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 tenth and final usage of “Almighty,” in the New Testament occurs in Revelation 21:22: “And I [John] saw no temple therein [in the heavenly city]: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” When we considered this verse previously, we saw that no place of worship will be necessary in heaven, for all of us in one place will be in the immediate presence of our Savior God. This future reality in no way diminishes the importance of specific locations of worship today; for both the Tabernacle and the Temple were ordained by God, and our local churches follow that divinely-approved model. We believe that “the One Who has His hand on everything” (the literal meaning of “Almighty”) is drawing us to worship and directing us to focus on those “things which become [are fitting for] sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1b). Sometimes we discern His hand openly, as when people are eternally saved through the preaching and reception of the Word. At other times, His touch is more subtle, as in a personal calmness in the midst of trouble or in what is sometimes called a “holy hush” in the sanctuary. All of these examples and more are preparatory to worship in heaven. There, we not only will feel His gentle caress but also will see “the One Who has His hand on everything.”