Kansas City, Missouri, United States - Reflecting God – Embrace Holy Living - “Rich in Mercy” – Sunday, 27 April 2014 - Scripture: Ephesians 2:1-10

Kansas City, Missouri, United States - Reflecting God – Embrace Holy Living - “Rich in Mercy” – Sunday, 27 April 2014 - Scripture: Ephesians 2:1 You were made alive when you were dead in transgressions and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the children of disobedience; 3 among whom we also all once lived in the lust of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus; 8 for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, that no one would boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before that we would walk in them.

“Rich in Mercy” by Duane C. Brush

The religion of achievement inevitably denies God’s mercy. Pagan worship, like that of the goddess Artemis in Ephesus, could often be characterized as a transaction. The worshipper does something for their god, such as presenting an offering, sponsoring the building or repair of a temple, or by participating in some festival or act of worship and, thereby, the god is obligated to respond with the sought for blessing. In each case the action of the worshipper precedes and elicits response from the deity. If the worshipper doesn’t get the sought for response then they must have done something wrong. Perhaps, they did not present a sufficient gift or as extravagant an act of worship, as the god may have required. Their doctrine could be summed up as, “You pay for what you get.”

How opposite this is from the God the Apostle Paul proclaimed to the Ephesian believers. The true God loved us before we knew Him and extended mercy toward us through His Son, Jesus Christ, “while we were dead in transgressions.” Our salvation and all of God’s many blessings flow out of His loving grace and extravagant mercy. In our faith, “You get what He paid for,” out of God’s great wealth of mercy.

Hymn for Today:

“There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy” by Frederick W. Faber

1. There's a wideness in God's mercy,

like the wideness of the sea.

There's a kindness in God's justice,

which is more than liberty.

There is no place where earth's sorrows

are more felt than up in heaven.

There is no place where earth's failings

have such kindly judgment given.

2. For the love of God is broader

than the measures of the mind.

And the heart of the Eternal

is most wonderfully kind.

If our love were but more faithful,

we would gladly trust God's Word,

and our lives reflect thanksgiving

for the goodness of our Lord.

Thought for Today:

“Thought sin deserves wrath, God’s compassion curbs its impact on us” (Jim Edlin and Janelle Mackay).

Prayer Needs:

Many people in Brazil will come to know Jesus the Christ (Yeshua the Messiah) and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.

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