Thursday, April 06, 2017

Mercy All Around!

Indeed now, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have increased your mercy which you have shown me by saving my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, lest some evil overtake me and I die. Genesis 19:19

Two angels came to save Lot and found a reluctant sort of fellow. His sons-in-law thought he was kidding them. "Lot, ha ha, you old joker!" and refused to flee the city. Then the angels had to grab Lot and his family by the hands as Lot dawdled. Even when well set on the way to salvation, Lot didn't want to go to the mountain where the angels pointed. Lot bargained his way to the city of Zoar, a small city, but because of Lot's foolin' around, Zoar was saved too. Mercy all around!

In a similar way, we don't know how to do as we ought in Christ. His messengers show us the mountain of salvation, but we want to go to the city of the earth, just a little smaller one maybe, with, we hope, not quite so much sin. We are reluctant, try to cut a deal, turn around when we should go forward, refuse to believe the warnings, and generally get ourselves in all sorts of trouble. But through His great mercy and love, God often saves all those around us too. Like Lot, we look out the next morning at the ruins of the big cities all around, and hopefully we see the Lord's mercy and shun any credit for ourselves. While the little city dwellers wonder what they did right to be spared, we should get on up to that mountain and just maybe some of those spared will follow along as we praise God for His mercy and goodness.

Climb the mountain of God's mercy,
Bucky

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