Mercy Study #4

I do this search when I study out mercy and I find it interesting to see that over and over again God shows mercy to the Israelite people.

Nehemiah 9:29-31

You warned them to return to your teachings, but they were proud and did not obey your commands. If someone obeys your laws, he will live, but they sinned against your laws. They were stubborn, unwilling, and disobedient. You were patient with them for many years and warned them by your Spirit through the prophets, but they did not pay attention. So you handed them over to other countries. But because your mercy is great, you did not kill them all or leave them. You are a kind and merciful God.

I love that it says that God is a kind and merciful God. 

I found this on Wikipedia and it is pretty good. It shows that mercy can be a work but is more about benevolence, forgiveness and kindness than anything else, at least when referring to Christianity. It is my belief that if you are forgiven of your sins, you would naturally want to help others out, either in a 'works' type basis (IE: serving someone or a group of people) or on a spiritual level (IE: praying for others, studying the bible with people, etc.). So if you receive mercy, the tendency would be to give mercy. If you don't receive mercy, the tendency would then to be more inward focused rather than outward focused.

Mercy Study #3

Matthew 5:1-10

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a hill and sat down. His followers came to him, and he began to teach them, saying: "They are blessed who realize their spiritual poverty, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them. They are blessed who grieve, for God will comfort them. They are blessed who are humble, for the whole earth will be theirs. They are blessed who hunger and thirst after justice, for they will be satisfied. They are blessed who show mercy to others, for God will show mercy to them. They are blessed whose thoughts are pure, for they will see God. They are blessed who work for peace, for they will be called God's children. They are blessed who are persecuted for doing good, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them."

I couldn't help it. I had to check out Spiritual Poverty. I had assumed it would be just one word in the Greek, but it is actually two words. Click and have fun.

They are blessed who show mercy... the mercy there means mercy and can not mean anything else. It's just like saying dirt is dirt is dirt and can not be anything but dirt because it is... dirt. So mercy here means mercy which means mercy. This is the Greek word eleemon (pronounced el-eh-ay'-mone). 

Mercy means to be compassionate or to have kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or other person in one's power. To put it another way, you can either be merciful to someone or be cruel to them, as cruel is an antonym. 


Now... God will show mercy to them. The mercy used there has a slightly broader definition, but does mean 'to have compassion toward' and 'to give mercy to'. So if God shows kindness and compassion toward me, isn't that a good thing? And all I have to do is be kind and compassionate toward others.

Gotta Have Faith #2

Genesis 22:1 After these things God tested Abraham's faith. God tests a person's faith. Or does he? The King James Version says that God tempted Abraham, however, the Bible also says that God does not tempt a person, but only their sinful desires... Bible Tools says that test or prove may be a better choice of word than tempt. I personally don't think that God tempts, as the Devil is the one who is the tempter. God does, however, test.

Isaiah 7:7-9 

But I, the Lord God, say, " 'Their plan will not succeed; it will not happen, because Aram is led by the city of Damascus, and Damascus is led by its weak king, Rezin. Within sixty-five years Israel will no longer be a nation. Israel is led by the city of Samaria, and Samaria is led by its weak king, the son of Remaliah. If your faith is not strong, you will not have strength enough to last.' "

I think it is clear that faith and strength are directly related.

Matthew 14:29-31

Jesus said, "Come." And Peter left the boat and walked on the water to Jesus. But when Peter saw the wind and the waves, he became afraid and began to sink. He shouted, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught Peter. Jesus said, "Your faith is small. Why did you doubt?"


Faith can be measured... I believe it is measured in strength. It can be tested and it can run out. Faith is in general the persuasion of the mind that a certain statement is true. Its primary idea is trust. A thing is true, and therefore worthy of trust. It admits of many degrees up to full assurance of faith, in accordance with the evidence on which it rests. This is not necessarily a bad definition, however, I feel it is lacking. In what, I am not sure, but it just feels incomplete. I think it put it simply, faith is belief in action.

Mercy Study #2

Exodus 25:10-22

"Use acacia wood and build an Ark forty-five inches long, twenty-seven inches wide, and twenty-seven inches high. Cover the Ark inside and out with pure gold, and put a gold strip all around it. Make four gold rings for the Ark and attach them to its four feet, two rings on each side. Then make poles from acacia wood and cover them with gold. Put the poles through the rings on the sides of the Ark, and use these poles to carry it. These poles must always stay in the rings of the Ark. Do not take them out. Then put in the Ark the Agreement which I will make with you. Then make a lid of pure gold for the Ark; this is the mercy seat. Make it forty-five inches long and twenty-seven inches wide. Then hammer gold to make two creatures with wings, and put one on each end of the lid. Attach one creature on one end of the lid and the other creature on the other end. Make them to be one piece with the lid at the ends. The creatures' wings should be spread upward, covering the lid, and the creatures are to face each other across the lid. Put this lid on top of the Ark, and put in the Ark the Agreement which I will make with you. I will meet with you there, above the lid between the two winged creatures on the Ark of the Agreement. There I will give you all my commands for the Israelites.

This doesn't have anything to do with mercy directly, but the mercy seat is the lid that went on top of the Ark. It was also called the place of atonement. I thought this was pretty cool, so I decided to add it to this study.

Atonement: satisfaction or reparation for a wrong or injury; amends.

Exodus 33:18-20

Then Moses said, "Now, please show me your glory." The Lord answered, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will announce my name, the Lord, so you can hear it. I will show kindness to anyone to whom I want to show kindness, and I will show mercy to anyone to whom I want to show mercy. But you cannot see my face, because no one can see me and live.

What is interesting is how mercy and love can be used in place of mercy. And it is true. God can show love to whomever he wishes. But can you think of what it would be like if God didn't show love? I think that love is available to whomever wishes to have it, you just have to invest in it. Mercy and love and kindness are always there for you, you just have to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness. Which brings me back to why am I having these quiet times anyway? Why am I doing this? I pray that I am drawing closer to God by doing so... Johnny OUT.

Mercy Study #1

What I read today:

Psalm 30

I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me. O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit.  Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name. For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. When I felt secure, I said, “I will never be shaken.” O LORD, when you favored me, you made my mountain stand firm; but when you hid your face, I was dismayed. To you, O LORD, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: “What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down into the pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help.” You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.

Psalm 28

To you I call, O LORD my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who have gone down to the pit. Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place. Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts. Repay them for their deeds and for their evil work; repay them for what their hands have done and bring back upon them what they deserve. Since they show no regard for the works of the LORD and what his hands have done, he will tear them down and never build them up again. Praise be to the LORD, for he has heard my cry for mercy.  The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song. The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever.


As I studied deeper, I found that the NIV took a little liberties in their translation on Mercy on Psalm 28, although it appears to fit well in English... I think the best translation for Psalm 28 goes to the NCV. In fact, Psalm 30 in NCV is pretty solid, too. I think I will post in the future in the NCV, well, at least for now.

I then went to Bible Tools to study the meaning of chânan, which means to have mercy shown upon (evidently there is a particular context which can change the meaning of the word. I think it depends on the surrounding words, but I am a novice at best when it comes to this sort of stuff).

A Simple Message

Notes from service on 12/4/11

Jamie Parker did the communion service. He referenced a passage on 1 Timothy 1:12-17 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen. And when he read this, I couldn't help but notice the mercy part. I was shown mercy. Do I live a life that reflects that I, Johnny Ray, have been shown mercy? Do I even feel that compassion has been shown to me? I mean, God has to have immense patience with me, simply because I am a jerk, for lack of a better word.

Anyway, I need to study out mercy Biblically. I feel I could glean a whole mess of stuff just by cracking open the Bible and seeing what it has to say about mercy.

Jason Lugo actually gave the message, not Jamie Parker. It was entitled 'A Simple Message' and gave focus to John the Baptist (or JTB, as I call him in my mind... probably should be left there, in my mind, I mean).

We first looked at Matthew 3:1-8 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’” John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance."


JTB called people to repent. Everyone came and everyone got the same message... ----REPENT----

Jason went over the meaning of repentance or metanoia (see link above)...

We then looked at 2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. and we looked at 2 Corinthians 4:5-6 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.


It is important to look ahead, but it is also important to not hesitate in going back. Looking ahead can keep us on track and going back can prevent larger mistakes. It is like studying for a test in college. You look ahead to the test and prepare for it. And when you are taking the test, it is wise to check your answers, to go back over the test (time willing, of course), to prevent mistakes. When walking with God, it is important to look ahead and not stay stagnant in your spiritual walk with God. It is also important that if you find yourself becoming stale with God, to go back to the beginning, to check your work and hit back to the basics to get fired up again.

Romans 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.


Acts 3:17-19 “Now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Christ would suffer. Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord...


Repentance brings times of refreshment from God.