Love Mercy
Micah 6:8 – He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth
the LORD require of thee, but to do justly.
Just as a reminder, our lessons this year were sparked by one
of Pastor’s messages from the end of last year (in December) entitled, What Does the Lord Require of Us,
and he used the scripture Micah 6:8.
That has now become our memory verse for this year, so let’s read the entire
verse together again: Micah 6:8. Can
you read it with me?
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the
Lord
require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk
humbly with thy God?
Tonight’s
section of our memory verse encompasses only four words, and to love mercy, but I want you to see that
these four simple words pack a powerful punch!
Love Mercy -- Salvation
Remember,
the purpose of studying this verse is to
know what God requires of each of us.
One of the requirements, we are told, is to love mercy. I think in
order for us to take hold of the importance of mercy we should
understand how much God Himself loves mercy, don’t you? Let’s turn over to Titus, chapter 3, beginning in verse 3--
3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and
pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
4 But after that the kindness and love of God
our Saviour toward man appeared,
5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Look
again how Paul describes our unsaved condition in verse 3: “we … were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and
pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.” Not a very pretty picture, is it? And then, in verses 5 & 6, he reminds us that
our salvation is “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, ... Which he
shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour.” And how did this
great mercy of salvation come about? Verse 4 tells us it was the “love of God our
Saviour toward man!” The love of God
towards foolish, disobedient, deceived, hateful man offering MERCY through his son, Jesus
Christ! That is something for us to
meditate on as we add and to love mercy in
our memory work this month!
We
read in Psalm 13:5 – But I
have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.
And
again in Micah 7:18 -- Who is a God like unto
thee, that pardoneth
iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.
Love Mercy – Why?
Scripture
tells us over and over that God is a God of mercy, as in Numbers
14:18 – “The LORD is longsuffering,
and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression.” And we have seen how He loves mercy, especially in the matter of our salvation. But I searched the Scriptures specifically to
understand, if I could, WHY we should love mercy. Here’s what I found:
1. Love Mercy because God keeps His promises!
Deuteronomy
7:12—Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these judgments, and keep, and do them, that
the LORD thy God shall keep unto thee
the covenant and the mercy which he sware unto thy fathers.
2. Love Mercy because it strengthens us!
Ezra 7:27 & 28—27Blessed be the LORD God of our fathers, which
hath put such a thing as this in the king's heart,
to beautify the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem: 28And hath extended mercy unto me before the king, and his counsellors,
and before all the king's mighty princes. And I
was strengthened as
the hand of the LORD my God was upon me, and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me.
3. Love Mercy because we have it for a lifetime!
Psalm 23:6—Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I
will dwell in
the house of
the LORD for ever.
4. Love Mercy because God knows our troubles!
Psalm 31:7—I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou
hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities;
5. Love Mercy because God is our defender!
Psalm 59:17 & 17—16But I will sing of thy power; yea, I
will sing aloud of
thy mercy in the morning: for
thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble. 17 Unto thee, O my strength, will
I sing:
for God [is]
my defence,
[and] the God of my mercy.
6. Love Mercy because God hears our prayers!
Psalm 69:13—But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O LORD, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation.
7. Love Mercy because it upholds us!
Psalm 94:18—When I said, My foot slippeth; thy mercy,
O LORD, held me up.
8. Love Mercy because it appeases God’s wrath!
Psalm 103:8—The LORD [is] merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
Psalm 145:8—The LORD is gracious, and
full of compassion; slow to anger, and of
great mercy.
9. Love Mercy because it brings happiness!
Proverbs
14:21—He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.
10. Love Mercy because it brings honor!
Proverbs
21:21—He that followeth after righteousness and mercy findeth life, righteousness,
and honour.
11. Love Mercy because it brings God’s compassion!
Lamentations
3:22 & 32— 22
It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed,
because his compassions fail not.32
But though he cause grief, yet will
he have compassion according
to the multitude of his mercies.
12. Love Mercy because with it comes forgiveness!
Daniel 9:9—To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses,
though we have rebelled against him;
13. Love Mercy because it brings us mercy!
Matthew 5:7
–Blessed are the merciful: for they shall
obtain mercy.
14. Love Mercy because it is available to everyone!
Romans 11:30-32— 30For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have
now obtained mercy through their unbelief: 31Even so have these also now not believed, that
through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.
Love Mercy – God is Good
My
final thought is one that is repeated over and over again in the book of
Psalms, but it is also sprinkled throughout the entire Word of God. Keep your eyes open for it as you continue
your Bible Reading this year!
Psalm 107:1 – O
give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
In
fact, I challenge you to study Psalm 136
which begins and ends with this same thought, and every verse proclaims:
“for his mercy endureth for ever.”
What a blessing for us! Let us love
mercy!
No comments:
Post a Comment