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.)
Rev 12:11a rejoices in the victory of Christians over Satan: “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb.” When a pastor friend of mine was just starting in ministry, an older lady visited the church. She spoke to him after the service and greatly encouraged him. She said that years before the pastor of her youth had warned his congregation to flee from any church that did not preach about “the blood of the Lamb.” She was pleased that my friend was faithful to the Word of God. Speaking about the “blood” is counter to our culture, which finds such a discussion distasteful and even disgusting. However, since it represents death – sacrificial death – we must teach and preach about “the blood of the Lamb.” The Bible is clear that Jesus’ sacrifice is necessary to save us. Galatians 4:4-5 says, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Being “under the law” is a death sentence, “for whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend on one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10). Jesus has removed the penalty for our sins by redeeming us (buying us back) through His sacrifice. The plight of the sinner is great, but the provision of Jesus is greater.