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Psalms 103:17-18 (102:17-18)

But the mercy of the Lord is from age to age upon those who fear Him,
And His righteousness upon children’s children,
To such as keep His covenant
And remember His commandments, to do them.

Encouraging Words

We are reminded in John 3:16-17 that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son. It is in this love that we are blessed to receive His love and righteousness. He pours it out upon us and if we follow Him, He grows it within us. Glory be to God!

Romans 7:17-20

But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

Personal Challenge

Paul nails the challenge of life so well in this passage. We all have that desire to do the good and godly things in our lives. And yet, we continually find ourselves doing just those things that we do not want to do. Our desire is to be spiritual and yet we continually get drawn into the temporal, the worldly. It is indeed a conundrum, one that pushes us to recognize that we need Jesus to help us sort this out. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Psalms 103:10-13 (102:10-13)

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Encouraging Words

Salvation is not really about us at all. We are the recipients of a gift given by God through Jesus Christ our Lord. It is a gift that wipes out our sins; past, present, and future. We receive it gladly and yet continue to sin. It really is all about God and His love for us, His mercy poured out upon us and His compassion toward us even when we continue to sin against Him. He is the one that we must always put at the center of salvation. Glory be to God!

Psalms 103:8 (102:8)

The Lord is compassionate and merciful,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.

Romans 6:17-18

But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Personal Challenge

Slavery is a tough concept for us to embrace. We are blessed to live in an age where it is not acceptable to engage in slavery even though it still happens in many forms. It is the impact of slavery that Paul is writing about here and how, even today, we are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness. Through Christ we have been delivered from the slavery that sin held on us and are now slaves of righteousness, which is a good thing. Glory be to God!

Psalms 103:1-6 (102:1-6)

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And everything within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His rewards:
Who is merciful to all your transgressions,
Who heals all your diseases,
Who redeems your life from corruption,
Who crowns you with mercy and compassion,
Who satisfies your desire with good things;
And your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
The Lord shows mercies
And judgment to all who are wronged.

Encouraging Words

Those of us who are followers of Christ have so much to be thankful for. By following Him we become joint heirs with Him in all things, both earthly and heavenly. We become adopted children of God. God is merciful to us even when we transgress against Him. He heals our diseases, both physical and spiritual. He redeems our life from corruption and makes it pure again. He crowns us with His mercy and compassion. He satisfies our desires. He renews us and shows us mercy. Blessed be the Lord, O my soul!

Romans 6:11-12

Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.

Personal Challenge

Paul charges us to be alive to God in Christ Jesus by being dead to sin. This is an ongoing process that we need to do in order to make it true in our lives. We must learn to put our body and its desires to death every moment of every waking minute in order for it to be alive in Christ. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!