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 existence of slavery during the Tribulation is sad beyond words but unsurprising. Revelation 18:13 speaks of “slaves, and souls of men”; “souls of men” means “human beings,” clarifying that these are indeed people who have been enslaved. Although modern man has officially outlawed slavery, it still exists everywhere. The United States is not exempt: human trafficking, especially but not exclusively across our southern border, has skyrocketed over the last three years. This bitter reality is preparatory to the Antichrist’s rise to power. Increasingly, as people are desensitized to the value of life by the governmental/abortion complex and by the Malthusian maniacs who are demanding a world population of no more than 500 million, the image of God in each individual is being dismissed. This disdain for human life is a logical outcome of atheism: those who choose not to believe in God cannot believe that man is created in God’s image (Genesis 1:26-27). Satan, of course, does not care about people, even those like the Antichrist who willingly serve his aggressive and anti-God agenda. Satan seeks to degrade humans precisely because he knows that we are created by God and in His image. Both the spiritual and physical slavery of the Tribulation period will reveal that the enemies of God have no concern for others. We must contrast this nihilism with the salvation that Jesus, God the Son, freely offers each person. “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:9b) to save us and to restore the full and eternal image of God to each one who simply trusts in Him.