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 gives us perspective, something that we all badly need. In Matthew 20:1-16, Jesus provided insight through an unusual parable. A landowner hired workers at a given wage. As the day unfolded, he needed and brought in more laborers; at the end of the day, he gave them the full wage. The original workers were upset and felt that the landowner had wronged them, but he responded in verse 13, “I am not being unfair to you” (New English Bible). Fairness is a huge issue in life; I know firsthand, having been a teacher for twenty-eight years! What Jesus was pointing out through this detailed parable is that the landowner did not have to hire anyone; the spiritual truth is that Jesus does not have to save any of us. However, He does offer salvation because He is a God of grace (undeserved favor). We often have a skewed view of our merit; we expect the payment in this life (what theologians call an overrealized eschatology). I think of a gravestone in our family cemetery: the Reverend J. W. Jepson died in 1866 at the age of twenty-seven. Our tendency would be to say, “Why, that’s not fair! He spent his life preparing for a ministry that he never really had!” I am sure that in heaven he would disagree and point out that his relatively short life was a preparation for eternity. Truly God is more than fair; He is full of grace.