The Mercy of the Lord - Psalms 116-118 and I Corinthians 7:1-19
The psalmists remind us frequently that God is merciful, and His mercy endures forever. I believe God's mercy is a result of His love. God is love. Therefore, He is merciful. Mercy is not compromise, because God is always just. Mercy is extending the benefit of the doubt. Mercy is considering the needs of the other person. Mercy is not always holding to the letter of the law, but following the spirit of the law when needed. Mercy is giving someone more time to repent or to believe. God is merciful in that He could sentence all of us to hell because we are all sinners, but He decided to give everyone the opportunity to be saved by grace through faith. He is looking out for us, because He loves all of us. Without the mercy of the Lord, we would all be in a hopeless state. We need to praise Him for His mercy and thank Him each time He extends it to us. However, we do not want to presume upon His mercy, and sin thinking He will just overlook it. God will not allow us to take advantage of His mercy.
God wants us to be merciful as believers. I Corinthians 7 begins with a discussion of marriage. The marriage relationship requires a lot of mercy. The husband and the wife must yield to the needs and desires of the other person to make things work. There is a lot of mercy in that process. We need God's mercy working through us to make it happen well. In the case of a believer who finds himself or herself married to an unbeliever, there is an even greater need for mercy. The believer will have to handle many situations where the other person does not understand or care to do the right thing. At those times, the mercy of the Lord will enable them to act in the right way and show the other person God's will. The same is true in raising children. We need a lot of mercy in dealing with them in the right way. We do not always need to enforce the letter of the law, and sometimes, we need to give them more time to comply. We need to model the Lord to them. That takes His kind of mercy. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit will show us how and when to apply the mercy of the Lord, if we will allow Him to lead us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 119:1-88 and I Corinthians 7:20-40.
God wants us to be merciful as believers. I Corinthians 7 begins with a discussion of marriage. The marriage relationship requires a lot of mercy. The husband and the wife must yield to the needs and desires of the other person to make things work. There is a lot of mercy in that process. We need God's mercy working through us to make it happen well. In the case of a believer who finds himself or herself married to an unbeliever, there is an even greater need for mercy. The believer will have to handle many situations where the other person does not understand or care to do the right thing. At those times, the mercy of the Lord will enable them to act in the right way and show the other person God's will. The same is true in raising children. We need a lot of mercy in dealing with them in the right way. We do not always need to enforce the letter of the law, and sometimes, we need to give them more time to comply. We need to model the Lord to them. That takes His kind of mercy. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit will show us how and when to apply the mercy of the Lord, if we will allow Him to lead us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 119:1-88 and I Corinthians 7:20-40.