Because our God authored Mercy, He has the authority to visit individuals, regardless of their dire circumstances or foolish actions. Mercy in the courtroom equals a judgment of pardon. As a policy however, mercy allows such a freedom of action that it beckons a person to the very seat of God, to surrender to mercy’s reality, in spite of shame or guilt, in order to commune with Him, face to face. “there is a God, there always has been. I see him here, in the eyes of the people in this hospital corridor of desperation. This is the real house of God, this is where those who have lost God will find Him… there is a God, there has to be, and now I will pray, I will pray that He will forgive that I have neglected Him all of these years, forgive that I have betrayed, lied, and sinned…
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2Thessalonians 3:13 exhorts, ” But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.”. So also Galatians 6:9 “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. ” Weariness, frankly, comes under the category of “be not.” We should never allow weariness to eliminate our well doing. Why? Fyodor Dostoyevsky describes the practice of weariness in his famous work “The Brothers Karamazov.” In the chapter on “The Grand Inquisitor” Jesus Himself appears in 15th century Spain — a time when heretics were being burned at the stake. A small coffin is placed before Him, and a cry of parents to raise a child who had died. Jesus complies and the child comes back to life. However strangely, The Christ is arrested and incarcerated. As the story goes and I add my own interpretation, the appearance of the Christ and the resurgence of life-…
“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:” Matthew 6:9-13 Vital to our lives brothers and sisters, we must pray for God’s will to be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Where to be found, this will? Matthew 7:25 explains: “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: Others built on sand. In each case, “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house.” The rock foundation stood but the sandy one fell.…
A story recalled from Bergen-Belsen — a prisoner “strikes up a friendship with a doctor named Marie. The two are talking one day when a Polish prisoner comes to Marie for help. She is not sick — she is about to give birth. At first Fania and Marie panic, but then they collect themselves and have the woman lie down on a table. Silence is imperative, so the woman, ‘teeth clenched,’ uttered not a word. She knew the fate of children at the hands of the SS. Fortunately, the child arrives quickly, There are no scissors, Marie cuts the cord with her teeth. There is no water, Fania rips the lining out of her coat, fashions a crude version of swaddling clothes, and wraps up the baby, still covered with blood. The woman, who has not yet said a word” — dresses, puts on her shoes, and takes her child…
“And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets. And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not. So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof. But he said, Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may…
“Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.” Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you. 2Chronicles 20:15 and 17 Jehoshaphat received news of– “a great multitude against him from beyond the sea on this side Syria.” With this he proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. The enemy were those given segments of land by God Himself; Moab, Ammon and some from the land beyond them. We must remind ourselves of our enemies afar off but also of those living close by. Both are to be handled by God; it is for God to do battle,…
1Samuel 18:6 says, “And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of music.” Joy, joy joy erupted at the hero’s welcome ceremony following victories over their oppressors. A cause for great joy. 1Kings 1:40 teaches, “And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them.” The occasion? Solomon anointed king in Israel. Joy at the inauguration of a great king and defender of the people. 1Chronicles 12:40 shows us, “Moreover they that were nigh them, even unto Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on asses, and on camels, and on mules, and on oxen, and meat,…
And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Matthew 18:1-6 Jason Gray wrote a song about Christmas : “They’re dressing up the city in a brightly lighted gown, They’re singing in the streets when Christmas comes to town. So let the spirit find you where ever you have been,…
Lists in the Bible are many — here are a few: 2Timothy 3:1 teaches: ” … understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. ” For people will be: selfish, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, (over-shining). irreverent. disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, Without natural affection trucebreakers slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. . Avoid such people. In contrast is God’s love list of 1 Corinthians 13: Love is so patient and so kind; love never boils with jealousy; it never boasts, is never puffed with pride; It does not act with rudeness, or insist upon its rights; it never gets provoked, it never harbors evil thoughts; Is never glad when wrong is done, but always glad when truth prevails; It bears…
Faith exists the truly held, felt, smelled, and shelled nugget of gold — the one of my hopes and dreams — but comes by hearing, and the spiritual sense of hearing can only come by the Word of God.. Yes, God’s Word, God Himself, and our participation in that Nature, becomes our way, our truth, and our life. How? I must get near Him and when I do, like the Shulamite woman of Song of Solomon, Chapter 3, hold Him and never let go — “until I had brought Him into my mother’s house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me.” The Pulpit commentary explains: “ecstatic and intense as her devotion is, it is not the lawless affection of a concubine, but the love of a noble wife. The religious emotions are always presented to us in Scripture, not as wild fanaticism or superficial excitement, but as pure…