Tag: Mercy

God is not working in my life. Is He real? Does He care about me?

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn DevotionalsLeave a comment

God is not working in my life. Is He real? Does He care about me?

We are good at misapplying God’s mercy. We take God’s mercy to mean that we should be free from any difficulty in life. If, and when, we face difficulty we take it to mean that God hasn’t shown up which means He either doesn’t care or isn’t real. In this way, God’s seeming standoffishness is used as an apologetic against Christianity.

However, reading through Dane Ortlund’s book Gentle and Lowly this morning, I came across this passage:

“Perhaps, looking at the evidence of your life, you do not know what to conclude except that this mercy of God in Christ has passed you up. Maybe you have been deeply mistreated. Misunderstood. Betrayed by the one person you should have been able to trust. Abandoned. Taken advantage of. Perhaps you carry a pain that will never heal till you are dead. If my life is any evidence of the mercy of God in Christ, you might think, I’m not impressed.

To you I say, the evidence of Christ’s mercy toward you is not your life. The evidence of his mercy toward you is his—mistreated, misunderstood, betrayed, abandoned. Eternally. In your place.

If God sent his own Son to walk through the valley of condemnation, rejection, and hell, you can trust him as you walk through your own valleys on your way to heaven.”

Dane C. Ortlund. Gentle and Lowly, 179.

We have it wrong. God’s mercy doesn’t mean we won’t face hardship, instead it means He faced the ultimate hardship on our behalf. What comfort it is to know that God is there, not as a genie who makes life easy for us, but as a Savior who sheds His blood on our behalf.

Jesus is the Plan

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn DevotionalsLeave a comment

With the grand sweep of biblical history stretching from before the beginning of world all the way to recreation, it is easy to miss the overarching plan of God. The Bible is thousands of pages and covers thousands of years. A lot happens between creation and the coming of Jesus. It is easy to mistake Jesus’ coming as a second try, a do-over of sorts. But is that the case? Is Jesus’ ministry, His sacrifice, His resurrection, the salvation He provides a do-over? Is it plan b?

Peter clears this up for us in one of his first speeches in the book Acts. During Pentecost, the Spirit of God was poured out on Jesus’ disciples (Acts 2:1-13). Some were amazed that they could hear what the disciples were saying in their native language, while others chalked it up to them being drunk. Peter responds with a message that links back to the book of Joel, explaining that the event was a fulfillment of prophecy and everyone should take note. He also issues a warning about the coming day of the Lord (Acts 2:19-20). The warning is followed up by an offer of salvation. All people’s everywhere who call on the name of Jesus will be saved. Salvation is not just for the Jews, it is for all people’s everywhere (Acts 2:21).

How does salvation come to all people’s? Peter reveals it is through Jesus. His crucifixion at the hands of lawless men provide salvation, as well as His resurrection (Acts 2:22-24). It is in this section that our question is answered.

Peter writes in Acts 2:22-24

“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.”

Do you see it? In verse 23, we are told Jesus was delivered over to wicked men who would kill Him as part of God’s definite plan. It wasn’t a plan concocted on the spot, instead it was foreknown by the Lord. He knew it would happen. He planned for it to happen all so that you and I could experience salvation in Jesus?

How amazing is our God? He gives Himself for us not by accident but according to plan.

Praise and worship God today! He is a promise keeping, grace extending, good and loving God who desires we experience salvation so that we might bring Him glory and enjoy Him forever!

We have more than we deserve, bless the Lord all His saints

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn DevotionalsLeave a comment

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Pe 1:3-5)

We are such a blessed people. Not only has the Father given His only Son so that we might experience salvation from His wrath. But He has caused us to be born again to a living hope. A hope that will not perish or be defiled. It will not fade. Instead, it is kept in the most secure place possible — it is kept in heaven.

When Jesus returns, He will bring His kingdom with Him. A kingdom that is perfect. One that will never be defeated. One that will last for all eternity. Finally, when Jesus returns and sets up His kingdom, we will be able to experience life as God designed. There will be no sickness, no death, no disunity, no racism, no winter storms. There will be nothing that hinders our ability to live as God has designed.

We can trust that will take place because Jesus was raised from the dead. After three days in the grave — there was no way He was just faking it — He rose from the dead. After interacting with well over 500 people for 40 days, He ascended into heaven in front of the disciples. He promised to come back. His promise is guaranteed because we have been sent the Holy Spirit who works in our life day in and day out.

We are a blessed people. As blessed people, we should bless God. We should praise Him. We should submit our lives to Him giving Him His due worship by allowing Him to guide and direct our lives instead of trying to guide and direct it ourselves.

Blessed the Lord all those who have experienced God’s blessing. We have much more than we deserve.

Believe it or not, God puts his grace and mercy on display by pointing out sin

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn PastoralLeave a comment

Believe it or not, God puts his grace and mercy on display by pointing out sin. In Jonah 4, God comes to Jonah and says,

…“Do you do well to be angry?””

(Jon 4:4)

In other words, God asks Jonah: What right do you have to be angry at Me saving the Ninevites? Do you see what God is doing? He is pointing out Jonah’s sin. He is revealing his heart.

Not the first time

This isn’t the first time God has pointed out the sin of another. Way back at the beginning of the Bible is the story of Cain and Abel. Cain and Abel both brought God a sacrifice. God accepted Abel’s instead of Cain’s. This made Cain angry. God seeing Cain’s anger comes to him and says,

“The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”

(Gen 4:6–7)

God is extending grace and mercy to Cain by pointing out his sin and the consequences of it. If you continue through the story, you find Cain doesn’t rule over his sin. He allows it to attack and rule over him. He eventually rises up against his brother and kills him. Cain ends up banished from his people forever. I’d like to think God’s words to Jonah would have made a connection back to this story in Jonah’s mind, just as it should for us.

When God points out sin, it is an act of grace and mercy.

God could have left Jonah to stew in his own sin but God doesn’t do that. Instead, He extends grace and mercy by pointing out Jonah’s sin.

God could allow us to stew in our sin, but He doesn’t. He brings others into our lives to point out our sin, so the next time your spouse, neighbor, coworker, or friend points out your sin, praise God for His grace and mercy instead of getting angry with them. The next time you are reading a book and God’s uses its message to point out your sin, praise God for His grace and mercy and keep reading instead of throwing it down. The next time a song or sermon reveals your sin, praise God for His grace and mercy and keep listening instead of tuning out.

Our God is a gracious and merciful God and He puts His grace and mercy on display when He points out our sin.

We don’t have a pretty past, praise God for our present

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn DevotionalsLeave a comment

“he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,” (Titus 3:5)

We do not have a pretty past. Before Paul pens these words he paints a picture of us. Telling us we were foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to all kinds of passions and pleasures. If that wasn’t bad enough, we learn we were full of malice, envy, and hate for one another. The picture of our past is not pretty.

It is important we understand who we once were. If we forget, we might believe we were worth saving. That it was our righteousness that wooed God into giving himself for us. But then again those who are righteous don’t need saving. Those, however, who are unrighteous do — that’s you and me. We are unrighteous people who need the righteousness of Jesus. We need to be changed, to be washed, to be renewed, to be regenerated. We need saving, not because we are righteous but because we are unrighteous.

We have not gained salvation any other way and for any other reason than our God is a God of mercy who doesn’t give us what we deserve. When we think of salvation like that, we should be driven to worship and praise God for what He has done for us.

What happens when we believe God’s grace is earned and not freely given?

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn PastoralLeave a comment

The book of Jonah highlights Jonah’s journey to preach to Nineveh. After running from the Lord, Jonah eventually ends up in Nineveh, but his heart is not completely right. After reaching Nineveh, Jonah preaches to them and his worst fear comes true, God saves Nineveh. God doesn’t just save one or two of them. He saves the entire city. One of the greatest revivals in history happens right there in Nineveh.

How does Jonah respond?

…“O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.”

(Jon 4:2)

Clearly, Jonah’s emotions are out of control. He is angry at God and feels he has been treated unfairly. All because God saved the Ninevites. If you think about it, that is quite a peculiar reaction.

But before you are too hard on Jonah and think you could never react like him. Consider for a moment the emotions you might feel if a terrorist suddenly repented and turned to the Lord. On the one hand, you might rejoice because you know their terrorist activities would stop.

But on the other hand, you might be upset, you might find it hard to rejoice and praise God because you think they didn’t get what they deserve — the full brunt of God’s wrath.

Or bringing it even closer to home. Consider how you would react if someone who brutally murdered a family member met Jesus on death row. Before they could carry out the death penalty, they came to know the Lord. How would you react? Would you find it hard to rejoice with them? To praise God for saving another soul from the fires of hell? Would you be upset because you don’t feel like true justice was served?

Resentment

If we aren’t careful, we can end up resenting the Father because we don’t get what we think we are owed. Maybe we believe we are owed recognition, wealth, prosperity, and an easy marriage. When we don’t get those things, we resent God because we think He is being unfair.

But when we act that way, we show we misunderstand the gospel. We have it wrong if we think God’s grace is earned. God’s grace is not earned it is freely given. It’s crucial we know God’s grace is freely given because if we believe God’s grace is earned, we will also believe God owes us for our faithful service. When God doesn’t pay up, we will resent Him. As well as if we believe God’s grace is earned, we won’t be able to celebrate when someone who we believe doesn’t deserve God’s grace gets it.

It’s crucial we understand God’s grace is freely given and it is given to those who don’t deserve it. If we don’t understand that, we are going to resent God for not giving us what we think we are owed for our faithful service.

Here is the odd thing.

The more we faithfully serve the greater the temptation becomes to resent God for not giving us what we think we are owed for faithfully serving Him.