Amos 4:9, Romans 5:8, Judgments and Love.

Amos 4:9

"I blasted you with blight and mildew. When your gardens increased, Your vineyards, Your fig trees, And your olive trees, The locust devoured them; Yet you have not returned to Me," Says the LORD."
NKJV

Often in the Hebrew Scriptures, we read of the judgments of God and gasp as we see Israel and other nations suffering under the Lord's power. While the judgments of God are difficult, we must understand that all through the Old Testament God is showing grace and mercy. In the prophets, He calls for people to turn from their wicked ways and He will forgive them. You see friend, while God's discipline can often seem extreme, His love is just as potent.

Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates His own love towards us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." NKJV

Extreme love - that is what the God of all creation has shown towards us. While we were steeped in sin and suffering under the weight of condemnation, He stepped out of heaven and gave His life for ours. The punishment that we deserved was placed upon Jesus on the cross. Each strike of the nails that pierced his hands was done so that we could know forgiveness. Each cruel word and slash of the whip on Jesus' body happened so that we could spend eternity with Him. All we have to do is come to Jesus seeking forgiveness and trusting in Him for salvation. As we do, we take part in the greatest love anyone could ever know.

Life Lesson: God goes to extreme measures to reveal His love for us.

Dear God,
I know that I have done wrong. Today, I come to You and ask that You would forgive me of all my sins. I confess that Jesus is Lord and I believe that He died for my sins and was raised from the grave three days later. Lord, make me a new creation and fill me with Your Spirit so that I can live for You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Living to tell what He died to say,
Pastor David McGee

My comment: I think of the times when things happened to me or in my life or even to my loved ones and know because of sin they could have been worse and they weren't because of God's love and mercy. Just like a parent who disciplines a child. Sometimes we feel because of what they have done, that we would like to whip the backside hard we do not because we love them and show that love with some discipline tempered with mercy. He does not let us off scott free because that would not be love because we would just keep doing things and sinning. Yet often I think it appears that way to some.

I think He does things different with each of us as we do things different with each of our children because each is an individual and learns differently.

Yet no matter how He lets us go through the fire of refining we would not be able to continue (at least most would not) with things being as severe as our payment would have to be (it could never be attained). So Christ had to come and take on the punishment before and on the Cross and the separation of the Fathers presence for our sin to be paid in full.

Now that I am paid for and am His I choose to be with Him through it all. I choose to let Him refine me as pure gold and silver and I choose to put myself out there with Him,

He has called, I have answered. I am His and He is mine. I am in Him and He in me. What a glorious, glorious feeling to know I will be with Him always. Such peace, strength. May you all feel His peace as well. Amen