MORE THAN WE COULD IMAGINE
Jenna Worsham
Today’s Scripture: “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 3:22-23, ESV
Theme: Make no mistake: our holy, incomparable God is also loving, merciful, and faithful.
SMALL IMAGINATION
It’s hard to imagine a God capable of such destruction judgement and anger, Who is also loving, merciful, and faithful. Yet, that is exactly what He is. My imagination is limited by my experience. In trying to make sense of the world, I think of my own tendencies, experiences, or of others I’ve known throughout my life. My perspective—and thus my imagination—is decidedly limited. The people I’ve known who are loving do not also have the kind of influence, power, holiness, and responsibility God has. My imagination does not have a reasonable analogy for an all-powerful Being, Who is judge, parent, creator, Savior, and friend. I can’t even think of one in a classic novel. God knew we couldn’t understand fully. To help us, he sent Jesus, God-incarnate.
JESUS
When God came to earth, He took on the limitations of humanity. He existed in time, within a human body, part of a human family unit, in a specific town and time in history. This incarnate God shows us an example of what godliness looks like for a person. Jesus was known to be loving. Jesus was known to be merciful. Jesus was known as a healer. Jesus was known – even among those who didn’t believe then, and those who don’t believe now – as a good man. He was not known as a monster. He was not known for His great acts of destruction, massive judgement, military strength, or victory. Jesus was known as a humble teacher, kind to the broken, threatening to power, and ultimately self-sacrificial. Make no mistake, Jesus was fully God, holy and incomparable, and yet we know that He was absolutely loving, merciful, and faithful.
MAKE NO MISTAKE
It is easy to make a mistake when we read the frightening sections of Scripture without context or relationship. Death, destruction, sinful leaders, broken chosen people, all distract us from the macro-message of the whole Bible. God created perfection, gave us free will. We broke perfection, yet if we want to be redeemed, God was and is redeeming us, starting the moment we broke trust with Him, from Eden through the present and to the end of time, when all things are made new.
The truth is, we have never known a love as unending and faithful as that of our Lord God...
Make It Personal: Do you struggle to think of God as loving and merciful? How about Jesus? Compare the passage from Exodus 34:5-7 with the verses from John 1:17 and 1 Corinthians 1:8-10 (all below in the “read” section). Consider how your imagination might increase to understand a faithful, loving, holy God who is also absolutely just and merciful. Pray for insight and peace from the Holy Spirit.
Pray: Thank You, God, for Your loving, faithful, merciful nature. Thank You for perfection and holiness offered to me and all humanity through Jesus. Help me to know You better and expand my imagination. Please help me to study Your word often, not being confused by the difficult parts, and help me find the Truth. Thank You for sending Jesus as Savior, sacrifice and as a relatable example for us. You love us so thoroughly and so well. Amen.
Read: Exodus 34:5-7; John 1:17; 1 Corinthians 1:8-10
Weekly Memory Verse: “Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.’” Exodus 20:20, NIV