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 18:15-17a records the specific lament of the businessmen associated with Babylon: “The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, and saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! For in one hour so great riches is come to nought [nothing].’” We know that wealth is not intrinsically wicked, for some of God’s people in the Bible and throughout the history of the Church have been rich. The majority of the world today would consider all of us reading these words to be wealthy, for by the overall world’s standard of living we are closer to the top than the bottom. Still, we all could find good uses for more; we also could find bad ones. When I think of my wife’s future financial security, I wish that I had more. However, I quickly remind myself of the sober warning of I Timothy 6:9-10: “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is [a] root of [all kinds of] evil which while some counted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” May we be grateful for what we have, but may we be equally thankful for what we do not have.