After reading through this weeks passage in the Lectio Divina fashion, one phrase was burned into my mind..."God's mercy." As Paul writes, laying out a pattern for Christian living, it all hinges on God's mercy. What is God's mercy? It is God's unrelenting, never-failing love for us. It is the way that God pursues you and me - broken, sinful, screwed up people. He just keeps loving us...He doesn't give up on us...He offers forgiveness that is like nothing we can fully comprehend...He died for us. The Creator God of the universe felt such love for His creation that He was willing to become one of us. Not only was He willing to become one of us, but He was willing to die at the hands of people He had created so that we could receive forgiveness. That is mercy!
Paul lays it all out for us - nice and simple...
- God's mercy drives us to become living sacrifices.
- Living sacrifices are people who do not conform to the ways of this world.
- Living sacrifices are people who are transformed by the love of God and the Way of Jesus.
- And when we offer ourselves as living sacrifices, we will be able to see God's will for our lives.
That's Christianity 101 right there!
Today God has burned into my heart the desperate need I have for His mercy. When I contemplate my life...when I think about the things I live for and chase after, I can see the lies of the world creeping in. There are cultural values and lies that go against the heart of God that are leaking into my heart and shaping my life. Can you see them too? The worldly values that you have allowed to come between you and truly faithful living? What are they - think about it? As Christians we must allow the incredible mercy of God to overwhelm our souls...to transform our minds...to fill our hearts. Then we will be able to see the emptiness of the things of the world and the beauty of the will of God for our lives.
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