Kay Keith Peebles 9/11/2020 20.34
Unless the Holy Spirit gives us revelation, it is impossible for us to understand the mind of God. All natural reason and logic that is not under the guidance of the Holy Spirit come from the world, but the manifold wisdom of God comes from above.
“To me who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places according to the eternal purpose which He accomplishes in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Ephesians 3:8-11.
GOD IS GOOD, GOD IS LOVE AND GOD IS MERCIFUL
“Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Oh, give thanks to the God of gods! For His mercy endures forever. Oh give thanks to the Lord of lords! For His mercy endures forever. To Him who alone does great wonders, For His mercy endures forever; To Him who by wisdom made the heavens For His mercy endures forever…Who remembered us in our lowly state, For His mercy endures forever. And rescued us from our enemies, For His mercy endures forever. Who gives food to all flesh, for His mercy endures forever. Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven! For His mercy endures forever.” Psalm 136:1-26.
From Genesis through Revelation, the mercy and lovingkindness of the Lord is the theme of the Bible. There are other major revelations that weave through the pages, but the overall message in scripture is the Love and Mercy of God. True love and mercy do not come from this world; they are far above the natural realm. They descend from heaven from a Holy God whose motives are lovingkindness and tender mercy.
“But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the LORD one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:7-9.
David was a prophet, a warrior and king of Israel. The 23rd Psalm is a profound picture of the goodness, love and mercy of God toward us. “The LORD is my shepherd (He watches over and cares for us); I shall not want (He provides all I need with no lack). He makes me to lie down in green pastures (He provides rest and refreshing for us); He leads me beside the still waters (He gives us peace and comfort). He restores my soul (He delivers us from oppression); He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake (He sanctifies and purifies us). Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil (He enables us to be strong and courageous when facing danger); For You are with me (He will not forsake or abandon us); Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me ( He corrects, disciplines and restores us). You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies ( We can feast in the secret place while He Leads us into victory); You anoint my head with oil (The Holy Spirit protects and preserves us); my cup runs over (the Lord blesses us and gives us favor). Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life (He is longsuffering, faithful toward us); and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever (He is our eternal reward).” Psalm 23:1-6. This is the perfect prophetic picture of the Lord lovingly tending to His people. The Lord provides us with everything we need for success, wins our battles for us as we trust in Him, and gives us our eternal reward!
“For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting And His truth endures to all generations.” Psalm 100:5.
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 2:4-7. No one can be born again (saved) unless the Lord first died for us and then drew us to Him and convicted us of sin. If we sin after we become born again, we cannot repent without His love and mercy going before us drawing us back to reconciliation.
The Lord created man and put him in the perfect scenario of a perfect world without sin for love and fellowship with God. Adam and Eve had a choice to keep everything as God created it or to rebel against the Lord’s commandment. When they rebelled, the consequences of their sin brought the curse of sin and death. Because of sin and death, the judgment of God was required to preserve the “good” seed of man who desired to seek Him and follow His ways. With that in mind, we must still understand that God exceedingly prefers mercy over judgment but He leaves the choice to us!
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” Romans 5:8-10.
None of us, who have become born again by receiving the testimony of Jesus’ sacrificial death for our sins, repented of our sins of our own accord. It was the goodness, love and mercy of God that He still loved us even while we were sinning and made a way for us to become reconciled to Him by the power of His grace!
We have seen the manifold mercy of God and all who have become partakers of Christ have experienced it. It is now our duty to extend the great mercy we have received to others. God prefers mercy over Judgment. “So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” James 2:12-13.
The mercy of God does NOT overlook sin, it convicts the sinner with lovingkindness so that they are able to repent and receive God’s forgiveness instead of judgment. “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as through God were pleading through us; we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 2 Corinthians 5:18-21
The Lord, full of mercy and compassion, gracious and kind is calling us all to examine our own hearts. His arms of unfailing love are reaching out to all of us so that we might allow Him to show us any unrepented sin in our hearts. Unrepented sin causes us to feel condemned but the Lord wants us to be reconciled to Him in His love so that He can extend mercy to us in our time of need. I will close with two profound scriptures: one in Old Testament and the other in the New Testament.
“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14.
“Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power, Both now and forever. Amen.” Jude 24-25.
GOD IS GOOD, GOD IS LOVE AND GOD IS MERCIFUL
