The Lord Shows Compassion

“The Lord is merciful and gracious,

    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

He will not always chide,

    nor will he keep his anger forever.

He does not deal with us according to our sins,

    nor repay us according to our iniquities.” 

(Psalms 103:8-10 ESV)

If you stop reading right there, you might get the idea that God’s grace to us overlooks all our sins, that he does not correct, chastise, rebuke, discipline, warn, and judge us if we continue living in deliberate and habitual sin once we profess faith in Jesus Christ. For that is the picture of God’s grace which is commonly being taught today, here in America, anyway. Some people even go so far as to say that God no longer sees when we sin and so when he looks at us, all he sees is Jesus, regardless of our lifestyles of choice.

“For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

as far as the east is from the west,

    so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

As a father shows compassion to his children,

    so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.

For he knows our frame;

    he remembers that we are dust.

As for man, his days are like grass;

    he flourishes like a flower of the field;

for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,

    and its place knows it no more.

But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting 

to everlasting on those who fear him,

    and his righteousness to children's children,

to those who keep his covenant

    and remember to do his commandments.” 

(Psalms 103:11-18 ESV)

But here is where we learn who those words apply to, and they are not for everyone who professes faith in Jesus Christ with their lips. They are for those who fear the Lord (stated here 3 times), who keep his covenant, and who remember to do his commandments. We are those who have these promises, who walk in obedience to our Lord, and not in sin, in practice, and who take God’s words to us (us who believe in Jesus) in all seriousness, and who, by the Spirit, are putting them into daily practice, in the power of God.

And now I know that this is Old Testament teaching, but the New Testament teaches the same thing. For Jesus said that if anyone would come after him, he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin and to self) and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to our old lives of living in sin and for self, we will lose them for eternity. But if for Jesus’ sake we deny self, die daily to sin, and follow him in obedience to his commands, then we have the hope of eternal life with God (see Luke 9:23-26; cf. Ephesians 4:17-24).

And he said that not everyone who says to him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING the will of God the Father. For many will stand before him on the day of judgment proclaiming him as their Lord and claiming all they did in his name, and he will answer them, “I never knew you! Depart from me you workers of lawlessness.” Why? Because they did not fear (honor, revere, obey) him, they did not keep his covenant, and they were not obeying his New Covenant commands (Matthew 7:21-23).

And God’s grace, which is bringing us salvation, is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we await our Lord’s return. For Jesus Christ gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works, the works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them, as his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works (Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 2:8-10).

And to fear the Lord means to honor him, to revere him, to respect him, to do what pleases him, to believe him, and to take his words seriously (to heart), and to obey them. It is for us to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord, i.e. what is acceptable to him, in his power and strength. And it is for us to worship him by presenting our bodies to him as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him. For it is also to cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

[Matt 10:28; Luke 1:50; Acts 9:31; Acts 10:34-35; Rom 3:10-18; Rom 12:1-2; 2 Co 5:6-11; 2 Co 7:1; Php 2:12-13; Heb 5:7; Heb 12:28-29; Rev 11:18; Rev 14:7; Rev 15:4] 

The whole purpose of Jesus giving his life up for us on that cross was so that we would be crucified with him in death to sin and raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves to sin, but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness. So we are not to let sin reign in our mortal bodies to make us obey its desires, for if sin is what we obey, it leads to death. But if obedience to our Lord is what we obey, it leads to righteousness and to sanctification, and its end is eternal life (Romans 6:1-23; 1 Peter 2:24).

And his word teaches us that if sin is what we practice, and not righteousness, and not holy living, and not walks of obedience to our Lord and to his commands, that we do not know God. We are not in fellowship with God. And if we claim to be, we are liars. We are not born of God. But we are of the devil. And that is because we have not died with Christ to sin and we are not walking in obedience to his commands, so we don’t have forgiveness of sins, and we do not have salvation and eternal life with God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah 

 

Hymn lyrics by William Williams, pub.1745

tr. by Peter Williams, pub.1771

Music by John Hughes, 1907

Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,

Pilgrim through this barren land.

I am weak, but Thou art mighty;

Hold me with Thy powerful hand.

Bread of Heaven, Bread of Heaven,

Feed me till I want no more (2X).

Open now the crystal fountain,

Whence the healing stream doth flow;

Let the fire and cloudy pillar

Lead me all my journey through.

Strong Deliverer, strong Deliverer,

Be Thou still my Strength and Shield (2X).

Lord, I trust Thy mighty power,

Wondrous are Thy works of old;

Thou deliver’st thine from thralldom,

Who for naught themselves had sold.

Thou didst conquer, Thou didst conquer

Sin and Satan and the grave (2X).

When I tread the verge of Jordan,

Bid my anxious fears subside;

Death of deaths, and hell’s destruction,

Land me safe on Canaan’s side.

Songs of praises, songs of praises,

I will ever give to Thee. Amen (2X).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7G59DKf-AI