Wonderful Jesus!

Isaiah 50:4- “The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary…”
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Tag: Mercy

    • God’s Requirements – Part 3

      Posted at 2:03 am by wonderfuljesus8, on September 5, 2020

      Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? NKJV

      gods-requirements-part-3.mp3

      I have truly enjoyed studying this verse. Micah is not typically a book of the Bible that I spend time “deep diving” into, but I may have to change that! Micah wrote that God has shown us what is good, letting us know that He is our example. He went on to share what God requires of us. We’ve already looked at the first two: to act justly and to love mercy. In this blog, I will address the last phrase of this verse, “and to walk humbly with your God”.

      In the Message Bible, this portion of the verse is rendered, “and don’t take yourself too seriously-take God seriously!” As I was meditating on this verse, preparing to write this last blog, God brought King Nebuchadnezzar to my mind. King Nebuchadnezzar was a king that took himself too seriously.

      In the book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar had two dreams. In the first dream God revealed to the king that his kingdom would be a strong and prosperous kingdom. God used the imagery of a statue, and the king was represented by a golden head. Somewhere in the course of his days, he thought it a great idea to build a gold statue of himself for everyone to bow down to. When the Hebrew boys refused to bow, the king had the furnace heated up and then had them thrown into it. However, God stepped in and saved the young men, causing Nebuchadnezzar to acknowledge that He is the Most High God!

      The next dream we read about, the king himself wrote, in a letter. He had a dream about a tree that reached to the heavens and covered the world. Then one day, holy beings cut the tree down, leaving a stump, while the tree turns into an animal for 7 seasons. When Daniel was called to interpret the dream, Daniel didn’t want to tell the king that this tree represented him, and that God would cut him down, he would lose his mind, and he would live like an animal for a season of times. But Daniel told him and tried to encourage him to turn from his prideful ways. However, the king did not. And so, the dream came to pass. At the end of the letter, it is obvious that the king has been restored to his right mind, and has come to understand that there is no God like the Most High God. You should read the book to understand the depth of his pride, but suffice it to say, with all that God had done for him, he thought that he had done it; and his pride got him in trouble with God.

      Nebuchadnezzar had this to say about the true and living God:

      Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down. Daniel 4:37 NKJV

      When God said that He requires of us to walk humbly before Him, that’s what He meant! Unfortunately for the king, he had to lose his mind before he could truly understand that because of his pride, God had to take him down a few notches. Is that what you or I need to realize that we are to walk humbly before our God? I certainly hope not!

      In the book of psalms, it is written:

      The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts. Psalm 10:4

      How plain is that? When pride enters our heart, we feel we have no need for God, His word, or His counsel. He is not a part of our thinking, even to the point that we feel above the need to have to seek Him. What a sad state of affairs for an individual to find himself in!

      A well known proverb about pride states:

      Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

      Isn’t that what happened to King Nebuchadnezzar? Before his destruction, we saw his pride! First, with the golden statue and the decree to throw people in the fiery furnace if they didn’t bow at the sound of the music. And then, we saw it with the warning of the tree. Although warned to deal with the pride in his life, or face being humiliated before his people, Nebuchadnezzar hung on to his pride!

      When pride comes, then come shame… Proverbs 11:2a

      Nebuchadnezzar had to learn this lesson the hard way! But not just King Nebuchadnezzar, many men and women have to learn this lesson the hard way. My mama used to say, “The bigger they are, the harder they fall!” Isn’t that so true? The greater the power a person has, the harder their fall, the greater their humiliation! We see it on a regular basis these days. Politicians, corporate leaders, pastors, church leaders, CEOs, celebrities, principals, billionaires, millionaires, and the common person too! Success, money, and power, in every arena of life, causes that demonic spirit to rise on the attack! And if it isn’t dealt with in private, it will humiliate and bring shame in the public!

      Here’s what God has to say about the humble:

      The humble He guides in justice, and the humble He teaches His way. Psalm 25:9

      It’s quite obvious that the prideful person can’t hear from God, because he doesn’t seek God. Yet, God guides the humble person in justice. He’s there to assist the humble person in “acting justly”. And He teaches the humble person how to walk and live in His way! What a comfort and a blessing to know! The word also tells us this:

      The Lord lifts up the humble; He casts the wicked down to the ground. Psalm 147:6

      We don’t have to get ahead in life by mistreating people and forgetting God. He clearly lifts up the humble person, and he clearly casts down the wicked. Someone might say, “It doesn’t look like it”! Well, as believers, we don’t walk by what we see, but by what we believe. And if we learn to trust God and His word, we will see the humble lifted, and the wicked cast down to the ground! Didn’t Jesus say that He saw Lucifer cast down from heaven? Lucifer’s pride got in his way! Didn’t the same word of God say that Jesus, who humbled Himself, was given a name above all names, and was highly exalted? We must begin to accept God’s word as the truth that it is!

      I leave you with this word, from the word:

      A man’s pride will bring him low, but the humble in spirit will retain honor. Proverbs 29:23

      It’s been a real blessing to look closely at this verse. I want to live a life that honors God, and this verse has helped to identify some ways in which I can do that! Act justly-do the right thing where people are concerned; love mercy-stop hating, forgiving one another, and demonstrate kindness to others; and walk humbly before our God-understanding that He exalts the humble and brings down the proud! Wonderful Jesus!!

      Posted in God, God’s Requirements, Humility, Pride | 0 Comments | Tagged Believer, encouragement, exalted, Forgiveness, God, Humility, Jesus, Justice, king Nebuchadnezzar, love, Mercy, miraculous, obedience, Pride, the devil, Victorious Living, word of God
    • God’s Requirements!- Part 2

      Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on September 3, 2020

      Micah 6:8 – “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” NKJV

      gods-requirements-2-1.mp3

      In my previous post, I left out a very important insight. Micah starts this verse by writing, “He has shown you, O man, what is good”. This is really key and should not have been overlooked. I apologize. For the thing that God is requiring of us, He has already demonstrated it to us. My last post referenced how God requires that we act justly. The thing I forgot to mention is that He requires it because He is a just God. He gave us laws, judgements, testimonies, statutes, or whatever you choose to call them; in which we are to live by. He added blessings and consequences to those. He demonstrated how He is just, and then He required it of us. That brings us to tonight!

      His second requirement is that we are “to love mercy”! This is pretty easy to receive, but often times harder to give. Yet, He, being our first example, is the God of mercy. I like the song Alvin Slaughter sang years ago, “Mercy Refused”, written by David Baroni. In the song it states:

      Justice demanded satisfaction, the law had been broken again and again. Judgement required immediate action, death wanted payment for sin. Mercy refused, and love took my place; there on the cross, where justice met grace. Mercy refused to let me die, Jesus the Lamb was crucified, though rightfully, death wanted me, Mercy refused!

      How adequate the words of this song describes the mercy of God towards mankind! In explaining the difference between grace and mercy to my children, or in a Bible class, I like to say that “grace is getting what we don’t deserve, while mercy is not getting what we do deserve”.

      Just recently, someone called me from her job. She had forgotten to pay the meter and had been at work for almost the entire shift when she realized it. As she went between worry over a ticket and praying she didn’t get one, I just came in agreement with her that she wouldn’t get it. I stayed on the phone with her as she walked back to her car. When she arrived at the car, the ticket that should have been on it, wasn’t there! Was she ever grateful and excited! God’s mercy! It could have even been His mercy through an individual. Nonetheless, that person, by law, deserved a ticket, but received mercy instead!

      As I laid in bed the other night, thinking about the first blog on God’s requirement, the Spirit whispered this word to me, “chesed”. I am not a student of the Hebrew or the Greek language, but I knew that was the word for mercy. It was as if He was approving my topic, and leading me. The word “chesed” is not only translated to mean mercy, but it also means steadfast love, kindness, faithfulness, and loyalty. God makes it plain to us that He requires that we demonstrate kindness, mercy, steadfast love, faithfulness, and loyalty one to another.

      In the book of Zechariah 7:9, it is written,

      “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Execute true justice, show mercy and compassion, everyone to his brother.”

      This verse is similar to Micah, in that it mentions both justice and mercy are to be shown to everyone. In the Message Bible it reads like this:

      “Well, the message hasn’t changed. God -of-the-Angel-Armies said then and says now: “‘Treat one another justly. Love your neighbors. Be compassionate with each other. Don’t take advantage of widows, orphans, visitors, and the poor. Don’t plot and scheme against one another—that’s evil.’

      Isn’t that it in a nutshell? We are not to take advantage of one another, we are not to scheme against one another, it’s not right! It’s not godly! It doesn’t get any plainer than that! We are to treat one another right! We are to treat one another with love and demonstrate compassion. In our present climate in America, it won’t always be easy, but it is the right thing to do, because God requires it of us!

      I couldn’t help but think of David and Saul. In 1 Samuel 24, David is in a cave with his men when Saul goes in to relieve himself. David’s men tell him that God had delivered his enemy, Saul, into his hands. David cuts off a corner of Saul’s robe, and then he gets a check in his spirit, that let’s him know he is not to touch Saul, nor allow his men to touch Saul. After Saul leaves the cave, David comes out of the cave and let’s Saul know that if he wanted to kill him, as some said, he had the perfect opportunity to do so. David would have been justified in killing Saul, since Saul pursued him so diligently for that same reason. But the case of justice and mercy once again clashed. While it may have been okay to kill Saul, since “all is fair in war”, so to speak; it wasn’t God’s heart. God required of David, to extend mercy. Was it easy? Maybe not! Yet, in doing so, David pleased God!

      Proverbs 3:3-4 – Let not mercy and truth forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, and so find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man. NKJV

      Are you looking for favor and high esteem? The Bible tells us not to forsake mercy and truth. As a matter of fact, we are to wrap it around our neck and write them in our heart. In other words, they are to be important to us! Living God’s truth and walking in mercy pays greater dividends, then trying to please man. That’s what David did. He had hidden the truth of God’s word in his heart and knew mercy was required of him. Just because we have a right to be angry, or a right to get somebody back, doesn’t mean we should. Do what God requires by extending mercy, and He will give you both favor and high esteem with Him and with man!

      One last important verse on mercy that I just have to share:

      He who follows righteousness and mercy, finds life, righteousness, and honor. Proverbs 21:21 NKJV

      Wow! Isn’t that something to ponder on? When we are kind and show mercy as a way of life, we find life, right standing with God, and honor! We shouldn’t just be following facebook, Twitter and Instagram! We should be following righteousness and mercy! Then we will find life! I don’t know about you, but I am going to do a better job with acting justly and showing mercy. In one scripture, the Bible says that it is good for us! Aren’t you ready for some good in your life? I just told you how to get! Fall in love with demonstrating mercy to others! Stay tuned for what God has to say to us about this last requirement! Wonderful Jesus!

      Posted in God, Justice, love, Mercy | 0 Comments | Tagged Attitude, blessings, consequences, encouragemnt, esteem, favor, God, kindness, love, Mercy, Micah, obedience, righteousness, will of God
    • Recent Posts

      • Celebration Time!
      • Shattered!
      • Removing the Blinders!
      • Spiritual Sharecropping!
      • He’ll Make it Better!
    • Categories

      • Victorious Living (104)
      • Jesus (85)
      • Christian (67)
      • Believers (57)
      • Faith (36)
      • God (33)
      • encouragement (31)
      • Healing (23)
      • testimony (20)
      • the Word of God (18)

Blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel