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.)
In Mark 10:32a, Jesus continues to flabbergast His followers: “And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid.” Twice before, Jesus had predicted to His disciples that He would be killed (Mark 8:31; 9:31). He had not stated that His death would take place in Jerusalem (as He says in verse 33), but His specific mention of the “elders… chief priests, and scribes” in Mark 8:31 pinpointed the capital city as the location of His execution. Thus, His decision to go there shocked the disciples, who still did not quite understand the magnitude of His ministry. Luke 9:51 has long been one of my favorite verses: “And it came to pass, when the time was come that He should be received up, He stedfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem.” Steadfastness is not flashy and is therefore severely undervalued by our entertainment-hungry and excitement-crazed culture. Our Lord refused the worldly way and instead fulfilled His divine plan. His impeccable example of steadfast devotion is extraordinarily inspiring. Let us then gratefully heed the considerate command of I Corinthians 15:58: “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”