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.)
“For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). This fundamental truth is at work in the betrayal, arrest, and abandonment of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:26-52). As we have already considered, we can “come short” in the areas of affection and of anger. We also can “come short” in the area of aloofness. An extreme example of drawing away from Jesus is found in verse 50: “And they all forsook Him, and fled.” The Bible says, “How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring glad tidings of good things! (Romans 10:15), but the disciples’ feet fail to do anything good in the Garden. Ephesians 6:15 speaks of “feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace,” but the disciples, unprepared through prayerlessness, fail to stand firm. Oh, it is so easy to back down from the aggressive world, to melt away, to fade away! I am like most Christians; I do not like confrontation. However, I must “preach the gospel,” and the good news of salvation through faith in the finished work of Jesus is inherently confrontational. We are confronted with our innate sinfulness and with our helplessness in approaching God, Who is righteous and holy. Clearly, we need to take our stand alongside Jesus, God the Son, for any distance from Him is dangerous for us.