2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
I am led to write more today about God’s grace, mercy, and peace. You’ll remember that yesterday I gave you Kay Arthur’s wonderful acronym for Grace, God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Another definition given is unmerited favor. In God’s case, grace is closely tied with mercy. I looked up the definition for mercy, because I wanted to share it with you. It is compassionate forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or another person under one’s power; compassion, pity, or benevolence. Where God is concerned, it is favor shown by God toward His creation. Mercy involves the offer of clemency or leniency. We can back these definitions with Scripture from EPH 1-3 to see God’s perspective on them. Through grace God gave us Christ’s Atonement, setting us free and bringing us forgiveness [1: 7-8]. By grace we are saved, not by our own efforts [2: 5, 8]. We are saved and will be raised to rule with Christ in heaven to demonstrate the extraordinary greatness of God’s grace and love in Christ [2: 6-7; RO 8: 17]. The enmity between Jews and Gentiles, their separation, is broken down to bring all who believe back to God [2: 15]. God took these actions to bring all believers into His own family [2: 18 & 3: 16]. Paul understood all these principles, which is why he wished the Ephesians grace and peace in EPH 1:1. Isn’t it comforting to know that our session in the court of the last judgment will be a time we are offered compassion, clemency, and lenience? Now, we can really appreciate one of the lines from Fanny Crosby’s hymn, “Rescue The Perishing.” Read these words, “Down in the human heart, crushed by the tempter, feelings he buried that grace can restore.”
There are some other Scriptures which support and further illuminate these from Ephesians. Let me share them now. Titus was a Gentile convert to Christianity who became a fellow missionary assistant to Paul. He had been left in Crete to supervise the early church there. It is likely that Paul wrote to Titus from Macedonia somewhere between 64 AD and 66 AD. Paul writes in TITUS 3: 4-5, “But when the kindness and love of God our Savior was revealed, He saved us. It was not because of any good deeds that we ourselves have done, but because of His own mercy that He saved us, through the Holy Spirit, Who gives us new birth and new life by washing us.” Satan causes demonic possession and spiritual sickness of the worst kind. In my own life I have seen people who are hopelessly deceived by him and how he has been allowed by them to dictate incredibly aberrant behavior on their part. People led by Satan leave behind them a trail of failed relationships. This is not what God wants for us, which is why He has used His superiority, grace, and mercy to sacrifice His only Son so that salvation is made available to mankind. The people who see, as Kay Arthur puts it, “two demons behind every bush,” equally frustrate God as do those who ignore Satan’s activity and give in to his temptation.
There are plenty of examples in the Scriptures where God could have given up on an individual possessed by demons but didn’t out of His mercy. Some examples that come to mind are the story of how Christ healed a boy who had such terrible epileptic seizures due to a demon that he fell into the fire or water when they happened [MT 17: 14-21]. Christ used this demonstration of His mercy to teach His disciples that they needed to have stronger faith. Another powerful example is the story from MK 5: 1-20 of how Jesus healed a man, Mob, with evil spirits who had come out of the burial caves in the territory of Gerasa. This is where Christ caused the evil spirits to go out of Mob and into a heard of pigs who rushed down to a lake and were drowned. We can find comfort in knowing that just as the Lord asks us to walk through the narrow gate and take that hard path to eternal life [MT 7: 13-14], Christ Himself never took the easy path in His zeal to obey the Father and join Him in His work. Be comforted by RO 8: 38-39 which reminds us that nothing can separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus. We must remember that the devil takes delight when we forget the blessings that are ours and don’t fully appreciate them. Mercy is an attribute of God, and He longs to be merciful toward us. PS 78: 38-39 certainly tells us this. “But God was merciful to His people. He forgave their sin and He did not destroy them. Many times He held back His anger restrained His fury. He remembered that they were only mortal beings, like a wind that blows by and is gone.”
We must remember that the stories in the Scriptures are designed to teach us God’s will, to give us examples of how His teaching can be applied to our lives, and to allow us to know Him better. It is our loving Abba Who sent His Son Jesus Christ to set an example for how we should live, to help us to know the compassion and mercy He has for each of us, and to give us hope that the pain we must suffer at Satan’s hand is not suffered in vain.
PRAYER : O Lord, we have recently been praying in praise of You and to acknowledge Your sovereign supremacy. You surely deserve this from us. However, You also deserve for us to indicate to You that we understand the depth of Your mercy and compassion for us when we never deserved it. You, Dearest Lord, are the Good Shepherd for Your flocks of believers. Alone, we can do nothing to protect ourselves from the snares that Satan sets for us. With faith in You and confession of our status as sinners, You are empowered as our Protector. Just as David took care of his sheep with unselfish devotion, You do the same. We are Your sheep and we know Your voice. You enabled us to recognize it when You gave us faith out of Your grace and mercy. Christ was willing to give up His life in order to receive it back again for us [JN 10: 17]. He did this out of His own free will, and You allowed it out of Your mercy for us. PS 91: 1-4 expresses the feeling in our hearts. “Whoever goes to the Lord for safety, whoever remains under the protection of the almighty, can say to Him, ‘You are my Defender and Protector. You are my God; in You I trust.’ He will keep you safe from all hidden dangers and from all deadly diseases. He will cover you with His wings; you will be safe in His care; His faithfulness will protect and defend you.” We come before Your altar today as imperfect but dedicated to having a relationship with You that is marked by humility, obedience, trust, diligence, loyalty, honor, adoration, and worship. We offer You our praise and thanks for being the powerful force for good in our lives that You are. In Christ’s name, we pray. Amen.
The Lord prompts me to continue sharing some wonderful citations in tomorrow’s message that reveal God’s mercy and compassion for His children. We learn more about His attributes and blessing-filled actions too. All of us this based on a foundation of love for us, love so superior to that of which mankind is capable that we can hardly understand it. What encouragement to faithfulness and comfort it brings for us to dwell upon God’s love as he blesses us and offers us responsibility in the Body of Christ! Peter and I feel honored to send you our love and to be bonded supernaturally with our Abba and all believers in the relationship called “koininea.”
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn