IN WRATH, REMEMBER MERCY! (3)

“O LORD, I have heard Your speech and was afraid; O LORD, revive Your work in the midst of the years! In the midst of the years make it known; In wrath remember mercy” (Hab 3:2). Habakkuk lives in a time of national corruption and looming judgment. He knows God must punish sin. He does not deny God’s justice. Yet, he appeals to God’s heart of compassion who has repeatedly saved His rebellious people. This short prayer for revival balances two divine attributes that never clash: God’s righteous wrath and His steadfast mercy. God’s judgment through Babylon would not cancel His promises. His mercy will be revealed by bringing back a remnant. Ultimately, God’s mercy would be displayed in the salvation He provides through Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord! Mercy is defined as showing kindness, compassion, or forgiveness to your enemy when it is within your power to punish him. Compassion means helping those who are suffering, the poor, or the vulnerable. In the legal system, a judge can reduce a prisoner’s sentence (who is throwing himself on the “mercy of the court”). There is difference between Mercy and Grace. Mercy is not getting the punishment that you actually deserve. Grace is receiving a good gift or blessings that you did not earn or deserve.

Sin is real. God’s mercy is equally real and freely given. Why is God’s Mercy certain?

*Because it is grounded on God’s nature and not on human merit. God is indeed merciful! “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. He will not always accuse, nor harbor His anger forever” (Ps 103:8,9).

*Mercy is promised to all who truly repent of their sins and turn to God. “So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm” (Joel 2:13).

*God’s wrath and mercy coexist in perfect harmony, and they met at the Cross! Jesus died so that God’s mercy flows to sinners (Tit3:4,5)

GOD’S WRATH AND MERCY IN EDEN

“And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Gen 3:15). This scripture is called “the First Gospel” in the Bible. In it we see God’s Mercy triumphing of God’s wrath against sin. This is the first time in the Bible that God gives hope to sinners and promises victory over the devil thru the coming of His Son, Jesus Christ, and His death on the Cross, to save the sinful men. The mention of the “seed of the woman” shows the significant role women play in God’s redemptive plan. There are immediate implications for Adam and Eve: God’s setting the enmity breaks any possibility for them to join the devil in his wicked work. From now on, they know that rebellion against God is sin, and sin is an enemy. In their despair, as God manifests His judgment, God also reveals His mercy, by giving hope to them. They now see that God loves them and He will not allow the devil to take full control of the humanity He has created for His purpose and glory! God introduces the hope of the Gospel of Christ, crucified and resurrected. Christ, the Messiah, is the woman’s Seed. Christ’s victory means bruising the serpent’s head. This is a decisive, fatal blow. The Serpent’s strike points to the Cross. Jesus experienced real suffering, yet not final defeat. God’s plan for salvation and redemption is not an after thought. God clearly announced it from the beginning of sin. Praise the Lord!

The word “enmity” means deep hatred and anger, long-lasting hostility between two people that often manifests as violent attacks between them. It means to be a permanent enemy, and not just to have a temporary misunderstanding. It is the exact opposite of Friendship and Love. God’s judgment establishes an enduring hostility between the serpent, who served as Satan’s instrument, and the woman, Eve, the mother of the human race. The conflict that begun in Eden reaches beyond humanity’s natural aversion to serpents and reveals the spiritual war between Satan’s rebellion and God’s redemptive purpose for man. This enmity is not a simple competition. It is more than dislike; it is a deep-seated hostility initiated by God, and not by human choice. This enmity permanently separates the serpent (Satan) from the woman (Eve and her lineage). It announces an ongoing conflict that will shape all human history, a spiritual war initiated by God to reduce Satan’s influence on men. From the very beginning the Lord declares that evil will never merge peacefully with humanity and it will always be opposed by His purpose. “And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Rev 12:17). Amen!

The struggle is between two lines of “seed”. The serpent’s seed include those who embrace Satan’s deception and persist in rebellion against God. The woman’s Seed is the promised Deliverer, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. It also includes all the elect Children of God. The promised Seed would come as a true human, born of a woman, and finds its fulfillment in Jesus Christ, born of the virgin Mary. “Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, 2 but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. 3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. 4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons” (Gal 4:1-5). In the Bible, we see the divide between seeds: Cain and Abel, Israel and Egypt, Christ and the Pharisees. Once a sinner becomes born again, he is translated from darkness to light and joins the ongoing battle.

In Hebrew, the word “bruise” means to strike and crush, or to overwhelm. On the Cross, Christ would deal Satan a decisive and fatal blow, by bruising Satan’s head. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus broke the power of sin, death, and the devil. Satan would inflict real suffering upon the promised Redeemer, culminating in Christ’s crucifixion. Yet the wound would not be final; Jesus rose from the dead, demonstrating that Satan’s apparent victory had become the means of his defeat. “Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it (the Cross)” (Col 2:15). The victory won by Christ at the Cross will be fully displayed when Satan is finally judged, and believers share in that triumph through their union with Him. “And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen” (Rom 16:20). Halleluiah!

Adam and Eve were deceived by Satan to find knowledge outside a personal relationship with God, to live independent lives from God. But they they could not escape from God’s love. They hid behind the trees, but God came after them. They were created for God’s glory, and God already had a plan of redemption. God drove them from the beautiful, peaceful Eden. For now, life is hard. Work is hard. Marriage is hard. To have children is hard. This is the position we all find ourselves in. All men are born sinners. The wrath of God is upon all men. The solution is still with the God man has offended. God is all powerful and God is merciful. Our only hope is to repent from sin and ask God for His mercy found in Christ alone. That is the only way to peace, prosperity and eternal life. There is an Ongoing clash between the people of God and forces of evil. It is seen in persecution, temptation, and false teachings. As believers, expect opposition when aligning with Christ; hostility is normal. Stand firm! The victory is already secured in Jesus’ finished work on the Cross. Stay alert to Satan’s tactics: fear, deceit, doubt, distortion of God’s Word. Fear not! Preach the Word in season and outside season! God’s declaration of enmity turns each moment of failure into a promise of triumph. The serpent’s apparent advantage becomes the stage for Christ’s decisive victory. Glory to God!

GOD IS RICH IN MERCY

Read Ephesians 2:1-7. God’s saving work begins with His own loving character, not with any worthiness in those dead in sin. His love moved Him to give His Son for sinners to fulfill His purpose to redeem a people for Himself. As God chose Israel by His love and covenant faithfulness, God’s mercy is rich, abundant and sufficient to forgive, restore, and give new life through Christ. We gave God no reason to love us. We must stop trying to make ourselves lovable to God and simply receive His great love while recognizing that we are unworthy of it. This is the great secret of the Christian life. Our response should be a life of thanksgiving, obedience, and love towards others, sharing the mercy we have received.

Mercy is the first thing the sinner needs as he comes to God. The sinner has nothing and he needs all from God. Come to God as a humble sinner. Bring nothing to God except yourself, having faith in God’s power and Mercy. God’s mercy manifests by looking at the pit of sin from where He pulls us out. Look at the height of glory He carries us to sit with Him in heavenly places. Mercy is called rich and Love is called Great. Think of the amount of Mercy God shares to millions of sinners every day. His mercy comes to men while they are spiritually dead in sins and manifests itself thru His love for men. God’s mercy manifests not just by forgiving our sins. He gives us a new identity and a new vision of life. By His Spirit, God changes us to be like Jesus. He gives us wisdom, strength, courage, peace and joy, to inspire others.

I’ve heard a story… In a home, the family is seated at the table and they eat dinner. The family dog stands and waits, watching his master. If the master gives him crumbs of bread or some bones, he eats them immediately. But if the master takes the big plate with the whole fried chicken and places it on the floor, the dog draws back. Even if the master says “Come, Come!” the dog is afraid to eat it. Why? It is too much for him. It is the same with God’s children. They can happily eat crumbs but are afraid to trust God for the “glorious riches in Christ Jesus”. But God wants you to come boldly to His throne of mercy and grace and eat!

THE PRODIGAL SON RECEIVES MERCY (Lk 15:11-32).

The Prodigal’s Journey: He covets his father’s wealth, but he does not want his father’s authority. He dreams of fame abroad. He demands his inheritance while his father is still alive. He wastes everything in “wild living”, ending in poverty, famine, emptiness, loneliness and despair. He has reached “rock bottom”, the absolute lowest in a personal situation, the most desperate point when things cannot go worse. It is at this place of death that a proud sinner asks for help. The Turning point is at his lowest. He Comes to his senses. He recognizes his sin and his need for mercy. He remembered that his father is good and loving. That he has compassion for the poor. The son begins to rehearse a speech, asking for mercy. Humbly, he goes back to his father without any sense of entitlement. His father runs towards him, embraces, restores and celebrates him as his son and not as his servant. He gives him the ring, robe, sandals and organizes a feast. These are all symbols of full reinstatement. This is a great picture of God’s Mercy, Grace and Love in action.

The younger son is a picture of pride. He covets his father’s wealth. As Christians, we depend on the revelation of God’s Word. Pride is the desire to live independently of God, to want things my own way. I don’t want to be accountable to God. The secret of restoration is the son’s repentance. Mercy precedes condemnation. Forgiveness is free to the sinner but costly to the father. It is immediate, complete. No half measures. No probation period. Amen!

Lessons:

*The danger of selfish independence! Living separated from God is sin, loneliness, and despair.  

*The reality of consequences. We can choose an action, but we cannot choose the consequences of that action. 

*The Power of genuine repentance. Coming to God in humble repentance brings down mercy and grace and a new beginning!

*The power of the unconditional and unfailing Love, Mercy and Grace of God the Father. No one can out-sin God’s grace! (Rom 5:10).

*The trap of self-righteousness. The older brother has a religious spirit. He obeys his father’s laws but he has no Love, Mercy or Grace.

We see the Father’s Heart revealed. The father was waiting for his son’s return. He sees him first “while still in the distance”. His mercy is active: he runs toward his son. Grace restores the son to his position of honor, not as a servant in the house. Grace beautifies what mercy forgives. The father leads the joyful celebration. “Heaven rejoices over one sinner who repents” (Lk 15:7,10). The celebration in heaven is not in honor of the sinner; it’s in honor of the Savior who died that dead sinners may live, that the lost may be found! Worship the Lord!