Saturday, September 5, 2015

We will never truly be effective for others until we know how fully and freely effective He has been for us

I enjoyed reading this:

Moses asked God to see His glory. This was God’s reply, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion” (Exodus 33:19).

And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth” (Exodus 34:6). The word merciful is the Hebrew word rachum, it means to be full of compassion. This is the first word that God used to describe His glory. It reveals much about God’s glory and character.

The word gracious in Exodus 34:6 means to show favor, mercy, kindness, and forgiveness; longsuffering means to be patient; goodness means to show loving kindness; truth means to be faithful and trustworthy. All of these characteristics are seen as characteristics of love in 1st Corinthians 13. They are also seen in the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in (Galatians 5:22) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness. The word fruit in Galatians 5:22 is singular, there is only one fruit of the Spirit, which is love. All the other traits mentioned are characteristics of love. Likewise, in Exodus 34:6 the first thing that God reveals about His character is that He is rachum-“full of compassion”. All of the other characteristics of Exodus 34:6 are contained in this compassionate love of God.

As Jesus moved with compassion the power and love of God was revealed.

We are called God’s vessels of compassion who were created to receive revelation of His glory. That He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy (compassion), which He had prepared beforehand for glory.

Jesus has given us the same glory, the same love, which the Father gave Him. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. (John 17:22-24) The glory of God and the Father’s love is now within us because of the New Covenant.

 The glory of God is the manifestation and revelation of His love, in so many ways.



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