Today I'm reading in the book of Micah, which can be found near the end of the Old Testament. Micah was a prophet, and his name meant, "Who is like Yahweh"? Yahweh meaning: the sacred name of God; the self-existent one.
Micah answers the question of "what does God want or expect from me"? He says in Chapter 6: 8, " He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require from you? To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God".
What does it mean to act justly? Isaiah tells us in chapter 1:17 : "Learn to do right. Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow".
Jeremiah also tells us in chapter 22:3: "This is what the Lord says: Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of his oppressor, the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the alien, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place".
The last part of Micah's answer to us says that we are to walk humbly with our God. Back to the book of Isaiah, chapter 57:15, God himself tells us through Isaiah, how he lives right here with us, exactly where we are, if we choose to let him be Lord of our lives: "For this is what the high and lofty One says - he who lives forever, whose name is holy: ' I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite'.
Again we see a reference to the holy and sacred God, Yahweh. And to think that He wants to be a part of our life - to have daily communion with us and walk through our lives here with us - it is astounding if you just sit back and think about it! He will teach us to act justly; he will give us mercy and show us how to give mercy to others; and he will walk with us, guiding our way.
I pray that I become more merciful - to extend to others, mercy instead of judgement - to make a difference in the life of someone who is oppressed and alone.
As we begin another week, I pray too, that you will ask Yahweh - the holy God - to walk with you and teach you to be a humble servant.
Blessings - Janelle
Showing posts with label mercy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mercy. Show all posts
Monday, January 12, 2009
Friday, November 7, 2008
Receiving God's Mercy
Good Friday Morning! This week sure went by quickly, and I need to wind up the week with a little more study of Jeremiah.
Chapter 6: 19 - 21 - " Hear O Earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words, and have rejected my laws. What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me. Therefore this is what the Lord says: "I will put obstacles before this people. Fathers and sons alike will stumble over them; neighbors and friends will perish".
The book of Micah, found near the end of the Old Testament tells us in 6:8 "He has shown you O man, what is good and what the Lord requires of you. To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly before your God".
That's the message in today's passage from Jeremiah. God doesn't want our sacrifices - unless they are done with the right attitude of heart towards him, they are done in vain. He wants us to walk with him and to represent him to others on this earth.
In Psalm 51, King David had realized his sin with Bathsheba, and poured out his heart in repentance to God and he says in verse 17: "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise".
Let us all come to the altar of the Lord today with a broken and contrite heart. Let us humble ourselves to him and receive his mercy - not continue in sin and receive the wages of them, which it says in Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord".
That death is spiritual death - complete and total seperation from God forever. And at times, continual sin can lead to an early physical death as well.
Choose the gift of life from the Lord, through Christ Jesus. He will renew your life, renew your spirit, and renew your heart from the past wounds that have kept you apart from him.
Have a blessed Friday!
Janelle
Chapter 6: 19 - 21 - " Hear O Earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words, and have rejected my laws. What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me. Therefore this is what the Lord says: "I will put obstacles before this people. Fathers and sons alike will stumble over them; neighbors and friends will perish".
The book of Micah, found near the end of the Old Testament tells us in 6:8 "He has shown you O man, what is good and what the Lord requires of you. To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly before your God".
That's the message in today's passage from Jeremiah. God doesn't want our sacrifices - unless they are done with the right attitude of heart towards him, they are done in vain. He wants us to walk with him and to represent him to others on this earth.
In Psalm 51, King David had realized his sin with Bathsheba, and poured out his heart in repentance to God and he says in verse 17: "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise".
Let us all come to the altar of the Lord today with a broken and contrite heart. Let us humble ourselves to him and receive his mercy - not continue in sin and receive the wages of them, which it says in Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord".
That death is spiritual death - complete and total seperation from God forever. And at times, continual sin can lead to an early physical death as well.
Choose the gift of life from the Lord, through Christ Jesus. He will renew your life, renew your spirit, and renew your heart from the past wounds that have kept you apart from him.
Have a blessed Friday!
Janelle
Saturday, October 18, 2008
The End of Mercy
It's a beautiful Saturday morning, and I wanted to finish up Chapter 4 of Jeremiah before going to the funeral of one of my brothers in law father.
Yesterday I covered the devastation that was to occur to the land because of the sin of the people, and drew a comparison to The Tribulation at the end of the age.
Today's verses are 27-31:" This is what the Lord says: 'The whole land will be ruined, thought I will not destroy it completely. Therefore the earth will mourn and the heavens above grow dark, because I have spoken and will not relent. I have decided and will not turn back. At the sound of the horseman and the archers every town takes to flight. Some go into the thickets; some climb up among the rocks. All the towns are deserted; no one lives in them. What are you doing O devastated one? Why dress yourself in scarlet and put on jewels of gold? Why sahde your eyes with paint? You adorn yourself in vain. Your lovers despise you; they seek your life. I hear a cry as of a woman in labor, a groan as of one bearing her first child - the cry of the Daughter of Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands and saying, ' Alas! I am fainting; my life is given over to murderers".
God had given his people many chances to repent - his mercy extended to them, but their hearts were so hardened, they brought him to the end of his mercy on them. He had warned them of his coming wrath and judgement, but they paid no attention. God said the whole land would be ruined, but not destroyed completely, which goes back to his promise to Noah, when he gave the sign of the rainbow, which was that he would never again destroy the whole earth and all of mankind.
In verses 29-31, which speak of the final hour before the destruction was to occur, the people were still trying to placate their enemies by alluring them as a harlot does. One would think that they would cry out to God, even at that late hour, but instead - they tried to appease their enemy.
In this day and age, people have become cold and hard towards the Lord, and want to be thier own gods - leading their lives as they see fit. The Lord continues to plead with us, as he did with his people in Jeremiah's time. We need to heed what he says in II Chronicles 7: 14 : "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will heal their land". If this plead of his mercy is snubbed, then we can expect the same judgements as the generations before us suffered.
Again, I refer to the scriptures of the prophecies of the end times. All throughout the Gospels, Jesus spoke about what to look for when the end of the age was approaching. He said that the end times would be like in the days of Noah - people were living without any care or regard of the Lord, they would be carrying on in all kinds of sin, mocking Noah and his family in their preparation for the promise of God, not heeding the warnings that God told Noah to tell them. He gave us specific signs to look for, that would come with more frequency, and more intensity. He tells us in Luke 12: 40: " You must also be ready because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Are you ready for that? I know I am! I have put my trust in the saving grace of our Lord Jesus, and would plead with you to do the same, before it's too late. Don't let your heart be cold or hard towards the Lord because of something that has hurt you in the past, and has caused you to be angry with God about it. Don't let the ways or the cares of the world keep you from receiving the gift of God's salvation through Jesus. He told us of these things because he loves us so dearly, and wants each of us to be with him for eternity. He says in Matthew 12:30: "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven". There is no neutral ground with Jesus - you're either for him or against him. The one sin that will not be forgiven, as he says, is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. That is when you make the choice to not follow the Lord. God doesn't send anyone to hell - that's the choice each of us have to make on our own - eternity in heaven, or eternity in hell. Don't make the wrong choice!
Janelle
Yesterday I covered the devastation that was to occur to the land because of the sin of the people, and drew a comparison to The Tribulation at the end of the age.
Today's verses are 27-31:" This is what the Lord says: 'The whole land will be ruined, thought I will not destroy it completely. Therefore the earth will mourn and the heavens above grow dark, because I have spoken and will not relent. I have decided and will not turn back. At the sound of the horseman and the archers every town takes to flight. Some go into the thickets; some climb up among the rocks. All the towns are deserted; no one lives in them. What are you doing O devastated one? Why dress yourself in scarlet and put on jewels of gold? Why sahde your eyes with paint? You adorn yourself in vain. Your lovers despise you; they seek your life. I hear a cry as of a woman in labor, a groan as of one bearing her first child - the cry of the Daughter of Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands and saying, ' Alas! I am fainting; my life is given over to murderers".
God had given his people many chances to repent - his mercy extended to them, but their hearts were so hardened, they brought him to the end of his mercy on them. He had warned them of his coming wrath and judgement, but they paid no attention. God said the whole land would be ruined, but not destroyed completely, which goes back to his promise to Noah, when he gave the sign of the rainbow, which was that he would never again destroy the whole earth and all of mankind.
In verses 29-31, which speak of the final hour before the destruction was to occur, the people were still trying to placate their enemies by alluring them as a harlot does. One would think that they would cry out to God, even at that late hour, but instead - they tried to appease their enemy.
In this day and age, people have become cold and hard towards the Lord, and want to be thier own gods - leading their lives as they see fit. The Lord continues to plead with us, as he did with his people in Jeremiah's time. We need to heed what he says in II Chronicles 7: 14 : "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will heal their land". If this plead of his mercy is snubbed, then we can expect the same judgements as the generations before us suffered.
Again, I refer to the scriptures of the prophecies of the end times. All throughout the Gospels, Jesus spoke about what to look for when the end of the age was approaching. He said that the end times would be like in the days of Noah - people were living without any care or regard of the Lord, they would be carrying on in all kinds of sin, mocking Noah and his family in their preparation for the promise of God, not heeding the warnings that God told Noah to tell them. He gave us specific signs to look for, that would come with more frequency, and more intensity. He tells us in Luke 12: 40: " You must also be ready because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Are you ready for that? I know I am! I have put my trust in the saving grace of our Lord Jesus, and would plead with you to do the same, before it's too late. Don't let your heart be cold or hard towards the Lord because of something that has hurt you in the past, and has caused you to be angry with God about it. Don't let the ways or the cares of the world keep you from receiving the gift of God's salvation through Jesus. He told us of these things because he loves us so dearly, and wants each of us to be with him for eternity. He says in Matthew 12:30: "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven". There is no neutral ground with Jesus - you're either for him or against him. The one sin that will not be forgiven, as he says, is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. That is when you make the choice to not follow the Lord. God doesn't send anyone to hell - that's the choice each of us have to make on our own - eternity in heaven, or eternity in hell. Don't make the wrong choice!
Janelle
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