“Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” (Psalm 50:14-15, ESV)

Have you ever watched the courtroom shows on TV? Not the reality ones on today, but the older ones where the lawyers discover who really “done it”, and get their wrongly accused client off through their careful sleuthing. The lawyer ends up the hero with everyone applauding, and his client applauding the loudest. I love those shows – good triumphs over evil and justice prevails. Oh, if that was only true in real life, right?

All the people who are called to the stand must raise their right hand and make a vow to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Then they are asked to not only make that vow to the court, but to God as their ultimate judge. Of course, it turns out some of them don’t. Lying to the courts is perjury. Lying to God is worse.

As a child you may have prayed the “now I lay me down to sleep” prayer. It is a prayer of releasing control. Kids are used to someone else controlling their lives. As adults, it is easy to forget that our next breath comes from God, much less our day ahead. What do you vow to God each morning? Do you offer Him your day in thanksgiving that you woke up this morning?

Whatever happens to you today, if you begin it with a thankful vow to God that it will be His, He will be there for you. You may not have a zippy-de-do-dah day, but you will not walk it alone. The Almighty who can see all and knows all will be right by your side, and on your side.

If you are wrongly accused, your Judge will be there to eventually sort out the truth and deliver you. Like on the old courtroom shows, it may have to be revealed slowly, but in the end, people will see your God was at work in your life and give Him the glory.

Until then, our job is twofold. One, we are to wake up each day and thank Him again, then give the day (and ourselves) to Him to use according to His will, knowing that He knows best. We may feel as if we are in a prison cell—trapped by circumstances in our lives, or shackled by hurts when others have done us wrong. But our role throughout it all is to stay put and let someone wiser than us handle the situation. Like the lawyers on TV, our LORD will tell us when we are to speak, and when we must just sit back and bite our tongues as the world watches.

Secondly, if we have done something wrong, we must immediately confess it to Him, or He cannot handle our case. True, we cannot hide anything from God. However, part of trusting God is confessing everything to Him. That also means trusting He will deliver us in the times of need.

God is ultimately our Judge and jury. If we thankfully give each day to Him, the sacrifice His Son made on the cross will prove our innocence before Him, and eventually our peers. But first, any wrongdoing on our part must be voluntarily revealed and we must plead the court’s mercy. Then, justice can prevail in the Judge’s most perfect timing.

Questions: Are you in need of a spiritual lawyer to stand up for you? Will you give the situation to God to handle, knowing in His most perfect timing, justice will prevail?

Take the next step:
Is God just? Take this online lesson
Where does love meet justice?
Share the love of Christ. Take the 35-Day Challenge.

“Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.” (Luke 11:14)

Imagine you’re doing work on a deck and you fall on a rusty nail. It’s a small puncture but you keep working. Meanwhile, anaerobic bacteria begin to metabolize and cause infection. You don’t treat it and soon you have lockjaw, facial spasms, difficulty swallowing, and muscle rigidity. You start to get full body spasms and they continue for weeks until one day you die… if you don’t treat it.

Sin is the same way. It loves to fester in a grudge. The puss and poison of bitterness will eat away at your soul and enslave you… if you don’t treat it.

But treating it is hard. It’s open-heart surgery. We feel justified in our grudges! We think our bitterness is warranted and our rage is necessary for justice. Justice? Consider our Lord Jesus Christ:

He was crushed for our iniquities.

He took up our pain.

He bore our suffering.

He was stabbed for our sin.

His punishment brings us peace.

His wounds heal us.

We receive unwarranted forgiveness every day. We must also give it. The giving and receiving are two in one. Love God and your neighbor by accepting forgiveness and also forgiving.

Recall the people who have hurt you. Have you forgiven them? Reach back in your memory to your childhood and ask, “Does hate still linger there?”

Don’t listen to the voice that tells you, “Things are fine, let’s move on.” Search your heart. Ask the Holy Spirit to search you as well. Uproot and kill the weeds of hate in your soul and humble yourself before God and man. Ask for forgiveness and be made new right now.

Lord, I understand that my salvation is not fair. You forgave me when I did not deserve it. And so, as I have been forgiven, so I must forgive. Holy Spirit, help me give up my grudge. Draw out the poison from my heart. In Jesus’ name I rebuke the unclean spirits in my heart and confess I have allowed them to fester. I repent and ask that you Lord Jesus to make me new. Cleanse me oh God from all unrighteousness. I trust you to heal and cleanse me and praise you for being the Great Physician. Amen.

Related:
Is Your World Not Like It Should Be? 

Originally written by Charles H. Spurgeon, published in “Mornings & Evenings,” entry for August 17th, AM.
Updated to modern English by Darren Hewer, 2009.

“I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.” Psalm 52:8 (KJV)

Meditate on the mercy of the Lord.

It is tender mercy. With His gentle, loving touch, He heals broken hearts and wraps up wounds. He is not only gracious in what He provides, but also in the gracious manner He provides it.

It is great mercy. There is nothing little about God, and His mercy is like Himself: infinite. You can’t measure it. His mercy is so great that it forgives even the most terrible sins to the most terrible sinners, and then proceeds to give great favors and great privileges. His mercy raises gives us great enjoyments in the great heaven of the great God.

It is undeserved mercy, as indeed all true mercy must be. Deserved mercy is only another name for justice, and we who are sinners have no right to the kind consideration of the Most High. As rebels, who were once doomed to the eternal fire we deserve, it is the sovereign love of God alone which saves us, for we have no such power ourselves.

It is rich mercy. God’s mercy is medicine to your sagging spirits; a golden ointment to your bleeding wounds; a heavenly bandage to your broken bones; a royal chariot for your weary feet.

It is diverse mercy. As Paul Bunyan said, “All the flowers in God’s garden are double.” There is no single mercy. You may think you have only one mercy, but you will find God’s mercy is multifaceted, reflecting and shining His glory.

It is plentiful mercy. Billions have received it, yet it is far from being exhausted. It is as fresh, as full, and as free as it has ever been.

And finally it is unfailing mercy. It will never leave you. If mercy is your friend, mercy will be with you in temptation. It will be with you in times of trouble to prevent you from sinking, with you to be the light and life of your life, and with you even in imminent death, to be the joy of your soul when earthly comfort is fading fast.

Question: As you meditate on how God has shown mercy to you, to whom that you know can you demonstrate mercy today in response?

What does holiness look like? Do images of bunned hair, long skirts and black stockings pop into your mind?  Is it a list of do’s and don’ts such as no smoking, drinking and dancing? To some people, it means an unattainable perfection – one will never measure up to the standard.  Others identify with the thoughts of A. W. Tozer:  “We have learned to live with unholiness and have come to look upon it as a natural and expected thing.  We are not disappointed that we do not find all truth in our teachers or complete honesty in our merchants or full trustworthiness in our friends.”

The holiness of God is closely related with the other attributes of God. His love is a holy love. His anger is holy anger.  These concepts are beyond the human mind to fully understand. How are we to respond to a holy God? How can we become holy? This last lesson will challenge your mind and will as we study.

The psalmist Asaph wrestles with God’s justice in Psalm 73:3-16. The text clearly shows his frustration and confusion. How can a just God allow the wicked to get everything they wish for and crush others in their pride?

Yet when we speak of God as judge, some people would frown and shake their heads.  Many view “the Old Testament God” as a God of wrath and judgment, and “the New Testament God” as a God of grace and love. Let us explore whether these conflicting ideas are valid through this study on God’s justice.

When we are violated or wronged, our natural response is to retaliate with what we feel is just. What exactly does that mean? What should our response be when we have been wronged? If we follow God, who is the perfect judge, He is willing to guide us through those difficult times. We will also be accountable for how we live our lives. This study will allow you to see what the Bible has to say about this.

When we are violated or wronged, our natural response is to retaliate with what we feel is just. What exactly does that mean? What should our response be when we have been wronged? If we follow God, who is the perfect judge, He is willing to guide us through those difficult times. We will also be accountable for how we live our lives. This study will allow you to see what the Bible has to say about this.

“He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

The second step in Micah’s description of a seeker of God is that he or she loves mercy. Mercy is both the granting of forgiveness and the refraining of giving deserved punishment.  We don’t naturally love mercy; we love justice, thinking that everyone should get what they deserve.

Sometimes, we even resist mercy for ourselves. We don’t want God to just forgive us; somehow we want to pay Him for His great sacrifice. “Give us a penance,” we plead. “Demand a sacrifice, require something in exchange for salvation,” our hearts whisper.

That subtle lie is the root of legalism and contrary to what God says in both the Old and New Testaments:

“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, an acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offering.” Hosea 6:6

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

Therefore, to love mercy begins with embracing the truth that there is nothing I did or could ever do to deserve salvation.

Once we truly understand the great mercy we have received from God, it will well up inside us overflowing to those we know, to those we love and even further, to those we don’t know and to those who are our enemies. Like Jesus, we will not want anyone to perish or be eternally separated from God.  We will want everyone to receive God’s mercy.

To love mercy means we love when God has mercy on us.  We love when God has mercy on our enemies. We love the idea of mercy and we love the action of mercy.

O Merciful God, help me to understand the amazing mercy You have shown me. Make Your mercy overflow in me, so that I will love mercy.  Amen.

Questions: Why is it hard to love mercy? How will our actions and attitudes change when we love mercy?

TAKE THE NEXT STEP: Relearning the promises of God

About the Author: Suzanne Benner