TRUTH and MERCY got married and produced GRACE.
I’m reading again First Chronicles. I lightly skim and mostly skip the long lists of names. The first 9 chapters are genealogies and then there are long lists of the names of David’s mighty men plus more and more and more names. Sounds boring, doesn’t it? But think again and do not miss the thrill of something so significant, not just back then but vitally important to you and to me right now. Listen to these Words of Scripture. The counsel of the Lord will stand forever (Psalms 33:11) and His thoughts to all generations. He does according to His will (Daniel 4:35) among the inhabitants of the earth. From these verses we can see that God has a plan for all generations. Every person named in those lists were born when they were and where they were for “such a time as this” during their time on earth.
Have we ever stopped to consider that the Sovereign God allowed you and me to become inhabitants of the earth for a part in His plan for our generation? You and I were born when we were and where we were for “such a time as this” during our time on this planet. What is our present time like for us? COVID-19 has made horrendous global changes. Millions are sick and many thousands have died and these numbers increase daily. Everything is disrupted and daily life is turned upside down. We have never experienced anything like it and nothing is familiar. To make things even worse, ignorant, arrogant people gather in large groups to protest the very restrictions meant to protect them. The restrictions are unpleasant and cause difficulty in daily life and isolation which has troubling effects on many people. I live in a Seniors building and presently we have a COVID outbreak. Our meals are delivered to us because we are all confined to our apartments and cannot go anywhere in our building. Of course we need to thank God for the protection and provision. But the whole world wonders if daily life will ever be normal again.
Stress is a killer,
Solitude – time alone with God (Psalms 46:10) is a stress killer.
As Christians what are we to do in these extremely difficult times? Rejoice in the Lord always (1Thessalonians 5:16-18) pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks. Is this easy? Definitely not! It is a choice. Of course, we do not give thanks FOR COVID and the many painful things we endure but we can give thanks IN THEM because we know that God works all things for our (Romans 8:28) good as He continues to build godly characters within us.
Refuse to be discouraged when you hear the NEWS but exult in God’s Sovereignty over the whole universe and that nothing is out of His control. Pray that the Gospel will travel everywhere with COVID and that God will use fear of COVID to ordain opportunities for us to witness. Maybe COVID-19 is God’s last evangelist, as His alarm clocks sound all over the world.
As we consider how God worked in the generation thousands of years ago, we can see how He is able to work in our generation, in our families and in our lives.
Never jump quickly to a hasty opinion that something in Scripture is boring. Dig deeper and search for why God put it there. The Lord never intended us to be bored with the Living Word of the Eternal God. The Holy Spirit is willing to teach us and guide (John 16:13) us into all Truth. What, at first, may appear boring can reveal the Divine Strategy of Sovereign Wisdom. It is very precious and personal to me that God is Sovereign over every detail of my life.
GRAB THIS! Every day we can choose the Holy Spirit’s enabling to fulfill God’s purpose for “such a day as this”. We can always know what to think – say – do because we have the Lord’s promise. I will teach you the way you should go (Psalms 32:8) and will counsel you with My eye upon you.
As I read Matthew 26:67-68, rivet my heart with pain and I can’t stop hearing and seeing the message of those verses in my mind. Also, I thought, how much greater the searing pain in the heart of God the Father as He must watch every satanic detail which was necessary for the perfect fulfillment of the Redemption Plan (Acts 2:23, Hebrews 2:9-10) ordained by God in His settled plan and foreknowledge. Am I beginning to get a glimpse of the appalling horror of my sin and the enormous cost of forgiveness? I pray that I’ll be filled and overwhelmed with deeper gratitude that is greater than any I’ve ever known before.
Worthy, Worthy, (Revelation 5:12) Worthy is the Lamb that was slain.
The truth about me is that God could never have mercy on me and still remain holy. BUT – LOVE built a bridge between TRUTH and MERCY (Psalms 85:10) so they met together, got married and (Romans 5:15, Romans 5:20) produced GRACE. Now righteousness and peace have kissed each other in giving to me the Righteousness of Christ and the Peace of God. Mercy and Truth could not co-exist UNTIL Grace and Truth (John 1:17) came by Jesus Christ.