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.)
We return to Revelation 22:15: “For without [outside heaven] are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.” This list is not comprehensive, of course, nor does it mean that people who engage in these activities cannot be saved. Rather, as we concluded yesterday, it demonstrates where a rejection of Jesus Christ as Savior will lead. Since Jesus gives us these specifics, we need to consider them. “Dogs” is certainly a strong term: it is used in Deuteronomy 23:18 of male prostitutes and is called “an abomination unto the LORD thy God.” “Whoremongers” are also referenced in Deuteronomy 23:18 and are also called “an abomination.” Both of these categories of individuals engage in behaviors contrary to God’s plan of one man and one woman together (Genesis 1:26-28; Ephesians 5:31) and display the defiance discussed in detail in Romans 1:18-32. “Sorcerers” (as we have studied previously) use illicit drugs and are involved in the occult. “Murderers” despise the image of God in their victims; their violence takes precious lives, harms families and society, and is ultimately directed against God, the Creator of His image-bearers. “Idolaters” are those who choose to worship anything or anyone other than the One True God. The inclusion of liars is intriguing, for it includes not only those who actively pervert the truth (“maketh a lie”) but also those who willingly believe (“loveth”) untruths. This disturbing catalogue of settled sin is a reminder of what life without Jesus can easily become.