Pursue God

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. (Colossians 3:12-14)

• As Christians, we must put on Christlike attitudes and actions. We must identify with Him. We must make Him known. We must reveal His presence in our lives.


• As Christians, we must forbear and forgive one another. It takes great effort to maintain peace and harmony in our local church, within the church leadership, and in our homes. Impatience, bitterness, and ruthlessness will only ruin relationship.


• As Christians, we must forgive others because Christ had forgiven us. God’s grace should extend out from us to others. When we bear anger, resentment, and bitterness in our hearts, we erect barriers to God's grace within ourselves and hinder its flow to others.


• Above all, we must put on love. Love is the bond of perfection. God's love is made perfect in us as we love one other. Love brings us closer to God and closer to each other. Love forgives all sins and keeps no record of misdeeds. Love is the source of all virtues.

Have Mercy upon me, O God

Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. (Psalm 51:1-2)

• Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness. Here we have the public confession of King David who had an embarrassing record of flagrant sins which he had kept hidden. King David pled for God’s mercy. He recognized that his sin had offended God, and that God could judge him.
  
  Likewise, all of us have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We deserve God's wrath and condemnation. Like King David, we plead for God's forgiveness and grace through God’s lovingkindness, the atoning blood of Christ, His Son.


• According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. God's tender mercies are the extension of His love for us, according to His sovereign pleasure. God could have abandoned us and left us to our deserved fate. He could have condemned all of us and send us to Hell. But God chose otherwise. God saved us by judging His Son in our place – Jesus willingly bore our sin on the Cross. There on the Cross, God's justice was satisfied and God's mercy triumphed! God blotted out all our sins of His own free goodness, and shows Himself altogether bountiful, and does not look for any payment for it at our hands. Through His grace, God washed away all our sins for all time by the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, our Perfect Paschal Lamb.
  
  And so when we feel the heavy burden of sins weighing us down, we must confess them to God and ask Him to blot out all our sins on account of what His Son had done for us! We must plead with Him to take our sins all away!


• Help me, Oh Lord! Save me according to Your lovingkindness! Blot out all my sins! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

God The Creator

Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them. (Psalm 69:34)

• We are told 80% of all life on Earth is found in the seas. Most of that life is out of sight, and many are just too small for our eyes to observe.


• From the microscopically small to the unsearched reaches of the universe, it is all the work of our Creator.


• In those magnificent structures, seen and unseen, God’s creative glory is revealed.


• As we consider the creation, it reminds us to appreciate God’s creation more.


• And as we grow to understand the wonder of creation, it always points us to the Creator Himself, and call us to worship Him.


• The psalmist said, “Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them”.


• If creation itself gives praise to the Creator, we should certainly do the same and more!


• Oh! What a Mighty God we serve! What a Wonderful Provider! What a Powerful Deliverer! What a Beautiful Savior! What an Everlasting and Dependable Father! What a Great and Trusted Friend! Oh Father of Mercy and Truth, we desire to praise and adore Your Holy Name!

God Told Us The Truth

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:22)

• God always tells us everything we need to know to get to Heaven.


• Here we are told that sin began with Adam’s disobedience. Sin started from Adam and spread all over the world, and brought death to all men. In Adam all die. This is the destiny of all mankind in Adam. If we disobey God as Adam did, our destiny will be death.


• Unlike Adam, Christ led a life of obedience to God in every way. He committed no sin. He obeyed God even unto His death on the cross. Because of Christ’s obedience, God made Him the firstfruits of eternal life. Christ is the first one who conquered the power of death.


• We will either be in Adam or in Christ. There will be no middle ground! And those who are in Christ will be made alive.


• How can we be in Christ? We are to live by His Word and remain in His love. We are to follow Him in all we do. We must obey His commands.


• God had told us the truth! He hasn’t left us to find our own way. God doesn’t hide the truth from us. He loves us and wants us to know the whole truth! He showed us how completely sin has affected our lives in order to reinforce just how much Christ has delivered us from. Christ’s work has made us safe. God’s Word has made us sure. Thank You Lord for Your mercy and grace!