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.)
Psalm 103 vividly pictures the fullness of forgiveness made available by the sacrificial atonement of Jesus Christ. Because our sins are nailed to His Cross (Colossians 2:13-14), we can be forgiven by God, Who is ever holy. Psalm 103:1 says, “For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him.” Just as we cannot measure the infinite expanse of space, we find no end to the forgiveness found in and through our Savior. Verse 12 adds, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us.” If we go north, we eventually go south; but if we head east, we never head west. Thus, this global geographical imagery confirms that we will never run into our sins again; they will not return upon us. Verse 13 states, “Like as a father pitieth His children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear Him.” God’s grace is not grudgingly given. As an eternally kind Father, He always bestows His best upon “His children.” These three poetical verses describe our forgiveness in lovely terms, affirming that we are separated from our sins and joined to our loving Lord.