New Mercies
Your eyes opened this morning. The sun has risen again. Your heart is still beating. Your lungs are inhaling fresh oxygen. You are here, you are alive, and your life has intrinsic value.
It’s true.
But this fractured world tries to beat us down, which can feel all-consuming: our relationships are far from perfect, our desires are bent toward selfishness, and sometimes the everyday grind can feel like too much.
The author of Lamentations, traditionally identified as Jeremiah (though His name isn’t stated explicitly), is known as the “weeping prophet”—constantly undone because of the heartbreaking sin of his people and their open disregard for their Creator. The book is full of grief and distress and lament. But, still, he confidently writes:
“But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Lamentations 3:21-23 ESV
Even though God’s people had rebelled, even though the strength of Israel was gone and they were facing the consequences of their idolatry, even though their unfaithfulness was making their lives fall apart…
God still poured out His steadfast love. God still showed off His endless mercy. God still lavished His people with His constant faithfulness.
That is why they were not consumed. And that is why we still have hope.
If you’ve run from God, ignored His good design, disregarded His warnings, purposely rebelled against Him, or simply chose to forget His existence all together, it’s not too late to turn back.
God doesn’t ignore those who come to Him. He doesn’t dismiss those with a humble and repentant heart. He is patiently and faithfully waiting for those who will return to Him.
“Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil. Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few. And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full. So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out. And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed. Then she came ...
True Freedom is Here
Everyone thinks about freedom differently. Most people would say freedom is a virtue that should be sought, but that idea changes depending on how it’s defined.
A lot of people think freedom is the absence of restraints—we are free when we're free from things that hold us back. Others define freedom by our human will—if we can choose what we want, then we can be free. But these ideas are a bit different from what we find in Scripture...
According to God’s Word, freedom is found wherever the Spirit of God is found. Freedom is found when we live according to God’s original design for our life.
When we begin our life with Jesus, He gives us a new heart and a new way to live. He also sends the Spirit of God to live within us. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3:17 that wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is true freedom. That means all of us who believe in Jesus have access to this freedom.
Freedom doesn’t come from doing whatever we want but from living according ...