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.)
Before we move on from the passages regarding the wasteful fig tree (Mark 11:12-14, 20-26), let us consider one closing thought. In the background as Jesus is teaching is a dead fig tree, a tree dead from the roots up. What a stark object lesson that must have been! It is a reminder that the Lamb of God is also the Lion of Judah: “And one of the elders saith unto me [John], ‘Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.’ And I beheld, an, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. And He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him [Who] sat upon the throne” (Revelation 5:5-7). Jesus Christ, this Leonine Lamb, directs us away from the fruitlessness that leads to judgment into the faith and forgiveness that He offers all. We are unlikely to move a mountain (verse 23), but we can move something greater than that – ourselves, right into the family of God, right into heaven. A simple prayer brings us into this life eternal: “Jesus, forgive me. I trust in You as my Savior.”