Mercy of God

             

“For this is what the LORD says: “When seventy years for Babylon are complete, I will attend to you and will confirm my promise concerning you to restore you to this place. For I know the plans I have for you”-this is the LORD’s declaration- “plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and hope.” Jeremiah 29:10-11

God continued to shower mercy upon His people despite their unfaithfulness. In their self-inflicted disaster He promised a hope and future and that restoration could occur. The same is true in my life. I deserved so much more but God spared me mercy time and time again. He kept showing up. And what I should have deserved I was spared because He chose that. The discipline I received could have been so much worse. Thank you, Jesus.

How many times has Jesus shown up in your life? 

Jesus showed up in the flesh to display mercy time and time again. Jesus was God’s plan all along even as He continued to rescue His people from themselves. Mercy was present before it was Present. Looking back at the Old Testament has been this reminder of how people turned away from God and God continued to remind them to turn and repent back to Him. The endless cycle of them following other gods is what they shared. They thought they could just add to Yahweh when Yahweh claimed them as His own from the beginning. Instead of delighting in the One true God they chose the empty gods that never satisfied. Nothing was going to fix the sin problem once and for all until Jesus came. Jesus came as Yahweh in the flesh.

One of the biggest things I have seen through all the mess was the promised Messiah to come and save them all.

Mercy was the plan and His name was Jesus. We became redeemed so that we could fully live in the freedom God intended us to live in. We stand redeemed because of the mercy of God.

“The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” Lamentations 3:22

I love how Jeremiah spoke with the Lord. Even as he witnessed what was happening around him was evil, he couldn’t comprehend his gaze was fixed on God. Jeremiah had hope and remembered. Even as evil was all around him deep down in his soul, he remembered who God was. He had every reason to quit but Jeremiah remained faithful no matter what the cost was.

Satan wants us to fail. I heard a sermon recently that explained how he fights like a boxer. He never fights the same. You can’t expect to know when he is going to come after our minds.  So, expect it. Pray anticipatory prayers that get the soul ready. Jeremiah did that so when the trouble came, he remembered mercy. 

Sit for a minute with Lord and ask Him how He has showed you mercy in your life. 

Father,

You didn’t give us a spirit of fear, and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline. Lord, thank you for the freedom we get to receive daily because of Jesus. None of that was deserved we deserved the opposite, but you chose the cross Jesus. Thank you for the mercy, Jesus. Remind us of that same mercy that was shown to us when we become weary and our hearts become troubled. You are a God of Mercy so let our lives live that out. 

Amen