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.)
The glorious greatness of God is glimpsed in His gracious gift of forgiveness – full, free, and forever. Yes, Jesus forgives! I John 1:5-10 tells us that this forgiveness is a light thing and is not a light thing. It is light in the sense that it reveals the essential character of God: “God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all” (verse 5). It is not light in the sense that it is not a casual transaction. God is absolutely holy; we are absolutely not. The Biblical doctrine of total depravity does not mean that all of us are as bad as we can be (think Hitler, Stalin, and Mao) but that we are as bad off as we can be – we cannot save ourselves. There is a vast, infinite gulf between God and us, one that we cannot bridge. Habakkuk 1:13a states of God, “Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity.” A few years ago, my wife bought me a new stepladder. I immediately began a series of small tasks around the house. I found that from above, everything is dirtier – even light bulbs. Even our “light” is dirty to God; Isaiah 64:6a says, “We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” Astonishingly, though what we most need is exactly what Jesus offers – forgiveness. I John 1:9 tells us that we must “confess our sins” – that is, we must agree with God that we have sinned. In fact, if we disagree with Him, we are sinning again by calling God “a liar” (verse 10). Let us agree with God, and let us be forgiven. There is nothing better in this life than knowing that we are forgiven now and forever. We can be certain, for the infinite chasm between us and God has been filled by our infinite God Himself, specifically by God the Son, Jesus Christ.