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.)
Mark 10:45 provides the theme of this Gospel: “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.” These words of Jesus proclaim that His mission was and is to serve. His service included His death on the Cross in our places. Through His sacrifice, He became our minister, our intermediary, our High Priest. Hebrews 2:16-18 states, “For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted [tested], He is able to succour them that are tempted [tested].” Jesus did not come to redeem fallen “angels”; He came as a man to redeem fallen man. The Old Testament High Priest served as a mediator between man and God; but Jesus was both fully man and fully God, making Him the perfect intermediary. Because He was a man, we know that He can understand our struggles and will give us help (“succour”). Hebrews 7:25 promises, “Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.” Thus, His saving service to us continues unabated.