New Every Morning

Lamentations 3:22, 23

The mercy of the Lord is a beautiful thing. His mercy ensures us that we will not get what our actions certainly deserve. Jeremiah, the author of Lamentations states that it is only due to the mercy of the Lord that we are not consumed. The writer of Hebrews tells us that our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29), and John the Baptist told us that Jesus would burn the chaff with unquenchable fire (Luke 3:17), so God surely holds the power to get rid of us. Why then, does God show mercy?

The end of verse 22 gives us both the answer to our question, and insight into the heartbeat of God, “because his compassions fail not”. God shows mercy because He is compassionate. He loves mankind so much that He holds back the flood waters of judgment, just so man can have another opportunity to turn to Him.

Christ’s death on the cross took the brunt of God’s fury against sin. Now, all who will accept Christ are free from that wrath. God delays sending Jesus back to get His church so that one more sinner might come home. For the one who will leave the 99 sheep in the fold to go and find the one, this is precisely within character.

Jeremiah goes on to explain that God’s compassions are not just feelings, but rather they are tangible things. He tells us that they are “new every morning” (verse 23). All good gifts come from the Father above (James 1:17), so we can view even the smallest blessing in our life as “His compassions”. Just like the manna in the wilderness for the Old Testament saints, Christ is the manna for the believer. He is pure white and tastes like honey (Exodus 16:31), and you will never be left wanting when you trust Him as your redeemer. Every day He is there with a fresh supply of goodness and mercy for you, requiring only that you take from Him.

How can we possibly pay the Lord back for this wonderful mercy, grace and goodness? Some say that you should witness to pay Him back, bringing souls into the kingdom. Witnessing for the Lord is great, but you could win everyone that you ever meet until you die and you could never pay the Lord back for His grace. Others tell you to give, and you could give until you have nothing else, and God still has the streets of heaven paved in gold, with or without your money. Actually, anything that you get by payment is achieved by your own works, and salvation is free. Is there a way to pay Him for His wonderful mercies, new every morning?

David asked the same question, “What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?” (Psalm 116:12). Those benefits could be called the compassions of the Lord that are new every morning, given by a God who is faithful to do so (Lamentations 3:23). David answers his own question with, “I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord” (Psalm 116:13). He learns that the only way to pay God back is to take more of God’s goodness. You and I are pleasing to the Lord when we feast at the table of God’s mercy and compassion.

Recognize the faithfulness of the Father all around you today and feast on the manna from heaven, because it is new every morning. Go in Him!

Will You Be Made Whole?

John 5:1-9

Only the Apostle John shares with us the story of the man who was waiting for the moving of the water. Near the sheep market, where people would purchase a lamb for sacrifice before going into the temple, was an open-air infirmary. Many of the sick and paralyzed from Jerusalem had taken up permanent residence there, for there was a legend in Israel that an angel would come and stir the waters, healing whoever jumped in first. This is a picture of the law, which rewards the strong over the weak, and guarantees healing to those who can help themselves.

The place is called Bethesda, which means “house of mercy” in Hebrew (John 5:2), and when Jesus walks in, it truly lives up to its name. He goes directly to a “certain man” which indicates that Jesus came looking for him (5:5). This man has had an infirmity for 38 years, and is unable to get himself to the pool when the angel stirs the water. He has trusted in his strength for healing for 38 long years and has never been able to get to the angel, but on this particular day, the Angel has come to him! Law demands that you get on your feet and do your best, while grace and truth come walking towards you.

Jesus poses a crucial question to the man, “Wilt thou be made whole?” (John 5:6) This is an interesting thing to ask someone who has been sick for 38 years, but it shows us an important thing about the human condition. Some people have grown accustomed to what they are and who they are. They think that the bad things that are happening to them are just their “lot in life”, and they are no longer truly looking for victory or for good things to happen. The question is not just for the lame man, but for all of us. Do we really want to be made whole? Are we defined by our down-days and our discouragements? Are we using our failures and our problems as a crutch?

The shocking thing about the story is that the man does not scream, “YES!” when he is asked if he wishes to be healed. His answer is, “Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steps down before me” (John 5:7). Our heart is so tuned to works and performance that when asked if he wants to be healed he begins to give reasons as to why he hasn’t already earned it. Jesus is there to do a great work of grace and mercy and he is leaning on his inability to get into the pool.

Jesus tells him to do the impossible when He says, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk” (John 5:8). If the man says, “Sir, I cannot rise because I cannot walk” then healing would have passed him by. Instead, he must believe that what Jesus is saying is true because, “immediately the man was made whole” (John 5:9).

Do you wish to be whole of everything that ails you? Rise, take up your bed and walk. This act of faith is still relevant for us today as we trust that the healer is in the house. He loves you and He has paid a great price for your healing in both body and soul.

New Every Morning

Lamentations 3:22, 23

The mercy of the Lord is a beautiful thing. His mercy ensures us that we will not get what our actions certainly deserve. Jeremiah, the author of Lamentations states that it is only due to the mercy of the Lord that we are not consumed. The writer of Hebrews tells us that our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29), and John the Baptist told us that Jesus would burn the chaff with unquenchable fire (Luke 3:17), so God surely holds the power to get rid of us. Why then, does God show mercy?

The end of verse 22 gives us both the answer to our question, and insight into the heartbeat of God, “because his compassions fail not”. God shows mercy because He is compassionate. He loves mankind so much that He holds back the flood waters of judgment, just so man can have another opportunity to turn to Him.

Christ’s death on the cross took the brunt of God’s fury against sin. Now, all who will accept Christ are free from that wrath. God delays sending Jesus back to get His church so that one more sinner might come home. For the one who will leave the 99 sheep in the fold to go and find the one, this is precisely within character.

Jeremiah goes on to explain that God’s compassions are not just feelings, but rather they are tangible things. He tells us that they are “new every morning” (verse 23). All good gifts come from the Father above (James 1:17), so we can view even the smallest blessing in our life as “His compassions”. Just like the manna in the wilderness for the Old Testament saints, Christ is the manna for the believer. He is pure white and tastes like honey (Exodus 16:31), and you will never be left wanting when you trust Him as your redeemer. Every day He is there with a fresh supply of goodness and mercy for you, requiring only that you take from Him.

How can we possibly pay the Lord back for this wonderful mercy, grace and goodness? Some say that you should witness to pay Him back, bringing souls into the kingdom. Witnessing for the Lord is great, but you could win everyone that you ever meet until you die and you could never pay the Lord back for His grace. Others tell you to give, and you could give until you have nothing else, and God still has the streets of heaven paved in gold, with or without your money. Actually, anything that you get by payment is achieved by your own works, and salvation is free. Is there a way to pay Him for His wonderful mercies, new every morning?

David asked the same question, “What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?” (Psalm 116:12). Those benefits could be called the compassions of the Lord that are new every morning, given by a God who is faithful to do so (Lamentations 3:23). David answers his own question with, “I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord” (Psalm 116:13). He learns that the only way to pay God back is to take more of God’s goodness. You and I are pleasing to the Lord when we feast at the table of God’s mercy and compassion.

Recognize the faithfulness of the Father all around you today and feast on the manna from heaven, because it is new every morning. Go in Him!

Will You Be Made Whole?

John 5:1-9

Only the Apostle John shares with us the story of the man who was waiting for the moving of the water. Near the sheep market, where people would purchase a lamb for sacrifice before going into the temple, was an open-air infirmary. Many of the sick and paralyzed from Jerusalem had taken up permanent residence there, for there was a legend in Israel that an angel would come and stir the waters, healing whoever jumped in first. This is a picture of the law, which rewards the strong over the weak, and guarantees healing to those who can help themselves.

The place is called Bethesda, which means “house of mercy” in Hebrew (John 5:2), and when Jesus walks in, it truly lives up to its name. He goes directly to a “certain man” which indicates that Jesus came looking for him (5:5). This man has had an infirmity for 38 years, and is unable to get himself to the pool when the angel stirs the water. He has trusted in his strength for healing for 38 long years and has never been able to get to the angel, but on this particular day, the Angel has come to him! Law demands that you get on your feet and do your best, while grace and truth come walking towards you.

Jesus poses a crucial question to the man, “Wilt thou be made whole?” (John 5:6) This is an interesting thing to ask someone who has been sick for 38 years, but it shows us an important thing about the human condition. Some people have grown accustomed to what they are and who they are. They think that the bad things that are happening to them are just their “lot in life”, and they are no longer truly looking for victory or for good things to happen. The question is not just for the lame man, but for all of us. Do we really want to be made whole? Are we defined by our down-days and our discouragements? Are we using our failures and our problems as a crutch?

The shocking thing about the story is that the man does not scream, “YES!” when he is asked if he wishes to be healed. His answer is, “Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steps down before me” (John 5:7). Our heart is so tuned to works and performance that when asked if he wants to be healed he begins to give reasons as to why he hasn’t already earned it. Jesus is there to do a great work of grace and mercy and he is leaning on his inability to get into the pool.

Jesus tells him to do the impossible when He says, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk” (John 5:8). If the man says, “Sir, I cannot rise because I cannot walk” then healing would have passed him by. Instead, he must believe that what Jesus is saying is true because, “immediately the man was made whole” (John 5:9).

Do you wish to be whole of everything that ails you? Rise, take up your bed and walk. This act of faith is still relevant for us today as we trust that the healer is in the house. He loves you and He has paid a great price for your healing in both body and soul.

New Every Morning

Lamentations 3:22, 23

The mercy of the Lord is a beautiful thing. His mercy ensures us that we will not get what our actions certainly deserve. Jeremiah, the author of Lamentations states that it is only due to the mercy of the Lord that we are not consumed. The writer of Hebrews tells us that our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29), and John the Baptist told us that Jesus would burn the chaff with unquenchable fire (Luke 3:17), so God surely holds the power to get rid of us. Why then, does God show mercy?

The end of verse 22 gives us both the answer to our question, and insight into the heartbeat of God, “because his compassions fail not”. God shows mercy because He is compassionate. He loves mankind so much that He holds back the flood waters of judgment, just so man can have another opportunity to turn to Him.

Christ’s death on the cross took the brunt of God’s fury against sin. Now, all who will accept Christ are free from that wrath. God delays sending Jesus back to get His church so that one more sinner might come home. For the one who will leave the 99 sheep in the fold to go and find the one, this is precisely within character.

Jeremiah goes on to explain that God’s compassions are not just feelings, but rather they are tangible things. He tells us that they are “new every morning” (verse 23). All good gifts come from the Father above (James 1:17), so we can view even the smallest blessing in our life as “His compassions”. Just like the manna in the wilderness for the Old Testament saints, Christ is the manna for the believer. He is pure white and tastes like honey (Exodus 16:31), and you will never be left wanting when you trust Him as your redeemer. Every day He is there with a fresh supply of goodness and mercy for you, requiring only that you take from Him.

How can we possibly pay the Lord back for this wonderful mercy, grace and goodness? Some say that you should witness to pay Him back, bringing souls into the kingdom. Witnessing for the Lord is great, but you could win everyone that you ever meet until you die and you could never pay the Lord back for His grace. Others tell you to give, and you could give until you have nothing else, and God still has the streets of heaven paved in gold, with or without your money. Actually, anything that you get by payment is achieved by your own works, and salvation is free. Is there a way to pay Him for His wonderful mercies, new every morning?

David asked the same question, “What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?” (Psalm 116:12). Those benefits could be called the compassions of the Lord that are new every morning, given by a God who is faithful to do so (Lamentations 3:23). David answers his own question with, “I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord” (Psalm 116:13). He learns that the only way to pay God back is to take more of God’s goodness. You and I are pleasing to the Lord when we feast at the table of God’s mercy and compassion.

Recognize the faithfulness of the Father all around you today and feast on the manna from heaven, because it is new every morning. Go in Him!