Archive for the ‘Kindness’ Category

THE INVESTMENT

Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

Day 221

“We should go up and take possession of the land,
for we can certainly do it.”
Numbers 13:30

The Old Testament reveals a history of God preparing a land for His people. After freeing them from their long Egyptian bondage, the people amazingly grumbled, complained and rebelled during the time of reaching the new land. The verse today sees them at the place where they can enter the land. They had a good report about the land, but they believed the bad reports. They saw their enemies as giants and they grumbled against Moses and Aaron and accused God of leading them into a death trap! Joshua spoke and declared the Lord was with them and they could take the land; but the whole camp turned on them and began to talk about stoning them to death.

The people’s hearts were stubborn, hard and filled with rebellion and wickedness. They saw God as their enemy and wanted to kill His leaders in the face of His blessings! God wasn’t happy about their response and wanted to strike them down with a plague and destroy them. In the midst of this Moses pleaded for their lives and God heard him. He spared them and sent them back into the wilderness for 40 years. Both Joshua and Caleb made a decision to stay with these people, bearing their burden by going back into the desert with them for the 40 years. They made a decision to serve though they tried to kill them.

Joshua and Caleb’s decision to stay with the people in the face of their rebellion foreshadowed Jesus Christ who came in the midst of our sinfulness to die for us. Through it all, He continually demonstrated His love towards us in His actions, bearing our burdens, ignorance, and sins. It is this sacrificial love that redeemed us. What an investment Christ and those before him made! Shouldn’t we also invest ourselves in the brethren?

“He is a faithful God, keeping His covenant of love . . .” Deuteronomy 7:9

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MERCIFUL KINDNESS

Friday, October 8th, 2010

Day 215

“For His merciful kindness is great toward us”
Psalm 117:2

There is a perceived interest and kindness expressed by people today that is empty and false. It is meant to communicate genuine interest in you, leave you with a sense of good will, and cast the person showing the interest in a favorable light. Unfortunately, it neither has substance nor cost, and remains for the most part an empty act.

True kindness is more than pretending to be interested in a person’s need. It goes far beyond verbal expression. It is deeper than a surface act. It is a kindness that is expressed not just to friends, but also to our enemies. This is what differentiates Godly kindness from the kindness of the world. When we encounter true kindness, we have been met by mercy. And, the character of this kindness comes at a cost.

To know true kindness we need only to look at God our Father. He cares for us. He gave us His only Son. He identified with us and suffered for us, “yet for your sakes He became poor [for us]” [2 Corinthians 8:9]. It is because of this kindness salvation visited us. It is His kindness that forgives our sins, accepts us in the Beloved, grants us grace, empowers us with the Holy Spirit, and gives us a new nature. It is this kindness that meets us new every morning and flows freely towards us. It enables us to be kind to all.

“Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You”
Psalm 63:8

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A JEALOUS GOD

Tuesday, May 11th, 2010

Day 83

“The Lord, whose name is jealous, is a jealous God”
Exodus 34:14

Did you know that God is a jealous God?

Moses had just witnessed the glory of the Lord, and heard God describe himself as compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. God’s declaration to Moses was in very human and emotional terms that expressed deep love for His people. In Hebrew, the word for “compassion” actually means “mother’s womb,” indicating mercy, pity, and love.

God has a compassion for the people whom He birthed. Read another expression of God’s compassion where He comforts Rachel about her children; “Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he my darling child? For as often as I speak against him I do remember him still. Therefore My heart (“womb”) yearns for him; I will surely have mercy upon him says Yahweh” [Jeremiah 3:20 Literal].

This helps us understand why God is a jealous God. He is jealous because we belong to Him; we are His children, born of Him. He does not express jealousy wrongfully, as in the human emotion, but as a part of His love for us. His jealousy brings His wrath against that which separates us from Him. He wages war on our enemies, the enemies of our soul who prevent our having full fellowship with Him. We belong to Him, and we are to have no other gods before Him. His desire is for our fellowship with Him.

“With great compassion I will gather you …,
with everlasting love I will have compassion on you”
Isaiah 54:7-8

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UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

Friday, April 2nd, 2010

Day 46

“Christ died for the ungodly”
Romans 5:6-8

The man abandoned his wife and two sons, faked a suicide, disappeared and then reappeared in another state living under a false name. Finally brought to justice and standing before the court, he turned to his family and said, “I love you.” What is this “love” about which he spoke? Is it any different than the majority of similar statements made today about love?

These statements of love are meaningless and empty. The term “I Love you” is misused, overused and abused. And even when some form of love is expressed, it is conditional; based on performance. But God’s love is much different than the worlds. It is not based on our performance! His love is unconditional. Paul states it clearly by saying Christ died for the ungodly; for you and me. We cannot gain God’s acceptance through our performance.

God’s love is for the hopeless, weak, powerless, distressed, sick and sinful people. He sent his son, Jesus Christ to die for you and me. Is this the “love” you see in the world?

Consider His love for you; it is from everlasting to everlasting. It was God’s pleasure to adopt us as His children. He chose us for no reason but mercy. It is for you individually, and it will never fail. When He sees you, He does not consider your faults, failures and sins; but as a finished person, glorified in Him.

“Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love will not be shaken nor my
covenant of peace be removed, says the Lord,
who has compassion on you”
Isaiah 54:10

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GOD IS WITH US IN ADVERSITY

Thursday, March 25th, 2010

Day 39

“The LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before”
Job 42:10b

Many perceptions of God are skewed; often these cause us to see Him in ways that hinder our understanding of Him. Our sinful nature does not help us much in this area. Sin produces fear, self-reliance and rebellion. Add in our particular religious history (or lack of) and experience that may lead to more false coloring of who God is as a Person. When all is said and done, we have a picture of God that determines our thoughts, beliefs, attitude and behavior towards Him.

What are some of these preconceptions and beliefs that many have formed? God is up there and we’re down here, leading to dichotomic thinking; we separate God from our worldly life and restrict him to ‘church’ and ‘religious’ times. We see God out of fear, having been taught he is a punisher of sin; no balance with grace, mercy and compassion or chastising in love. When we screw up, we deserve what we get. We are not acceptable to God until we can prove ourselves ‘good enough.’ There are endless erroneous ways we look and believe God to be, and none are true.

Let us forever put to rest this false picture of God our Father. Do you believe that God, the perfect Father, would do that to you, His child? God does not change because of our circumstances. Whatever the reason for our adversity, whether it comes by our own hand, from life’s circumstances, or even if God has specifically allowed it (as He did with Job), He is sovereign. Nothing happens to us that He does not see or permit. He stays with us during our tribulations, regardless of our fears to the contrary. He is our Father and Jesus declared not one of us will be lost.

Job’s adversity was severe, but in the end the Lord gave him twice as much. Will he not do the same for his own children saved by his Son’s life?

“Who is this coming up from the
desert leaning on her lover”
Song of Songs 8:5

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HIS GENEROSITY

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010

Day 6

“… beginning with the last”
Matthew 20:8

We always seem to be concerned with fairness, equality, and being treated right. Some rail against God because they consider events in their life to be “unfair.” This is the “why me?” syndrome. But we who know Him know that we are the recipients of God’s marvelous grace and mercy. He alone, in His sovereignty, freely chooses whom He will favor, and in which ways He will do so.

The words “. . . beginning with the last,” ring throughout eternity with the hope He has given us. Those who are destitute, desperate, hopeless and lost find hope in His calling, even when they are the last to enter His presence. In Jesus’ parable, those who only worked one hour received the same pay as the first who worked twelve hours, but it was twelve times more in relationship to the hours worked!

Sadly, those who were first did not rejoice over the generosity, but even took to grumbling and complaining because they had worked all day. The Prodigal son’s brother took exception to the restoration of his brother and the great feast that was given for him. How sad that so many fail to see the richness and generosity of our Father, and fail to partake in the great joy and glory of His making the last first. God’s generosity transcends our ideas of fairness; for no one will receive less than they deserve, but some will receive far more.

“The Lord loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of His unfailing love”
Psalm 33:5

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