Great Is Your Mercy

 

PSALM 86:13

Great is Your Mercy toward me: You have delivered my soul from the lowest hell. 

Psalm 56:13

For You have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in The Light of Life.

John 8:12

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am The Light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have The Light of Life.”

    As long as I remain in The Light of God's Love, I can see clearly enough to know that God is with me and will not abandon me to my own follies. His grace, after all, is "sufficient for me".     The Lord is, as David writes in Psalm 27:1, "My Light and My Salvation, and My Strength of Life." The Lord is with me and I am content.

    

    See how David writes that The Lord God has delivered him from 'the lowest hell'? The very bottom of hell, where no light pierces. All is darkness, despair and hopelessness. His soul was in a very dark place. But God reached down when David reached up and lifted him out of the worst of the worst. Why? Because God loved David and David loved God.

    He faith in His God remained strong despite all the troubles and pitfalls David found himself in. This great faith can be ours, too. We just need to reach up to God, with our praises and prayers, and He will lift us up out of the dark places we find ourselves in from time to time.

    It's lonely in those dark places. A person would begin to believe they are all alone; that no one loves them or even thinks about them. No one reaches out to rescue them from the darkness and discouragement. It appears to the lost or lonely soul that they are the only ones to experience such thoughts. Not so, for even the faithful believer has to battle the thoughts that threaten their souls.

    Let us open our hearts and our mouths, lift our hands and begin to praise God right here, wherever you are, with every breath that is within us. Give God the glory. Give God adoration. Give God you. And you will find yourselves walking in His Light.

Goodness & Mercy

 

PSALM 23:6

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of The Lord forever. 

    What is the goodness of God? His lovingkindness, HIs choice to bless His faithful people. The goodness of God is every blessing, every "good and perfect gift" which He provides for us when we seek Him out to spend time with Him. 

    What is the mercy of God? His unconditional pure love. This love sent Jesus to the cross to die for you and I. This love of God is for anyone who wants to be loved by God in God's Way. This mercy of God extends "to a thousand generations". It is sought after by they who are hungry for The Truth of God's Word. It is longed for by they who seek to be comforted by God's Word. 

    God's goodness and mercy follow me closely, like our shadow. Wherever the sun shines, we have a shadow, right? So wherever The Son-shine takes us, God's favor goes with us. And it will not leave us when we die: we will dwell -- live completely and wholly holy in Him -- in God's house forever, without end. 

    All of God's promises are Faithful and True. And I'm clinging to this one daily. 

SURELY GOODNESS & MERCY 

AS THE DEER - Forerunner (Instagram) 

1 Peter 2:9, 10

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own peculiar people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. 

    What is in this house in which we will dwell forever? The holy presence of God. We don't need anything else but Him, God in all His glory and light. 

STORM ALL AROUND YOU - Forerunner (Jon Thurlow)

Blessed Are The Merciful

 

    Matthew 5:7

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

    HOW DO WE SHOW MERCY?

Share The Living Water of Life with Them

(that they may drink and be satisfied)

    Proverbs 11:25

A generous soul will prosper, and he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

Forgive The People Who Have Done Us Wrong

(regardless of how many times they do so)

    Matthew 6:14

For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

Honor Each Other With Genuine Affection

(not because you have to but because you want to)

Romans 12:10

Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.

    These are just a few verses on showing Mercy to others. Which ones can you think of?

A Crucified Life - - Comprehends Mercy

 

    Romans 10:19

But I ask, did Israel not know? First, Moses says: "I will provoke you to jealousy by those not a nation; I will anger you by a nation without understanding."

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 801

Without Understanding: unintelligent, unwise, undiscerning

From the Greek word 'asunetos' (pronounced as-oon'-ay-tos): without comprehension, foolish, illogical because unwilling to use good reason.

    Deuteronomy 32:21

They have provoked My jealousy by that which is not God; they have enraged Me with their worthless idols. So I will make them jealous by those who are not a people; I will make them angry by a nation without understanding.

    Romans 11:11

I ask then, did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Certainly not! However, because of their trespass, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel jealous.

    1 Peter 2:10

Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

    The prophecy against Israel goes all the way back to Moses' time. It is beginning to be fulfilled in Acts 2, when the Spirit-filled disciples go out into the city and preach the gospel. But because persecution was swift, many left the city and went out to other countries, other nations, sharing the gospel message as they went. 

    Very thankful for that. Where would I be without God's mercy? I'd be dead and in hell. For I was without understanding. I was foolish and ignorant of God's lovingkindness. I knew nothing and in the darkness of this world, I sought that which I knew not, but where I looked for it, I found it nought. 

    Cocaine, marijuana, 'ludes, LSD and liquor brought me neither joy nor lasting happiness. I had no peace, no hope, no awareness that I was living/dying in the darkness of sin. Death tried to have its way with me. Until Jesus found me and called my name. And I began to make my way to His cross.

    God's grace and mercy are found at the cross of Christ, where the blood of His Lamb washes away the stain of sin on my life. At the cross I found the only God I would ever need again. He found me first and brought me to the place of forgiveness and hope, for I had no hope. I didn't know joy until I gave my heart to Jesus Christ. 

    At the cross I was grafted into the Vine. In order to be grafted one must first be cut from one rootstock and grafted into another. There is a separation from the old and a twisting into the new. 

    At the cross I saw the light of God's love. It was both beautiful to me and a horror to look upon. For the Lamb of God was tortured, and beaten and had heavy nails pounded into His hands and feet (to hold Him onto the cross). He was a bloody mess.

    Blood ran down His face from the crown of thorns that was pushed forcefully into His head. Rivulets of blood ran down His chest from the whip lashings He endured for my sake. Pain coursed through His body until His heart broke and He died. For me, for you: for a foolish, ignorant people that we might be restored to a right relationship with God. 

    At the cross we see Jesus. In the garden we see Jesus. Both times He is unrecognizable. Until He speaks. On the cross He speaks forgiveness for the ignorant. In the garden He speaks Life to the seeker. 

    Mercy is mine because I am forgiven. And because I want to be where He is, I went to the garden, too, seeking Jesus. And He spoke to me. He speaks Life because He is Life Eternal. He speaks Love because He is the representation of God's Love to a broken world, a lost people, an ignorant nation. I'm so thankful I made my way to the cross. It's the wisest, smartest decision I ever made. 

MERCY IS MINE, PRAISE IS YOURS 

A Thousand Hallelujahs 

God Be Merciful To Me

Holy Forever

River of Life

At The Cross

Greater

Flawless

Redeemed

Broken Things

Forgiven

Heart of God

Different

    

    

A Crucified Life - - Speaks Freely

 

2 Corinthians 6:11

We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians. Our hearts are open wide.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 455

Speak Freely: to be or stand openly

From the Greek word 'anoigó' (pronounced an-oy'-go): speak freely, keeping nothing back.

    

    In writing to the church in Corinth, Paul reminds them that he has shared his sufferings and his joys with them, keeping nothing from them that they might share in not only these but also in the rewards of faithfulness. As Paul had written to the church in Rome, Romans 8:17 "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together." 

    We who believe on the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation are the church. Not in our name but in His Name. For we are also God's children, brothers and sisters in Christ and of Christ Jesus. We obtain this inheritance of glory through the sufferings of Christ. 

    What one believer suffers, all believers suffer. We are not alone. We may be on different continents, live in varying cities and towns, but we are all one in Christ. What one goes through, all go through. 

    When one of us goes through the fire, we all go through the fire. When one of us gets slandered, we all get slandered. When one of us is persecuted for the Name of Christ, all of us are persecuted for His Name's sake. 

    Having been called to suffer, why do so many persist in believing that persecution is not theirs to bear? That it belongs in some remote part of the world? Technically, we are all in remote parts of the world. And as much as the internet brings many together, it also separates. It is both a blessing and a curse. 

    But the sharing to which Paul alludes is of a much higher sharing in of: it is the cross of Christ which brings us all to His feet, it is the Suffering Servant Who makes us joint-heirs with Him by our belief in His Name for our salvation. 

    It is the blood of Christ which washes away our sins, changing us from sinners guilty of eternal damnation to saints worthy of an eternal inheritance. It is the grace of God extended to a lost and dying people that redeems us back to Him, making us found and alive in Christ. 

    It is the mercy of God through the obedience of His only begotten Son that is shown to each and every person time after time after time. We who believe receive such salvation, grace and mercy to the everlasting benefit of our souls. Do you believe?

    And now, let me speak freely. God loves us. God loves us so much He can't bear to leave us like He found us. So God changes the person who believes in His only begotten Son into a resemblance of His Son, so that when He looks at us, He sees only a reflection of His Son. He's not looking at unwashed, unglazed pottery any more. He's transformed us into a useable vessel to be of service in some form or fashion in His house. 

    I must ask you, Does God see Jesus in you? 

     

SPEAKING FREELY 

Refiner - Maverick City Music

Glorious Ruins - Hillsong Live

No Way, We Are Not Ashamed - Carman

The Worth of Knowing You - Austin Bratton

Alive In You - Jesus Culture

Do They See Jesus In Me - Jessell Dawn Mahinay

    

A Crucified Life - - Speaks For Itself

 

2 Corinthians 6:8

By honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No.

Evil Report: defamation, reproach, ill-repute

From the Greek word 'dusphemia' (pronounced doos-fay-mee'-ah).

Good Report: commendation, praise

From the Greek word 'euphémia' (pronounced yoo-fay-mee'-ah).

    Slandered. Spoken ill of for speaking the Truth. To share the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ is to expect people to come against you. As they came against Christ who not only speaks Truth but is Himself Truth, how can we expect any less to happen to us as His faithful followers? 

Jesus Himself warned His disciples that as many came against Him for the Truth of the Word which He spake, people would also come against them, against us. 

>John 16:1-3

>John 15:18-20

>Proverbs 29:27

>Matthew 10:22

>Matthew 24:9

    Knowing that even the very mention of the Name of Christ could get a person killed, how does the kingdom of God keep growing? Grace.Joy. Peace. Rest. Forgiveness. Wisdom. Love. Hope. Mercy. Of God. In Christ. Through the Holy Spirit of God. 

>GRACE: Ephesians 2:8

>JOY: John 15:11

>PEACE: John 16:33

>REST: Matthew 11:28

>FORGIVENESS: Ephesians 1:7

>WISDOM: Proverbs 11:30

>LOVE: 1 John 4:16

>HOPE: Psalm 39:7

>MERCY: Titus 3:5

    All of these things Christ is to us who believe. All of these are in us and need to be displayed to everyone else by our words and our actions. The name is the reputation. Whose name are you defined by? The faithful follower of Christ is defined by Christ's Name and carries His reputation with them wherever they go. 

    Philippians 2:7, 8

But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

     As such He did, so, too, do we, His followers. We make ourselves of no reputation, and yet, we are known by many for who we are. As Christ is known, both loved and hated, we who love Him and follow in His steps, are both loved  and hated. Though we desire no reputation of our own, we are given two. We are only slightly known to this world. But in God's kingdom we are fully known.

REPUTATION

Clean Hands - Lauren Alexandria

Better Than Life - Phil Wickham

Here's My Heart - I Am They

No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus - Steffany Gretzinger

Nothing Without You - United Pursuit

I Belong To Jesus - Paul, Hannah McClure

Give Us Clean Hands - Caedmon's Call

I Speak Jesus - Here Be Lions

Hands and Feet - Audio Adrenaline

Build Your Kingdom Here - Rend Collective

Known - Tauren Wells

    

A Crucified Life - - Is Accountable to Christ

 

2 Corinthians 5:10

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his due for the things done in the body, whether good or bad. 

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5319

Appear: to make visible, make clear

From the Greek word 'phaneroó' (pronounced fan-er-o'-o): make known, make manifest, to become apparent.

    Everything we say and do has consequences. Whether we receive the results of our actions and words in this life or the next, we are accountable to Christ for our testimony and our witness. 

Job 34:11 

For according to a man's deeds He repays him; according to a man's ways He brings consequences.

Matthew 16:27

For the Son of Man will come in His Father's glory with His angels, and then He will repay each one according to what he has done.

Matthew 25:32

All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

    A crucified life lets go of the offense and embraces forgiveness. As Christ was dying on the cross, He still retained mercy and compassion, saying, "“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” - Luke 23:34. 

    Are we this forgiving? this merciful? this compassionate? He asked His Father to forgive them, to not hold this thing they had done to the Father's Son against them. 

    May our hearts be as full of love for those who sin against us, that our words towards them are words of love, mercy, forgiveness. That our actions towards they who desire to see us fail be actions of love. 

    May that which held Christ on the cross also hold us. It wasn't the nails; it was the Love of God for you and I.

LET IT BE JESUS  A Christy Nockels Album

    

Guard Your Heart - - Build Your Faith

 

Jude 1:20, 21

20. But you, beloved, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 

21. keep yourselves in the love of God as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 2026

Building: to build upon

From the Greek word 'epoikodomeó' (pronounced ep-oy-kod-om-eh'-o): to build up, to edify; to follow a plan with pre-designed specifications; to make progress in building up (from one level to another).

UNWAVERING FAITH

~PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT~

Hebrews 10:23

Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised;)

James 1:6

But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavers is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

    If we have our doubts when we pray, then we are praying in doubt, not in faith; our prayers will neither be received nor heard. We must pray expecting to receive, with confidence and absolute trust in God's perfect will. But only if we pray according to His will. 

    Praying in The Holy Spirit, The Holy Ghost, is praying according to God's Word: the Word we are being led to and through when we listen to The Spirit of God. If we pray our desires, then it is doubtful we will receive the answer we want. But when we pray God's Word over every situation, then God's Will will prevail. 

    Praying in The Spirit does not mean we have to pray in tongues (although that will happen sometimes with the person who is filled with The Holy Spirit), but that we need to be working with The Spirit of God throughout our daily lives: fervently (urgently), consistently (constantly) and in faith (believing that it will be so). James 5:16; Ephesians 6:18; James 1:6; 1 Timothy 2:1.

    Unwavering faith sees its sins forgiven, its bodies healed, its minds delivered, prisoners freed. Not just then, but even today. Unwavering faith desires to please God: doing what makes God happy. 

BUILDING ON THE FOUNDATION

~HONOR~

    Knowing that our Foundation is Jesus Christ, we need to be careful how we are building on that Foundation. For God built His Foundation with Justice and Righteousness (Isaiah 28:16, 17). 

    Reading 1 Corinthians 3:10 "We must be careful how we build on that Foundation". Throughout this past year we have been learning what it means to be born again. We are still learning. Each monthly series this year I have still listed under the main heading of Being Born Again. (if you don't see some of it on this site, check Facebook).

    1 Peter 2:1 tells us to "Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander." These items do not make good building blocks. Malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander fall under the commandments of what not to do, how not to behave with one another: Thou shall not bear false witness (malice, deceit, hypocrisy, slander). Thou shall not covet (envy).   They are hindrances to the building. Our natural desires war against our spiritual desires (1 Peter 2:11) but conducting ourselves with honor is a desirable building block of faith (1 Peter 2:12).

~MERCY~

    In Matthew 25:35-40 Jesus is speaking on the faithful servant, the one who will enter into the joy of the Lord. "For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.’

    Not everyone is called to be a missionary, but we are all called to pray for one another. In prayer I pray that needs are met. That the hungry are fed, the thirsty receive clean water, the sick are ministered to: their wounds bound, their diseases healed, their dead raised to life. 

I pray for the captives, in prison and out of prison, to be delivered and set free. I pray that their needs also are met. When I pray for those who serve on the front lines of ministry, I pray for each of these things on them as well. This is mercy.

~GRACE~FORGIVENESS~

    Saving grace is what God extended through Jesus Christ to us. (Acts 15:11). It is only by grace we are saved at all (Ephesians 2:5, 8). Grace is an extension of God's love. It is having and showing compassion; it is forgiveness multiplied beyond number (Matthew 18:21,22). Because if we are counting how many times you have "forgiven" a person or persons, then we are not really forgiving them at all: we're tallying up offenses and holding grudges. Not ideal building blocks at all to lay on the Foundation of our faith.

    The grace, the forgiveness, we offer to each other must be sincere and offered in love, the true love of God which lives in the born again believer. If we keep coming back to the original offense we received from the one we think we forgave, then we never offered them love and grace in the first place. Our hearts need to be right with God, aligned in His Justice and Righteousness, that we may freely give grace to one another.

KEEP IN THE LOVE OF GOD & HIS MERCY

 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11

9. For God has not appointed us to suffer wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.

10. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him.

11. Therefore encourage and build one another up, just as you are already doing.

Romans 14:8

If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

2 Timothy 2:11

This is a trustworthy saying: If we died with Him, we will also live with Him.

    The only way to Keep in the Love of God and His Mercy is to remain in God's love, in God's testimony, in God's Son Jesus Christ. To remain in God's love is to live (dwell, take up residence) in God's love. 

    How do we conduct ourselves in our everyday living when we interact with family, when we are working with colleagues, when we sit in waiting rooms? Are we living in the love of God when we get angry, frustrated, upset? Are we living to the Lord by our actions and our words? These are questions only we can ask ourselves and only we can answer. If our answers are not in keeping with God's definition of Christian conduct, then we need to take the matter before Him in prayer and ask that He keep changing us, molding us into the people He wants us to be. 

    Have you ever thought about how the clay might feel on the potter's wheel? Being poked here, prodded there; smoothed away in some areas, broken off in others. Yet there the lump of clay sat, waiting for the potter to create in them what the potter had in mind to create. 

    We are lumps of clay being perfected on the Potter's wheel. Perhaps we, too, should wait without argument while our Potter finishes working on us; while He builds us into Himself. 

    We know we are saved. We both know and hope for our resurrection into eternal life. For it is in Christ that we have the Resurrection and the Life. Let us therefore live in God as He lives in us: with grace, with integrity, with mercy. 

2 Peter 3:13, 14

13. But in keeping with God’s promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.

14. Therefore, beloved, as you anticipate these things, make every effort to be found at peace—spotless and blameless in His sight.

I BUILT MY HOUSE ON A STONE by Jason Upton

HOUSE OF PRAYER by Eddie James, Jayna Cullens

POUR ME OUT by Brandon Lake

FILL MY WAY by Iris DeMent

TREMBLE by I AM THEY

I WON'T LEAVE YOU HERE by Southern Raised Bluegrass

    

    

    

    

    

Thanks Be To God - - For His Mercies

 

Lamentations 3:22

It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.

Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 2617

Mercies: kindness, lovingkindness, pity, compassion

From the Hebrew word 'checed' (pronounced kheh'-sed). 

Though the word 'checed' is used over 200 times in the Old Testament, not all of these refer to the goodness of God extended to all people everywhere. It just depends on context where it is used. 

Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 1656

Mercy: covenant-loyalty, covenant-love; pity, compassion

From the Greek word 'éleos' (pronounced el'-eh-os). Used 27 times in the New Testament.

Psalm 78:38

And yet He was compassionate; He forgave their iniquity and did not destroy them. He often restrained His anger and did not unleash His full wrath.

Psalm 103:10

He has not dealt with us according to our sins or repaid us according to our iniquities.

Nehemiah 9:31

Nevertheless for Thy great mercies' sake Thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for Thou art a gracious and merciful God.

THE LORD'S MERCIES:

New Every Morning

Lamentations 3:23

They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness!

Never Fail

Psalm 100:5

For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.

Extends To All Generations 

Luke 1:50

His mercy extends to those who fear Him, from generation to generation.

Lead To Eternal Life

Jude 1:21

Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

Cause Us To Be Born Again 

1 Peter 1:3-5

3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the One according to His great mercy having begotten us again to a living hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ out from the dead,

4. and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, reserved in heaven for you,

5. who through faith are shielded by God’s power for the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

Dear God,

Thank You for extending Your tender mercies to us. We are forever grateful for Your lovingkindness which You have shown us through the death and resurrection of Your Son Jesus Christ. 

We praise You and adore You for who You are: a loving, generous God whose love draws us from the pits of death into His warm embrace. 

Be our God forever and ever. 

In Jesus' Precious Name, I pray,

Amen.

Thanks Be To God -- For His Loving Devotion

 

Psalm 107:1

Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 2617

Loving Devotion: goodness, kindness, mercy

Again, here in this verse, the word thanks is rendered from the Hebrew word 'yadah'. Once more we are reminded to throw up our hands/arms in thanks giving and praise. We are to cast our hands before us in worship. Why? Because God is Good.

GOD IS GOOD

2 Chronicles 5:13

The trumpeters and singers joined together to praise and thank the LORD with one voice. They lifted up their voices, accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and musical instruments, in praise to the LORD: "For He is good; His loving devotion endures forever." And the temple, the house of the LORD, was filled with a cloud. 

2 Chronicles 7:3

When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the LORD above the temple, they bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD: "For He is good; His loving devotion endures forever."

Matthew 19:17

So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

Psalm 25:8

Good and upright is the LORD; therefore He shows sinners the way.

HIS LOVING DEVOTION ENDURES FOREVER

Psalm 100:5

For the LORD is good, and His loving devotion endures forever; His faithfulness continues to all generations.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 530

Faithfulness: firmness, steadfastness, fidelity, truth, stability

Psalm 86:5

For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You.

Exodus 20:6

And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Exodus 34:6, 7

And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,  keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.” 

Daniel 9:9

To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him.

Psalm 130:4

But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared.

Deuteronomy 7:9

Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps His covenant of loving devotion for a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments.

Psalm 103:17

But from everlasting to everlasting the loving devotion of the LORD extends to those who fear Him, and His righteousness to their children's children.

Dear God,

Thank You for extending Your mercies to me and to my children and to their children. Turn the hearts of those who have left You back to You. In this day there are many that attempt to fully dissuade them from Your lovingkindesses and Your Word. 

As the lyricist says, "Break our hearts for what breaks Yours." Lead us and guide us into and through the Truth of Your Word that we may truly see You and know You as You want to be seen and known by us. 

Thank You for sending Your only begotten Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross in our place, washing away our sins and forgiving us of all our unrighteousness. Grow Your Word in us that we may truly be seen as Trees of Righteousness: unbending, not wavering, but carrying the Strength of the Lord within us wherever You plant us.
Thank You for being a Loving God and for loving me.

In Jesus' Name, I pray,

Amen

Jesus, Friend of Sinner by Casting Crowns

Mercy of God

 

1 Chronicles 16:34

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.

Mercy: Lovingkindness, Loving Devotion

What is the Mercy which God which God extends to people?

1. Redemption from enemies and troubles. We should Trust in it; Rejoice in it; Hope in it..

2. Preservation of life from death.

3. Quickening of spiritual life.

4. Redemption from sin.

5. Covenant-keeping

These things, this Mercy of God, is for ever. For us it is while we have breath, this life we have been given. The decision to believe God and follow Christ must be made on this side of eternity. You can't change your mind after you die. It'll be too late then. 

  

James 4:13-14

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business, and make a profit.”  You do not even know what will happen tomorrow! What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

2 Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Seeker Seeking Mercy

 

SEEKER SEEKING MERCY

Psalm 25:15-16

My eyes are always on the LORD, for He will free my feet from the mesh. Turn to me and be gracious, for I am lonely and afflicted.

When the enemy of our souls lays a trap to try and snare us in his clutches, God will surely make a way for us to escape.

Psalm 119:32

Turn to me and show me mercy, as You do to those who love Your name.

God will show favor to we  who seek Him and deliver us out of the traps/snares. Why? Because of His great love for us, because His mercy endures for ever. The Bible tells me so: Psalm 136.

Isaiah 55:6

Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. 

"Call on Him while He is near" for the time will come when He is no longer near. Though God is always near the believer, He will not always be near enough to the unbeliever to hear his cries for deliverance and mercy. 

"To day is the day of your salvation." To day is the only day to answer God's call on your heart and life, because tomorrow is not promised to any of us. Don't wait, don't hesitate, don't delay. 

The love of God has been extended to us through His mighty right arm, "the right hand of His righteousness", Jesus Christ. 

Faith is believing the impossible, the improbable. Who but God can turn His Word into a baby who would grow up to be a Savior for the whole world? No one. Improbable. Impossible. And, yet. God did.

Blessed Who Wait For Him

Isaiah 30:18
Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore He rises to show you compassion, for the LORD is a just God. Blessed are all who wait for Him.

2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.

2 Peter 3:15
Consider also that our Lord's patience brings salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom God gave him.


Isaiah 26:8
Yes, we wait for You, O LORD; we walk in the path of Your judgments. Your name and renown are the desire of our souls.

I used this shade of blue as it was the closest to sapphire blue I could make. There are two verses in Ezekiel that describe the throne of the LORD as being sapphire or lapis lazuli (depending on which version of the Bible you read). And while sapphire comes in more colors than blue, I have always been drawn to blue sapphires. 
Ezekiel 10:1 Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne. And, again, in Ezekiel 1:26 And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.

Blue is the color of grace. It is the shade of bruising upon Christ's body and face as He was beaten in the courtyards before being whipped 39 times across His back. Blue, cerulean blue, is one of the colors of thread used in the curtains in the tabernacle which separated the holy of holies from the rest of the tabernacle rooms. 

So, when I picture a sapphire throne on which The LORD sits, that is the color I see. And why does He sit on that particular throne at this time? He is seated at the right hand of The Father, interceding on behalf of His people. Why do we need interceding? We are not perfect, we are sinners, all of us. We make mistakes, errors in judgment and fall short of the glory of God. 

We needed a Savior who would know that we are feeble and unable to make it on our own, so God sent us His only begotten Son Jesus Christ to live and example for us, and die in our stead that we would not die in our sins. After Jesus defeated death, hell and the grave in that two day period in which He was sealed in the tomb, God rolled away the stone and Jesus walked out of the grave, having risen from the dead, giving all who believe this eternal life through Him. 

And after a few days, Jesus ascended into heaven to be with His Father again, waiting until that day when God says, "Go". "Go get Your church, Your people and bring her home." 

Isaiah 25:9


And in that day it will be said, "Surely this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He has saved us. This is the LORD for whom we have waited. Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation."

Blessed Instruction_Psalms

The King James Version reads the word instruct as chastisement, which by implication means severe criticism, harsh rebuke, as well as corporal punishment. This is not how the Word is to be applied. For the Word of God is Jesus Christ, and He is to be applied willingly to the heart, not forcefully. God's Love is Mercy and Grace; Patience and Strength. We are not to wield such Love as if it were a paddle board, nor should we be meanly spoken with it or by it.

Now, don't get me wrong. I love studying with my KJV Bible and I love reading it because I know that the Holy Spirit will reveal to me what I need to know when I need to know it. But I love studying with the Interlinear Bible, too. It tells me the Hebraic word and pronunciation, as well as the Strong's reference, and specific meaning for a word in any verse, not just a general definition or description. 

Knowing also that "blessed" when referring to man means "happy" and "to be envied", we read with a better understanding the verses in which we are to be blessed. 

Psalm 94:12 Happy and to be envied is the man whom You instruct, LORD, and out of Your law teach. 

And don't be getting all feminist on me, either. When God's Word speaks of 'man' in general, He is not excluding women: it is mankind, or man-kind (Genesis 1:27): male and female. But the Word must be applied individually. While all blessings from God to us are for each of us and all of us, we must first believe not only that God is, but that His Word is Faithful and True. Only then can we seek, search out and find how God wants to bless us. 

Once we are living the blessing life, those around us will see the difference in us. Our blessings will indeed be enviable to those folks who are in our daily lives; they're going to wonder why we are like we are and what brought about this change in us. A few may even decide they want these blessings, too. That's when we tell them about our Jesus, the Savior of all mankind, who died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead. Who even now is interceding on our behalf to His Father. 

Do you know what the Holy Spirit tells me, when I begin to judge the surface of a person? "I love them, too." Only God knows the heart of an individual, only God knows whether or not a person is truly saved when that person dies. It's not my place to know and I should be content with that knowledge. And, yet, occasionally I still hear the Spirit say, "I love that person, too". Contrition and humility are the catch words of the moment. I repent, am forgiven and move on. 

The second part of this verse "out of Your law to teach" means more than expounding the verse, whether personal study or teaching another. It is accusative. The Law of God reveals sin and shows us in it that it is impossible to obey said laws without the strength of God aiding us. We are taught by God that we need Him to help us obey Him. And we do. For our God is a holy God and demands us to be holy, too (Leviticus 20:7; 1 Peter 1:16).

Jesus did not abolish the law of God, He fulfilled it (Matthew 5:17). In Romans 3:31 Paul writes to the church at Rome the question of faith vs law and reminds them, and us, that our faith in Christ establishes, fulfills, upholds the law of God. Through our faith in Christ we recognize that the law of God reveals our sin and that without Him we are lost and undone. I would be lost, undone, alone and miserable if I did not know Jesus as my Lord and Savior. 

If you are lost, undone, alone and miserable I know Who can save you, keep you, befriend you and love you. His name is Jesus Christ. He died for you, fought death, hell and the grave for you, rose from the dead for you. And is seated at the right hand of the Father waiting to intercede for you. "I love the person reading this, too". 

Dear Jesus, 
I recognize that I am lost without You. Please forgive me of my sins, come into my heart and be Lord of my life. Guide me through Your Word as I read and study it. Holy Spirit fill me with Yourself and help me be who God wants me to be. 
In Jesus' Name,
Amen.