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 Revelation of Jesus Christ” (1:1) reveals that He wins, is coming again, loves His Church with both commendation and correction, is eternal, and is holy. He is also worthy: “Thou art worthy” (5:9). Thus, He is worthy of our worship. Our word worship was originally worthship, meaning to acknowledge the worth of something or someone. Clearly, Jesus is worth our praise. Both Revelation 4 and 5 bring us into the throne room of God in heaven. It is an impressive, awesome scene. We find representatives of redeemed mankind (“elders”), angels (“beasts” – better translated as “creatures” in newer versions), the beauty of heaven itself, and, especially, the immediate presence of the Triune God. The focal point of chapter 5, specifically, is our Lord Jesus Christ. He is “worthy” in the broadest sense of the word. We might say of someone whom we admire that he is a “worthy man” or that she is a “worthy woman.” What we mean is that the general character of that person is exemplary. Certainly, Jesus is worthy, for all that is good and great is found in Him. May we join with the redeemed “four and twenty elders” who “fell down and worshiped Him [Who] liveth for ever and ever” (5:14). Each time we praise Jesus, we are coming alongside them in worship.