Fashioning Mercy

Deuteronomy 5:8,9,10 - "Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments."

Deuteronomy 5 is so amazing. Most of us get so hung up on studying the commandments ...trying to count to ten... that we can't see the bigger picture of what God is doing with His people. Step back a moment and take a breath and see... for this pattern is yours if you love Him:

1. He took them out of Egypt, the land of entrenchment and siege, by providing a personal Rescue.

2. He brought them into Horeb, a wilderness wasteland, to Train their hearts to see Him.

3. He showed them His power and His glory; and they did not Die ... Proof of His choice for them.

4. He made them a moveable city, defended by Him ... Equipping them with a purpose and a lasting vision.

5. And then He caused them to Desire More of Him.

They saw Him and they did not die -- this was God "showing" - "fashioning" Mercy.

As we unlock the word "showing" we find:

God Acting and Enacting mercy in behalf of His people.

Within His attending to the movement of Mercy,

He was making the way straight for mercy...

He was working the details of Mercy ...

He dealing the equity of Mercy...

He was producing the substance of Mercy...

He preparing the stability of Mercy ...

He was making an offering of Mercy ...

while observing,

acquiring,

appointing,

spending,

ordaining,

passing,

utilizing

and

Celebrating...

MERCY!

Checed (kheh'-sed) - There are two sides to Mercy.

1. It is wonderful that One such as God (in all of His Holiness)would show such loving kindness and tender favor to the "undeserving" such as us. Let this sink deep into your soul ...

2. that the "One offering Mercy" also bears the shame, reproach, and disgrace of the object of His mercy.

His choice to fashion Mercy... will disturb the fake piety of the self righteous, but bring celebration and courage to the multitudes of the "fallen" who are still in need of His great rescue.

Get the picture of the thief on the cross near Jesus, who stopped his cursing and mockery long enough to realized that... this was no ordinary man, and this was no ordinary day;

it was His "Now",

it was His accepted time...

The Thief cried out, "Remember me when You come into Your kingdom."

and without hesitation Jesus replied from Mercy's fashioning, "Today thou shalt be with Me in Paradise."

Come on people of God be courageous in His Song of Mercy over you!

HLFA,

Jeff

Commingle

"Thou tellest my wanderings: put Thou my tears into Thy bottle: are they not in Thy Book?" Psalm 56:8 As the little one struggled to crawl to the edge of eternity, with all the forces of darkness clawing and scratching at her heels ... trying to drag her closer and closer to the precipice of separation, a tear of faith appeared in her eye. At that moment a swirling ocean of Grace appeared before the eyes of her heart. She gently reached her hand to her eye, and catching the tear, she cast it into this ocean of love... knowing now that the commingling of this surging moment would open eternity to her ... as God would wholly, with a holy desire, rescue her... forever.

Our nature, our desires of the lust filled flesh and of our wandering mind ... are the "go to" reflex of our fallen-ness. Our nature has us scarred by the fall but has positioned us for His mercy by His great love wherewith He loves us. Heaven can never be earned ... but it was bought with a great price... the precious blood of Jesus Christ and offered to all mankind as a free gift. The reception need only childlike faith ... and grace is applied to the feeble faith of the believer.

Why is this great truth met with so much antagonism and arrogant intolerant stubbornness? Why does it stand in the seat of the defendant and treated with such disdain as if it were a lie espoused only by the foolish? Why is faith forced into the same category as works, or needed to be validated by works in order for it to be deemed worthy of God's expectation. We were by nature children of wrath.

Our developed "groove" to move through this life was de-constructed by our fallen nature and re-directed by the master contractor of disaster, the prince of the power of the air. The plan, the mode of operandi to keep mankind in condemnation: go with their fallen bend for disobedience. Like every other offspring of rebellion that has trod the beaten path of unbelief, keep them off course... searching for broader truth that will lead them straight to Hell. All that is needed is to activate their forward desires and detour the focus of their wonder to "the wide gate, that leads to destruction".

"But for God" ... "For unto us was the Gospel preached"

"But for God" ... "As well as unto them:"

"But for God" ... "but the Word preached did not profit them,"

"But for God" ... "not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Hebrews 4:2

"But for God" ... "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2:8,9

The Gospel heard must be commingled with our feeble offering of faith (that pleases God) to produce the results that God orchestrates. "Believe on the LORD Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." "He that believeth on the Son has everlasting life". Jesus does it all, by taking our feeble faith offering and mixing it with the Majesty and Security of His amazing - complete payment for the condemnation that hangs over each and every one of us.

"But he that believeth not the Son, shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him." John 3:36b

TRUTH: No faith in Him ...no eternal life.

Why do we resist such a clear plan of salvation? Why will we traumatize the light within us by waving a universalist flag of acceptance for all, Heaven for all and no decision needed? We need not admit our need as sinners, we need not agree with God. What a way to cheapen the cross of Christ but removing the single responsibility of man ...

preached from the very lips of the Savour - "Believe."

Let's lead a holy rebellion against this reflex toward doubt and unbelief; and rise up with that tear of faith, and cast it into the unlimited strength and power of His ocean of love for us.

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying; neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away." Revelation 21:4

Commingle!

HLFA,

Jeff

Majestic Sweetness

In honor of Patricia Rhea (Frey) Ruth - Mom, Mammaw -- we will miss you, but only for now.

Majestic sweetness sits enthroned

Upon the Savior’s brow;

His head with radiant glories crowned,

His lips with grace o’erflow.

She was His Bride:

He reached out His hand and touched hers;

The words He spoke to her were intertwined with love and her name.

His virtue was met with reciprocated deep sorrow and tears that

Would be instantly and celestially bottled,

With those tears in His hands, His Spirit groaned...

Oh that she would cast up her disconnecting anxiety

so that She could see as He truly and actively cared for her.

No mortal can with Him compare

Among the sons of men;

Fairer is He than all the fair

That fill the heavenly train.

She was His desire, His will... Her eyes, O her eyes ... He could not resist.

Her Eyes would overcome Him as He would move in her direction;

though so many times her eyelids would be turned upward in disappointment;

Though her love and faith would be so much smaller than a grain mustard seed;

He would continue to move mountains to get to her,

He would continue to keep all the universe on course for her rescue,

His love would prevail.

To Him I owe my life and breath,

And all the joys I have;

He makes me triumph over death,

And saves me from the grave.

She was rescued from her initial abandonment,

He saw her naked, filthy, and covered with her own birthing fluids,

Dying in her own blood ...His heart was moved, this was her time of Love.

He would take the mess that she was into His everlasting arms,

He would wash, perfume and clothe her with the potential of His Glory.

All the gold, silver and precious gems of eternity would be hers.

She would move forward ... She would move away ... She would wander.

He would watch and wait for the faintest cry for help.

To God, the Father, my abode,

He brings my weary feet;

Shows me the glories of my God,

And makes my joys complete.

In total guilt and shame, her strange lovers would reduce her beauty to ashes,

She would find her costly apparel torn and soiled as rags fit for the trash heap,

She would see her wealth be reduced to a tattered filthy bag with holes in it.

In the mirror, the unfamiliar face staring back at her... Was leathered and worn.

Her dreams were fading ... All but a distant Voice of Love.

Her hope was waning ... All but for the strange sense of still being loved.

He would move closer ... for now she could not move away, no more wandering

He would hold her close, and whisper love songs so sublime.

Since from His bounty I receive

Such proofs of love divine,

Had I a thousand hearts to give,

Lord, they should all be Thine.

Her heart quieted,

her breath stilled

and she slipped into the other room,

where Love was waiting.

Lord, you have given us your all,

in exchange for our nothing.

What love, what extraordinary, extravagant love!

HLFA,

Jeff