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.)
God the Father spoke directly at the baptism of God the Son, Jesus Christ: “And there came a voice from heaven, saying, ‘Thou art My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased’” (Mark 1:11). This expression of affection indicates that the love of God is not formulaic or formal, not at all distant. The warm word “beloved” assures us that love (a core characteristic of God – I John 4:8, 16 – “God is love”) within the Trinity is genuine, deep, and abiding. This lovely love is also lavished upon us. Ephesians 1:6b assures Christians that the Father “hath made us accepted in the Beloved” – that is, in Jesus Christ. This teaching is truly remarkable, for it means that we are as acceptable to the Father as Jesus is. We are as “beloved” as He is. This Biblical doctrine is initially astonishing; but the longer we consider it, we see that it must be so. If the character of God is love – and it is – we must expect for that characteristic to be consistently and thoroughly applied to each of His relationships. Thus, the fullness of His love rests upon each believer, and in that love there is rest: “I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28b) is the loving promise of our Savior.