Forever Jesus

"Mercy should be our response."

JESUS ISN’T seeking anyone to body slam them. That’s us. There is no heavenly list of permanently condemned persons, past those who have already died. And the Father regrets those. The Savior mourns them. The Spirit will, one day, relieve them of their torment. There will be no more death, no more sorrow (Revelation 21:4). But for those still on this earth, He seeks their heart, right up until their last breath.

There isn’t an unjust sentence after death. No one goes to heaven who doesn’t have a relationship with Jesus Christ through salvation, and no one who dies without Him ends up in the devil’s place of condemnation by mistake. Read that carefully. Because the devil did not make hell to keep people in it. God made hell to keep the devil in it (Matthew 25:41). God’s desire for those made in His image and after His likeness was Paradise and glory and forever life.

We must realize that our inability to see these things fully is our limited human thinking. Both before the cross and the Resurrection and after the cross and the Resurrection, the afterlife, as some call it, was decided with God’s justice, and He has no unjust opinions or revenge-mindedness against His creation. But a choice must be made by every individual and an opportunity is given to all who live. All who have lived have seen Him in some manner. There is much we do not know about this, but what we do know is God the Father sent His only-begotten Son to earth because He SO LOVED the world that even His Son’s cruel, innocent death was worth it, and Jesus agreed because He willingly gave up His rights and opinions, His choices and freedoms to be obedient to His Father.

A man brought sin into the world, so a man would be required to remove its power from the world (Romans 5:12). But for those who remain in bondage to it, through their denial of Jesus Christ, there is only condemnation. That choice cannot be escaped.

“He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:18)

People in their human eyesight fail to see spiritual things. The Pharisee Nicodemus had this problem when Jesus told him he must be born again. “How can I return to my mother a second time and be born?” he asked. It was not a physical birth Jesus spoke of but a spiritual one. The spirit of man died because of Adam’s sin. The life of God’s Spirit brings life upon salvation. Something unseen was in far greater control of the physical world than men were able to see (Hebrews 11:3).

God’s love is the healing of the spirit and the mind. God’s love woos the heart, gentle and meek, longsuffering, never harsh nor cruel nor unkind. The description of love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 is first a description of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. We, as children of God, are made like Him, to see life through love, both Hs love for us and His love for those around us. Love and compassion formed from love should be our response to everyone at all times. Men’s deliberate behaviors, done in ignorance or in rebellion to the gospel, should fill us with compassion. Mercy should be our response and prayer from kind, loving hearts.

“And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:31)

They don’t know what they do, and it isn’t our job to tell them. We are to show them Jesus, and that is done through our words, by what we say, but most often, through our actions. When we act like Him, we paint a picture that draws the eye and tenderizes the heart. It softens the ears and through the drawing of the Holy Spirit, creates hunger. Hatred only creates more hatred, and anger fuels anger and sparks revenge. Criticism makes the criticizer look uncaring. No one has ever wanted any part of those who hate them. For this reason, Jesus was silent in front of His accusers.

What He saw was love. What He looked toward was joy. What He displayed was the everlasting mercy of an unlimited God, whose goodness poured out every drop of blood onto the ground.

“Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.” (Luke 23:34)

God is good. God is good. If it isn’t good, if it sparks anger or gives fear, if it creates doubt or fuels unforgiveness, then it isn’t God. He never leaves us feeling abandoned and overlooked. Jesus promised He would never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). He promised us ETERNAL LIFE, and that’s His life into infinity, but it’s also the strength and goodness of His life today. We, as God’s children, are supposed to know this and display it so that those lost in the deception of the devil’s work in their minds, his words in their ears, will know Jesus.

“Thou art good, and doest good; teach me thy statutes.” (Psalms 119:68)

“Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:” (James 1:13)

“When tempted to deviate from God’s design for life, no one should ever say, ‘God is tempting me,’ for God is the source of life and cannot be tempted by deviations from His design, nor does he tempt anyone.” (James 1:13. Remedy)

Image available at Pixabay.


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Suzanne D. Williams, Author
www.suzannedwilliams.com
www.feelgoodromance.com