GRACE BLOGS COLLECTION
As believers, our theology (study and view of God) and our doctrines (principles) must be consistent with our heartfelt beliefs.
You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant PEACE (Shalom) whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You. —Isaiah 26:3 (AMP)
Our lives are dependent on what we believe because we can’t go where our hearts won’t lead us! The heart is the driving force of life.
Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life. — Proverbs 4:23 (AMP)
The inconsistencies between what we believe in our hearts and what we see around us many times paralyze us in our walk with God.
The Mercy of God
Our beliefs about God may be deeply influenced by legalism and the concept of an angry, judgmental God. So many misunderstand the wonderful truth of the mercy of God. What we believe about God’s mercy will either assist or sabotage our faith.
Being Treated Better than We Deserve
Jesus told the Pharisees to learn what it means for God to desire mercy and not sacrifice.
Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy [that is, readiness to help those in trouble] and not sacrifice and sacrificial victims. —Matthew 9:13 (AMP)
If the Gospel says anything today, it’s that people are way more important to God than any religious regulations!
What Does Mercy Mean?
People have many different definitions for the mercy of God. The Old Testament concept of mercy comes from the Hebrew word kapporet, describing the mercy seat of God where the high priest sprinkled the blood of the sin offering.
Treating People Better than They Deserve
A simplified view of the mercy seat is: It was the place where God treated people better than they deserved.
Every time we hear or see the word mercy, referring to God, His willingness, ability, and passion to give us better than we deserve should enter our minds.
Our lives are dependent on what we believe because we can’t go where our hearts won’t lead us! The heart is the driving force of life.
Everlasting Mercy
The mercy of God is an everlasting mercy!
But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting …. —Psalms 103:17
The mercy of God endures forever.
To endure is the ability to withstand prolonged use or strain. So the mercy of God is eternal and endures prolonged use and strain!
Unfortunately, many Christians can’t just relax and enjoy life because they’re afraid of God’s wrath. They live life on the edge, toeing the line with no room for error.
Yet, Paul tells us not to fear the wrath of God.
…The proof of God’s amazing love is this: … while we were sinners Christ died for us. … what reason have we to fear the wrath of God? … We may hold our heads high in the light of God’s love because of the reconciliation which Christ has made. —Romans 5:7-11 (Phillips)
God’s mercy sets us free to live without fear. It liberates us to tackle life head-on and expect only good things.
Mercy Over All His Works
God’s mercy is over all His works!
The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works [the entirety of things created]. —Psalms 145:9 (AMP)
Now, if we connect that with Ephesians 2:10, it gives us a beautiful picture of His mercy in our lives.
For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus…. — Ephesians 2:10 (AMP)
Every thought that God has of us and every decision He makes about us is always bathed in His mercy, goodness, and loving kindness.
Fully Persuaded
When we become absolutely confident in the love and mercy of God is when we will start to live victoriously, peacefully, and productively.
Blessings,
Arthur Meintjes
I have seen the weaponization of the Bible more times that I can count. I hate to admit that I’ve been guilty of this myself. Christians tend to find a verse that backs up their belief system and then they use that verse against people who disagree with them. That is not what the Bible was intended for.
The post How Saying “the Bible Says” Becomes Dangerous appeared first on Michael Wilson.
Anytime that we discuss freedom as it relates to believers in the kingdom of God, we must realize that freedom means different things to different people!
In Acts 22, an incident in the life of Paul powerfully illustrates the New Testament truth regarding Christian freedom in the kingdom of God!
And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned? When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest: for this man is a Roman. Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yea. (As a Roman Citizen or a FREE man, Paul had rights!) And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this FREEDOM. And Paul said, But I was born FREE. —Acts 22:25-28 (KJV)
Freedom meant something totally different to the Roman captain than to Paul.
Many today believe that their Christian May freedom is obtained by ‘paying a high price’—hard work, moral discipline, personal sacrifice! They think that if you sacrifice much in zealous pursuits of Christian discipline, you are ultimately rewarded with victory and freedom.
But I like what Paul said, “Maybe your freedom cost you a high price, but I was born FREE.” Before we can understand and experience true freedom, we have to know that it’s not something we obtain through personal sacrifice, we are born into it!
That doesn’t mean that our freedom was without cost. It came at a very high cost—THE LIFE OF THE SON OF GOD. The degree to which you understand and believe in the freedom you are born into in Christ is the degree of true freedom you will experience in everyday life!
Proverbs 23:7 says, “For as he [man] thinketh in his heart, so is he.”
“Thinketh” means “to calculate; to put a valuation on.” “What” and “who” we value in our hearts determines where we go and what we become! Therefore, the way I believe about God and our relationship, controls the way I see and relate to myself and others.
Before we can understand and experience true freedom, we have to know that it’s not some- thing we obtain through personal sacrifice, we are born into it!
All the experiences of our lives, can be directly linked to the condition of our hearts or our belief system! (Prov. 4:20-23)
You can be a God-fearing, Holy Spirit-filled, Bible-quoting, morally-disciplined Christian, living in a reclusive commune! But if your beliefs are still deeply rooted in performance religion, you’ll never be free from the destructive behaviors and bondage that dominate your life.
Unfortunately this is the sad reality of many Christians in the church today.
The Jews served God based on performance religion that unknowingly kept them in bondage. Jesus said to them:
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? —John 8:31-33 (KJV)
They didn’t even recognize the religion they were in. They thought that everything was just great!
They served God under a system governed by rules, regulations and performance that could never make them acceptable before God. This is what they needed to be set free from, and it’s the same for many today.
Jesus said, “you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” That truth is relationship with God—free from legalism, self- righteousness and the guilt of the law! Jesus came to give us freedom and abundant life in Him. Celebrate the freedom you were born into every day!
Blessings, Arthur
