WCTLC

The Holy Spirit is your mercy for bringing the life and ministry of Jesus into your life and ministry.

Jesus’ Ministry Is A Ministry Of Mercy

Rom 3:23 (NIV) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Rom 6:23 (NIV) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life IN Christ Jesus our Lord. We have all sinned and the wages of that sin was eternal separation from God. That eternal separation from God is the very worst thing that can happen to a person.

If Jesus hadn’t done what He did on the cross for us, that is exactly what would have happened to us. There would have been no grace or mercy being provided for us so we could be saved. There is and never will be another alternative way for us to be saved. Jesus has provided us with the ONLY way of escape from eternal damnation. No one else could have done it; plus, even if they could, they wouldn’t.

Let Jesus’ Ministry Of Mercy Become Your Ministry Of Mercy

Rom 5:6-8 (NIV) You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Because of Jesus, you are going to be able to escape the second death by being a part of the first resurrection.

Rev 20:6 (NIV) Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years. Rev 20:14-15 (NIV) Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Mercy Keeps Us From Getting What We Deserve

None of us deserved to escape the second death. No matter how good we thought we were, we all contaminated others with the sins we committed. We didn’t commit our sins by ourselves. We did many of them with and against others. It only takes one sin to contaminate others. The wages of one sin is spiritual death. One sin will separate us from God and will keep us out of His Kingdom. We all spread sins from us to others; we all did things that hurt the work of God.

We all did things, that we may not have thought much about, that spread from one person to hundreds, if not thousands of other people. None of us have any idea how devastating sin is and how much we have been a contagious person who shared it with others.

Then, exponentially, it spread from them to those around them and from those around them to all they influenced. It spreads like the flu from one person to so many that we would all lose count. That means we all deserve the second death, which is the lake of fire. But, mercy keeps us from getting what we all deserve.

Put Yourself In This Person’s Place

Rom 2:1-4 (NIV) You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? Or do you show contempt for the riches of His kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?

It took some of us Christians longer than others to repent and come to Jesus for salvation. That means we committed more sins and contaminated more people than others. But, God waited on us giving us grace and mercy even though we were causing a lot of trouble in people’s lives. But, we have a sin evaluation system that is different from God’s. We put various sins in lesser categories and other sins in worse categories. One “white” lie, one small dishonest act, or one bad statement against someone does damage to them and their future. It sticks with them and hurts them for a long time.

It Just Takes One Sin

James 4:17 (NIV) Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins. James 2:10-11 (NIV) For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For He Who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

Our “small” sins keep people out of heaven just like someone else’s “evil” sins. We need to see sin as being deadly no matter how small and insignificant we may try to make it. Once we see our past sins for what they really were, we are able to see how much God did for us through Jesus’ great sacrifice.

Rom 2:5-8 (NIV) But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when His righteous judgment will be revealed. God “will give to each person according to what he has done.” To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, He will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.

This Is What God Has Done For Us

From the perspective of the purity, holiness, and righteousness of God, we can see how much judgment we deserved and that helps us pray for God to increase our mercy to those around us. It hurts to realize how damaging we have been to others; but, we need to see it so we will be ready to forgive and be merciful to those who hurt us. It brings us to the place of thinking about how great God has been to us through mercy and grace. Then it inspires us to pray that we will do the same for those who hurt us and say things that anger us. It turns us into ministers of mercy through Jesus.