The Traveling Jesus

Recall the last time you traveled far—perhaps fifty or more miles—to pick up a friend. Why did you so willingly travel, chauffeur, visit? Was it not because he was your friend?

You wouldn’t have done it for your enemy — at least not without internal grumblings.

Friendship minimizes sacrifice and maximizes fellowship. Friendship relishes togetherness. Even at high cost.

Jesus’ friendship vividly confirms this. Our forebears experientially called Him “elder brother.” An older brother is one who is both a companion and a help. He provides “togetherness” and aid. Ideally, he never deserts his younger siblings. No distance is too far to travel for his younger brother.

Solomon tells us Jesus is a friend that “sticks” closer than a brother (Prov. 18:24). Jesus is the ideal. He never deserts his own. He is Friend par excellence. He is a perfect Husband (Is. 54:5), faithful Brother (Mt. 28:10), and everlasting Father (Is. 9:6) all in one.

Jesus traveled far to establish this fatherliness and brotherliness — no less than from heaven to earth, cradle to cross. The price of friendship was high — no less than His own blood. The maintenance of friendship He guarantees; hence His continual intercession at the Father’s right hand and the prepared mansions.

Jesus travels from eternity to eternity to befriend His own with full-orbed salvation. He translates them from self-confessed enemies to bosom friends by the power of His staggering love. He paves the way for their legitimate adoption into His Father’s family (Eph. 1:5). He chauffeurs them to where He is forever.

Jesus has traveled, is traveling and shall travel before His elect. That’s the heartbeat of His passion which we begin to commemorate this year in mid-February for forty days prior to Easter.

Jesus’ Past Travels

Jesus’ travels on behalf of His elect friends began implicitly from eternity. In the stillness of eternity He covenanted with His Father and the Holy Spirit to merit full salvation for them. To this end, He promised to travel to this sinstained earth to live in the smoke of sin and be the Savior of sinners. He promised to travel every step of the narrow way of mediatorial suffering from Bethlehem to Golgotha which His Father’s justice demanded (Ps. 40:7-8). He vowed to provide a perfect active (obedience to the law) and passive (punishment for sin) obedience for each one given to Him by the Father. As the Father’s only-begotten Son, He vowed to be replete Substitute for His own so that the Father could be “just and the justifier of Him which believeth in Jesus” (Rom. 3:26).

True believer, this has special import for you. Jesus is your great Breaker (Mic. 2:13), who has traveled before you to break open your arduous path through the demanding undergrowth of the law, the prickly brush of cross-providences, and the poison ivy of sin and punishment. He has already met all your trials and endured all your temptations (Heb. 4:15). Contrary to your fears, no temptation which threatens to engulf you is unique (1 Cor. 10:13), for Jesus has personally traveled through all your shadowy valleys of death (Ps. 23:4). All your valley-steps have been both broken open by Him and, in the wake of His travels, He has left you His blood-stained path to follow. Amid the prints of preceding saints who have likewise marched through the Via Dolorosa, do you not see one footstep of more value than all others? Stooping down to fix your gaze upon it, you observe the markings of His mediatorial nail-wounds and the stains of His redeeming, sanctifiying blood.

Be of good courage, for your Master has not only journeyed the way and endured the cross before you, but also for you. There is no sorrow of soul (apart from the sin of it), into which Jesus has not fallen for you. There is no trouble of soul or turmoil of heart, that your Shepherd is not acquainted with for you.

Focus on your royal High Priest in death’s gloomy valleys on your behalf: thorn-crowned, blood-soaked, spitbedraggled, soul-pierced, nailed rigidly to Golgotha’s accursed tree. Hear His agonizing cry in the midst of thick darkness, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?” Amazing grace! Pressed on one side by the forces of hell, on the other, by the Father’s righteous wrath, while simultaneously bearing the burden of your sins, Christ traveled doggedly on through the narrow ravine of His passion to unsting death for you by casting it into the flames of His sacrifice.

Be not faithless, but believing. You need not travel alone. Your Savior has done that for you. He trod the winepress alone so you need not. Can you not see that your Great Shepherd does not ask you to travel any path which He has not already trodden?

Rather, seek grace to hold this kind of soliloquy: “Christ traveled before me to assure my eternal safety. He merited safe passageway for me through life, death, and grave despite my demerits. Moreover, He continues to apply His saving merits to me, despite my inability to appropriate the least salvific benefit. The nails, the blood, the desertions, and all the thirty-three years of His earthly sojourn — He traveled for me, suffered because of me, and applies within me out of pure grace. Eternally incomprehensible love: Christ willingly forsaken of God, that I might never be forsaken of Him! Christ willingly left Himself unprotected to protect me! Oh, why do I not more cheerfully take up the cross and follow Him? Why does so much evil still abound over against so much good? (Gen. 44:4b).”

Jesus’ Present Travels

But Jesus does yet more. His passion covers much more than thirty-three years. It not only reaches back to the Counsel of Peace, but also forward to its fruition in His resurrection, ascension, and session at God’s right hand. Presently, and on the basis of His passion, Jesus still is traveling before and with His own. As the pillar of cloud and fire, the tabernacle and its incense, accompanied Israel in their marches, directing every encampment, so Jesus Christ travels with His children throughout their lifelong journies as their invisible Pillar, Tabernacle, and interceding Incense of covenant faithfulness in order to bring them safely into heavenly Canaan. Armed with His Godhead, majesty, grace and Spirit (Heidelberg Catechism, Q. 47), He ministers to them from heaven continually, never being absent.

Though sitting at the right hand of the Father, Christ’s individual sheep is never lost in His massive flock for one second. Rather, sheep by sheep passes in review before the Great Shepherd’s heavenly eye and heart. He is intimately acquainted with each one’s sorrows, joys, and travels second by second. No clock-tick beats without His ever living to make intercession for them (Heb. 7:25).

True believer, He loves you continually as if you stood alone in His world—as if He had none but you on whom to lavish His blessings and salvation! As if you were His only child! He is your never-deserting Captain, directing the most minute details of your autobiography in accord with His master plan: “All things work together for good to them that love God” (Rom. 8:28).

The gospel proclamation of Christ’s passion stretches from eternity to eternity and is simply this: “If God be for us, who can be against us?”

With Jesus as your traveling Companion, what evil ought you fear? Say then with the Psalmist, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me (Ps. 23:4). Storms may break, shadows may close in, predators may attack, but in Jesus will I trust.”

Jesus’ Future Travels

Corporately and individually, Jesus has promised His church on the basis of His meritorious sufferings: “Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world” (Mt. 28:20b).

Christ’s future care is sure as His Word. His travels shall not cease. Instead of fearing, seek grace to allow Christ’s past and present travels bolster your courage in God. Has Christ ever failed you in all life’s journey, despite your numerous failings toward Him? Has He ever fully deserted you in time of crisis though you were often blind to His presence the duration of your trial (Jn. 13:7)? Has He not proven to you that darkness and light are alike to Him (Ps. 139:12)?

Why do you yet fear the unknown future? Place your future in His hands, for His faithfulness will not, yes, cannot fail. He has finished your work of salvation; the fruits of His substitutionary work cannot be withheld from Him (Is. 53:11). He will go before you into the future not because of you, but because of His passion and love, and in spite of you.

Away then with your fears! Jesus reigns. Look your enemies (internal and external) in the eyes when threatened with burning fiery furnaces, and confess your faith in God before kings: “We are not careful to answer thee in this matter. Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of thine hand, O king” (Dan. 3:16–17).

Fear not! He who has traveled with you in the past, will persevere with you to the end. He will not forsake the work of His own hands. He cannot deny Himself. You belong not to yourself, but to your faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. He is your comfort in living and dying. You shall not perish at the hands of Saul. Your God’s name is Jehovah. The Holy Spirit is within you. Angels are encamped round about you. You are provided with the whole armor of God. Your victory is sure. He who has begun His good work in you shall finish it to the day of Christ Jesus.

You shall travel with Jesus when He comes again. He shall take you on a blessed, long journey to be with Him where He is. For that journey, you need take nothing along, for Jesus is all-in-all. The unpacking of heaven’s as-yet-unknown contents shall reveal Him as centerpiece, for He is heaven’s heaven.

Your heavenly mansion is ready and waiting. It shall not be empty forever. You shall enter in. Your begging staff shall be exchanged for the palm branch of victory; your stained clothing for His unstained robe of righteousness.

And abide. Abide in His eternal, triune communion! Fellowship with God Triune without intermission!

Never to return! “When that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away” (1 Cor. 13:10).

Eternal rest! Eternal Sabbath! Eternally a triumphant church, never again to descend the holy mount of God! The sword of justice eternally sheathed; the banner of truth eternally unfurled; the holy warfare eternally past; the heavenly victory eternally won!

Happy, happy day when mortality shall be swallowed by immortality, and corruptibility shall put on incorruptibility!

All this out of sovereign love, based on the sufferings of Jesus Christ for the gospel proclamation of Christ’s passion stretches from eternity to eternity and is simply this: “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31b)

“Come, ever-traveling Lord Jesus, come quickly!”

Rev. ).R. Beeke is pastor of the Ebenezer Netherlands Reformed Congregation of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey.

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