Tag Archives: God’s mercy

IN VIEW OF GOD’S MERCY

Bible Study, ,

IN VIEW OF GOD’S MERCY

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1, 2.

“When you see a “therefore”, ask what it’s there for!” Ever heard that one?

“Therefore” forms the bridge between what has gone before and what follows. True to Paul’s way, his practical application follows his presentation of what God has done.  In this letter, he has carefully set out the legal foundation for God’s mercy – His justice based on His righteousness in which He both dealt with sin and acquitted the sinner.

Therefore, what God has done demands a suitable response from those who have received His gift of righteousness. Our response depends on the purpose for which He went to the trouble of removing our sin and absolving us of guilt – so that we can be reconciled to Him and return to His original plan for human beings.

It’s no use saying, “Thank you very much,” putting His pardon in our back pockets as a passport to heaven and continuing to living in our old way as though nothing had happened. This attitude makes a mockery of His mercy and is the worst form of ingratitude.

David recognised the absolute importance of embracing all the benefits and blessings of God’s salvation as the highest form of gratitude that we can offer to Him for all that He has done for us.

12 What shall I return to the LORD
for all his goodness to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the LORD.
14 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD
in the presence of all his people. Psalms 116:12-14

God went to great lengths to redeem us. For what purpose? To bring His wayward children back to Himself so that, once again, we can be His family and He can be our Father.

“What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of God, As God has said: ‘I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.’ Therefore ‘Come out from them and be separate,’ says the Lord. ‘Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.’ And, ‘I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,’ says the Lord Almighty.” 2 Corinthians 6:16-18.  

If God is our Father, then we as His children should resemble Him in His nature, since we have been born of Him. The sinful nature in us has to be subdued so that we can be restored to what He made us to be in the beginning – holy, set apart for God; and righteous, doing the right thing in every situation, just as He does. That means, caring more for others than for ourselves and being generous in every way towards all people.

The problem is that, in order to change our behaviour, we have to change the way we think. But how? First of all, by relinquishing our right to ourselves. Paul put it this way: give God your body as a living sacrifice – not literally, of course, but present the members of your body to Him to direct what you do with them. Give Him your head – the control centre of your life. Give Him your arms and legs – what you do and where you go; give Him your tongue, your eyes, your ears etc., so that He can be in charge of what goes in and what comes out. Get the picture?

Hand-in-hand with your body must go your mind. Your thoughts are selfish, corrupted and contrary to God’s thoughts about Himself, you and others. Your behaviour will change as your thoughts change. But it doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a slow, lifetime process of reading, understanding and absorbing God’s word, re-evaluating the way you think and respond to your life’s experiences in the light of what God’s word says, gaining a new perspective on life from God’s point of view and replacing self with God and others.

Does this sound like an impossible demand? It is – unless we see it as a partnership between the Holy Spirit and us. We can’t do it alone but the Holy Spirit in us changes us as we do our part.

“Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed – not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence – continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfil His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13. 

What is our part? Choose to do the right thing in line with what God says, and the Holy Spirit in you will provide the power to do it.

Acknowledgement

THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

In It For The Entertainment?

Christian Life, , ,

IN IT FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT?

“As the crowd swelled, He took a fresh tack: ‘The mood of this age is all wrong. Everybody’s looking for proof but you’re looking for the wrong kind. All you’re looking for is something to titillate your curiosity, satisfy your lust for miracles. But the only proof you’re going to get is the Jonah-proof given to the Ninevites, which looks like no proof at all. What Jonah was to Nineveh, the Son of Man is to this age'” Luke 11:29, 30 (The Message).

It seems that human nature has never changed. Jesus had issues with the people of His day because they had a lust for entertainment. To many of them, He was nothing but a great entertainer. They followed Him in droves to watch what He could do and to get what He could give but, when it came to the tough decision to identify with Him and take the flak for being a follower, they opted out because the price was too high.

Their excuse was that they wanted ‘proof’ but, no matter how much proof He gave them, they were always demanding more. What did they mean by ‘proof’? Proof of what? Jesus offered them one sign, which He called ‘the sign of Jonah.’ What was the sign of Jonah? Jonah spent three days and nights in the belly of a fish because of his reluctance to offer Nineveh God’s mercy.

God was merciful to him. He sent him to Nineveh a second time to warn them of His coming judgment because of their wickedness. Why did God want to warn them? Why not just dump judgment on them? Was it not because God was merciful? He wanted to give them an opportunity to repent.

And they did.

Jesus spent three days and nights in a grave because of God’s mercy to all mankind. He rose from the grave as a witness that He is who He said He is, the Son of God and that God is merciful to all who believe in Him. Because of His suffering and death, God can offer forgiveness to every person who responds to His offer and receives Jesus as Lord. Faith in Jesus involves active participation in His life, following, imitating and obeying Him as Lord.

But nothing has changed. Whether it is secular or spiritual, people generally love to be spectators; sport, TV, pop festivals, no matter what form it takes, we sit on a seat somewhere, in front of the TV, in a sports stadium or a concert hall or even a pew in church and watch.

Christian TV is big business. TV channels are mushrooming. Which are the most popular and lucrative? Is it not those that offer the most entertainment and the biggest rewards for ‘sowing into their ministry’?

Jesus’ solution is simple but radical. ‘Whoever does not take up his cross daily and follow me, cannot be my disciple.’ The Jonah-sign demands an active response of trust and obedience, getting up off the seat and following Jesus, right to the death of the self-life and into a life of self-giving for the sake of others.