Lessons in Mercy - Part 2

Intro:
Mercy is different than grace. Grace is about giving. Mercy is about NOT giving. Grace is giving someone something they have not earned and don't deserve. Mercy is NOT giving someone something they have earned and do deserve.

So, we have received grace in the Lord Jesus Christ. We have been given a gift that is unearned and undeserved .... and very needed!!! This Good Friday we will celebrate the remembrance of that gift!

But, we have also received mercy in the Lord Jesus Christ. We have not been given what we deserve in judgment and death. We, in fact, experience the mercy of God on a daily basis! It is because of HIS mercy that we are not consumed. It is because of HIS mercy that we woke up today. It is because of HIS mercy that we get to start new again today. Great is His faithfulness.

As you walk this week, think about your strong Savior and what that cross means. It is the meeting place of grace and mercy. It is the place where the Son of God takes our place, meets our obligation, pays our debt ..... It is the place of mercy.

Read:
Luke 23:32-46; 24:1-7

The Crucifixion
32 Two others, both criminals, were led out to be executed with him. 33 When they came to a place called The Skull, they nailed him to the cross. And the criminals were also crucified—one on his right and one on his left.

34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” And the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice.

35 The crowd watched and the leaders scoffed. “He saved others,” they said, “let him save himself if he is really God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.” 36 The soldiers mocked him, too, by offering him a drink of sour wine. 37 They called out to him, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” 38 A sign was fastened to the cross above him with these words: “This is the King of the Jews.”

39 One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, “So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!”

40 But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? 41 We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”

43 And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

The Death of Jesus
44 By this time it was noon, and darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. 45 The light from the sun was gone. And suddenly, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn down the middle. 46 Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” And with those words he breathed his last.

The Resurrection of Jesus
1 But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. 3 So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes.
5 The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.”

Do:
Take time this week to reflect on the mercy of God seen in the dying Savior. He is the one that makes a way and a home for us. He is the one that says, "You are forgiven". He is the one that shows mercy and forgives.

Praise the Lord!!!

Happy Easter!!!

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