Jesus is extravagant. let us count the ways.

you can’t really talk about Jesus’ extravagance without thinking of His personal presence in our lives.

throughout God’s word we are assured again and again and again that the Lord is with us and that He will not ever, no never forsake us. and, while we can not fully understand His personal presence in our daily lives, we can rest in the knowledge that Jesus did not abandon us to live out life on the earth.

And the Lord appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you.”
Genesis 26.24

“Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go…”
Genesis 28.15

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
Isaiah 41.10

‘For I am with you,’ says the Lord, ‘to save you…’
Jeremiah 30.11

‘Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’
Matthew 28.20

Jeremiah 46.28  //  Haggai 1.13  //  Haggai 2.4

Jesus was present in the Garden of Eden, walking with His people in the cool of the day.

Jesus was present in the slave pits of Egypt, raising up a deliverer to set His people free.

Jesus was present in the fiery furnace, strengthening and protecting the boys who stood for the truth.

Jesus was present on the road to Emmaus, revealing wisdom and understanding to 2 confused disciples.

Jesus is present in jail cells & palaces, in towers & in fields, on the sea & on the mountains, in the temple, in the home, in the arena, in the cave.

He is present with me always, because He will never, not ever, no never leave me because He loves me and gave Himself as a ransom for my sin and imperfection.

now, the One who loved me before i loved Him goes to great lengths to pour out His presence in every part of my life.

in each situation, in each circumstance, Jesus is there, present, giving what i need in order to be brought nearer to Him.

Jesus is extravagant.

i like post series. (is it post ‘series’ or ‘serieses?’…vote below!)

a month or two ago i decided that i wanted to periodically share something about our Lord’s extravagance in a purposeful, ‘series-esque’ set of posts.

Jesus really is extravagant. all that He does is incredibly abundant.

in doing some study prep for last sunday’s message @calvaryhanford, i realized again that His mercy is extravagant.

in ezekiel chapter 1 we’re given this amazing vision of the glory of the Lord. there were creatures and wheels and a whirlwind and a raging fire. there was a stunning brightness and the noise of many waters.

there’s movement from the north to the south, from the east to the west. things coming down from heaven…things going up to heaven…all sorts of stuff going on.

and in the midst of all this activity a throne came down, with the Lord seated in glory, and ezekiel says in chapter 1 verse 28:

Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around [the throne]. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.
Ezekiel 1.28

the question i was left thinking about was this: have I known the extravagant mercy of God?

how beautiful that ezekiel says that around the throne there is ‘the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day.’

the rainbow, a symbol of God’s mercy. the sign He created and put in the heavens as a covenant with man that He would never again destroy the world with a flood. that He would always offer a way out of destruction to those who would trust in Him.

this picture is so amazing. God’s throne, full of power, full of glory, the brightness and infinity of His holiness and perfection and majesty and strength. the throne, from which Jesus rules the nations and judges in righteousness. THAT throne is surrounded by mercy. a mercy that is demonstrated so plainly in Christ’s death for us while we were yet sinners. the mercy that again and again offers salvation to the rebellious people of the earth. the mercy that again and again forgives me as i sin and fall short of the glory of God.

Jesus’ mercy is extravagant.

have you known the mercy of God that surrounds His throne?

that mercy is available to you today.

maranatha!

our God is a provider.

He has provided salvation / Romans 10.9

He has provided restoration / Acts 3.21

He has provided peace /Philippians 4.7

He has provided comfort /2 Corinthians 1.3-4

He has provided strength / 1 Peter 5.10

He has provided wisdom & understanding / Luke 21.15

He has provided glorious things that we could not even imagine / Luke 11.13

the Lord provides all that we need. if we need encouragement, He has provided it. if we need correction, He has provided it. filling or starving, ease or struggle, it has been provided.

and as we live life, we are reminded that His grace is available at all times.

His peace is available.

His victory is available.

and if i am in the middle of a trial, be it one He provided or one i provided for myself, i can rest in the assurance that His mercies are new every morning.

our God is an extravagant provider.

blessings

–
Jesus Is Extravagant.

whether speaking of His grace or His mercy, His sacrifice or His many gifts to us, His activity in our past or His plan for the future, all of it is extraordinary, abundant and humbling.

i want to take a little more time here and there to highlight our Savior’s wonderful extravagance.

today, being inspired by some thoughts from my church’s verse-by-verse study through Colossians, i’d like to speak on Christ’s extravagant grace.

it is His grace that brings us unmerited value and worth in the eyes of God. it is His grace that extends to us what is deserved only by Him.

here are a few words from my dad’s transcript yesterday:

that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful
in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;
Colossians 1:10

“Worthy” is a word I can stumble over. In so many ways I am not “worthy” of the name ‘Christian.’ But that is not how Paul is using the word.

Remember, he is not talking about earning or deserving God’s will. He’s describing God filling you.

The word “worthy” here means worth as much. He’s saying that your “walk” is worth as much as that of the Lord’s when He was here.

Jesus’ grace, given to us, is extravagant. not just covering sin, but transforming us into individuals who are of glorious value to Himself and His Father.

God. Is. Good.

blessings.