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.)
Jesus said in Revelation 22:7a, “Behold, I come quickly.” Another reason that Christians can push aside this clear teaching of the imminent return of Christ is that we have plans that are important to us. Perhaps we are not as belligerent as Kaiser Wilhelm, who before World War I rejected preaching about the Lord’s return because it conflicted with his plans “for the glory of Germany.” Still, though, we all have plans. The Bible teaches us to be prudent and provident, to prepare thoughtfully for tomorrow; the lowly ant is our example in that it “provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest” (Proverbs 6:8). If you are older like me and have grandchildren, you understand my hope to have some time with them as they grow. However, we must insist that God’s eternal plans are better than ours – the best – and that our plans are uncertain. In Luke 12:16-21, Jesus told the parable of a rich man who had plans to “build greater” (verse 18). However, he died that very night, unprepared for eternity. Even our well-intentioned plans can deflect our attention away from God’s prophetic promises. Wise Christians will recognize that God’s plans are always for our benefit and will rejoice in the certainty of His return.