to deduce, if it were possible, even the elect. But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.” Jesus again uses the strong expression “take heed” (see verses 5, 9) to capture our attention and to indicate that all believers must make a genuine effort to pay attention to His teaching. The mention of “signs and wonders” is especially troubling because certain groups on the fringe of the Church have an unhealthy fascination with such things. II Thessalonians 2:9 specifically says that the Antichrist will exercise “all power and signs and lying wonders.” Verse 12 then powerfully concludes “that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” Rather than be drawn to any movement that promotes so-called “signs and wonders,” the devout Christian will take note of Jesus’ stern warning and will not even dabble in these things. Thank you, Lord, for granting us the insight we need to avoid the deceptions of Satan and his malevolent minions.