The Nature of Forgiveness is Mercy..Craig Denison Ministries

 The Nature of Forgiveness is Mercy

Craig Denison Ministries

Weekly Overview:

Offering forgiveness to others is one of the most difficult and important aspects of the Christian life. The Bible clearly commands us to forgive others. God longs to fashion us into his likeness that we might model the love we’ve been shown to a world with no concept of mercy. He longs for us to offer grace and forgiveness to the undeserving as we have been offered grace and forgiveness when we were undeserving. May you be filled with courage and boldness to offer forgiveness to those in desperate need of grace. And may God’s love shine through as you enter into your calling as a minister of reconciliation.

Scripture:“Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:36-37

Devotional:    

We would be wholly lost if it weren’t for the abundant mercy of our heavenly Father. Romans 3:23-24 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” We are offered total and complete forgiveness of our sins because God loves us and has mercy on us. The mercy of God allots us freedom and restored relationship we could never attain on our own. We are not justified by our own works or inherent worth, but by grace alone.

The nature of forgiveness is mercy. And the Bible tells us in Luke 6:36-37, “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven.” In order for us to be merciful with others, we must be consistently encountering and reflecting on the abundant mercy of God toward us. When we were at our lowest, God met us and offered us eternal, abundant life in him. When we had no ability to attain right standing before our Creator, he brought himself low, took on the form of a servant, and died for our sakes (Philippians 2:8).

You were saved by the greatest act of mercy the world will ever know. And now your heavenly Father is asking you to share the great mercy you have been shown. He’s asking you to live and operate in his likeness by loving others the way you have been loved. The Bible commands us to forgive others. God doesn’t give us the option. Colossians 3:13 says, “Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” James 2:13 says,“For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” If we are living with unforgiveness, we are living outside of the will of God.

God knows forgiveness is difficult. He knows that it takes courage and strength to offer mercy where it is undeserved. He paid the highest price for our sins by sending Jesus to an undeserving, gruesome death. But he also knows the joy that comes from reconciliation. He knows the goodness of wiping the slate clean that he might have restored relationship with us. And he longs for you to be a minister of reconciliation to all who have hurt you. He longs to overwhelm you with his love and mercy to the degree that offering others mercy and love comes from a place of overflow rather than your own strength. He longs to fill you with courage and perspective so that you can forgive those who need a glimpse of his mercy and grace.

Take time as you enter into guided prayer to receive the love and mercy of your heavenly Father. Allow him to fill you up to overflowing today. And follow his guidance as he gives you grace to forgive others in obedience and love.           

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on the forgiveness and mercy you have been shown in Christ. Allow the compassion God has for you to fill you with compassion for others. Ask God to give you his heart for others as you meditate on his word.

“But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 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, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” Titus 3:4-7

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 2:4-7

2. Now meditate on God’s command for you to forgive others. Make God’s word the foundation of your actions rather than your own desires or fears. God will always guide you into what is absolutely best for you. You have to trust him at his word and obey.

“Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:36-37

“Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:13

“Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” Colossians 3:13

3. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you any unforgiveness in your heart. Whether the wound is large or small, you must engage in forgiveness for it to heal properly. Ask God to give you courage to forgive today.

Trusting and obeying God is foundational to experiencing the fullness of life Jesus died to give you. God longs to lead you into his perfect plans. He is always guiding and shepherding you to your best possible life. But he cannot lead you where you will not follow. He cannot bless you if you are living outside of his will. Commit to following him wherever he leads, whether or not you feel like it or understand. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you into a lifestyle of continual forgiveness that you might experience to even greater depths the abundant life God longs to give.

Extended Reading: Luke 6

See the Father’s Love..Rev. Kyle Norman

 See the Father’s Love

By Rev. Kyle Norman

“See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are.” - 1 John 3:1

God’s unyielding love is the plotline of the entire Bible. You cannot understand who God is or what God has done without understanding that God inwardly moves with a desire to shower you in Love. It is love that defines all of God’s actions, just as it is love that defines all of who God is.   It is love that was incarnated in Jesus and love that was displayed on the cross. When we think about our lives, the love of God is the very atmosphere in which we reside.  

Take a moment and ask yourself whether you have truly and authentically experienced the love of God. Have you met the love of Jesus, not as some theological thing to think about, not as something to be read on a page, but as a life-giving force enlivening your heart and your soul? Charles Spurgeon, the famous preacher, once said, “How important becomes the question, Do I know the love of Christ? Have I felt it? Do I understand it? Is it shed abroad in my heart?”  

But it can be hard to recognize God's love for us in this world of ups and downs, twists and turns. Our performance-based world of merit and deserve tells us that we earn the good things in our lives. And so, we may think that God’s goodness is a product of how good or perfect we can be. But in this verse, John holds before us the fundamental fact that we are children of God, loved by the Father. See what love the Father has given us. Where do you look if you wish to see the love of the father in your life? There are two places to cast your gaze.

Firstly, look at yourself. Who you are, in whatever frailties you carry and mistakes you have made, is a child of God. You are precious to the one who created you and the entire universe.   John emphasizes this point here.   See the love the Father has given us that we should be called children of God. And we are! We aren’t just called children of God – you aren’t just declared it from afar – you enjoy that reality. And what defines you as a child of God is intimacy with your heavenly Father. What would it look like if we fully embraced this reality in us? What would it look like if, when we looked in the mirror, instead of seeing whatever flaws the world tells us are there, we see one whom God smiles over? What if, as a child of God, we see ourselves as the most beautiful, cherished, honored person in all existence? That is what we are, John says. That is who you are, a child of God, beloved, redeemed, and held.

There is nothing that disregards who you are as God’s child, as one in whom God delights. The love of God, unstoppable and unending, means you are God’s beloved. The love of God defines our lives; it defines who we are. But what if we don’t see God’s love when we look at our lives? We all know there are times when we have a hard time recognizing this reality. Our failings, mistakes, sins, or faults cause us to doubt God’s love for us. We ask, “Is it true that I am a child of God? Is it true that I am loved? Can I trust this word? Where do we look when our lives don’t remind us of God’s love toward us? We look to Jesus. This is what John is pointing to. When he says, “See the love that the Father has given us,” he points to Jesus as the full incarnation of that love. Despite what we may face in this world, Jesus is the full-bodied expression of divine love.

John is writing this to a community of people who bear the brunt of the world around them – where sometimes faith causes mockery or hurt. Yet despite whatever great tribulations they had experienced, the love of Christ covers them. “The reason why the world does not know us,” John writes - the reason why the world does not always respond to us as people in whom God delights – is because it didn’t know him.” John reminds us that Jesus, crucified on the cross, testifies to the power of God’s love despite the hurt and mockery we may experience.   

Jesus, the lover of our hearts, is the one that soothes, the one that comforts, that one that heals – and the one that promises that there is nothing that will deny God’s love for us. And so, if we want to see the robust, earth-shattering love of the Father, we look to the one who is its very incarnation.

Intersecting faith and life:
How marvelous, how magnificent, how radical is the Love God has given us that we should be called Children of God. One translation of this verse says, “See what love the Father has lavished upon us – smothered us in – extravagantly bestowed upon us - that we should be called God’s children.”  Now being a child of God is a profound thing – and we could spend a long time talking about all the ins and outs. But more than anything, it speaks about God’s unyielding presence that goes with us and acts for us. Being a child of the heavenly Father means there is never a day when God does not delight in being with us.

If you need a word of encouragement today, take a moment to read yourself into this verse. “See what love the Father has given me, that I am called a child of God. And that is who I am.”  Repeat this as many times as you need to hear it. It is the truth; dare to believe it.

Further reading 

• Jeremiah 31:3
• 1 John 3:1-18

A Heart Like Jesus (I Do Not Have)..Jennifer Waddle

 A Heart Like Jesus (I Do Not Have)

By Jennifer Waddle

BIBLE VERSE OF THE DAY: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? - Jeremiah 17:9

The phrase, “Follow your heart,” is perhaps the most popular maxim of all time. Especially now, in the twenty-first century, the advice to “trust your instincts” or “do what feels right” permeates every aspect of our culture.

I don’t know about you, but my heart is unreliable, wishy-washy, and sometimes selfish! In fact, the Bible is most accurate when it says the heart is deceitful and desperately sick. (Jeremiah 17:9 ESV)

But here is our consolation…

Even though Jesus knew the condition of our hearts, He still chose to give His life.

For while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

Isn’t that humbling? We may not have hearts like Jesus, perfect in love and sacrificial unto death, but we can still be followers after God’s own heart.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Psalm 51:10-11

David was considered a man after God’s own heart. Here are three Scriptures that explain why.

1. One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple. Psalm 27:4

David desired the presence of the Lord more than anything else. He didn’t value earthly things or worldly status more than He longed to dwell with God forever.

Having a heart after God means that we long for His presence and desire intimate fellowship with Him.

2. I will praise You with uprightness of heart, when I learn Your righteous judgments. I will keep Your statutes… Psalm 4:7-8

Obedience was at the heart of David’s devotion to God. He was eager to learn the Lord’s statutes and keep His commandments. David was far from perfect, yet he longed for truth and worshipped with integrity.

Having a heart after God means that we desire to know His righteousness and are committed to walk in His ways.

I will meditate on Your precepts, and contemplate Your ways. I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word. Psalm 4:15-16

3. He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’ Acts 13:22

Apart from his own will, David sought to carry out God’s plan for his life. He surrendered his own agenda for the Lord’s good, pleasing and perfect will.

The heart that chases after God is willing to lay down everything to fulfill the Lord’s purpose. No matter where God calls them to go, people after God’s own heart give up selfish ambition for the sake of His glory.

We may not have hearts like Jesus, but by abiding in His presence, keeping His statutes, and surrendering to His will, we too can be considered people after God’s own heart.

A Prayer For Joy..Tiffany Thibault

 A Prayer For Joy

By Tiffany Thibault

"For the joy of the Lord is your strength." - Nehemiah 8:10b

God has created us to enjoy our life, to find pleasure in the things that we are interested in. For me, joy is found not only in the big moments of my life - weddings, births, celebrations, but also found in the small moments, such as when I sit on a sandy beach, listening to the crash of the waves, or seeing my baby smile at me each morning when I would get her from her crib. The reality is that those big and small moments are fleeting blips of time in my life. My babies are grown, and I now live far from the beach, but the memory of these situations still brings me joy when I think about them. 

Even though God has created us to crave joy in our lives, our days are mostly filled with things that can steal our joy as we focus on things that have to be done, projects to complete, issues to be addressed, relationships to be worked on and communication to be improved. There doesn't seem to be many moments of pure joy throughout any of that!

When we are faced with those difficult things in life that rob us of our joy, it can be a challenge to see beyond the circumstances. However, it is during these very hard moments that we must learn to lean into the Lord, to remind ourselves of the promises that He gives us in the Bible.

This verse tells us that our strength comes from the joy of the Lord. What is the joy of the Lord? The joy of the Lord is found when we deliberately spend time getting to know who God is, when we learn to rely on the promises of scripture to guide our thoughts and emotions, and when we walk in close fellowship with God throughout the day.

So how can we stay in the joy of the Lord all day long, regardless of our circumstances? Here are a few things that we can be intentional about:

• We must spend time daily reading the Bible.
• We must be meditating (remembering) all the things that God is doing in our life.
• We must continue to pray without ceasing.
• We must begin to view each situation as believing that God is at work in our hearts and lives. 

As we begin to focus more on the Lord, by starting each day with time in the Bible and in prayer, things in our life will begin to change. Our thoughts, emotions and plans will begin to be viewed through the filter of God being at work in all of the hard situations. Our faith will become stronger as our trust in the Lord grows deeper. 

As the days go by, we will begin to view every challenge and every situation with more trust, with more strength and even with joy in the midst of all that is hard in our lives. We will know that God is with us through every single moment, and we will begin to have real deep joy as we realize how much that God has control of every situation, how very much He is “working all things together for good” (Romans 8:28) because we love and trust Him to be God in our lives.

So, as you go into your hard things today, pray over each of your circumstances and each person in your lives, and then hand it all over to the Lord. Believe the promise that finding your joy in the Lord will give you all the strength you need to walk through every situation that you face today. 

Let’s pray:

Dear Lord,
I can do nothing without You. When my strength falters, I will look to you Lord. You are my strength in every single situation that I am going through. I cling to the promises that you have given me through the words found in the Bible. Lord, I cry out to you through the hardness of my situations. You are my hope, You are my peace. I find my joy in You. Help me to allow the truth of these realities to fill every part of my mind and heart.
In your name I pray, Jesus,
Amen