The Tender Heart of God

The Tender Heart of God

God's love is totally beyond anything we can imagine. It is the passionate, compassionate, consistent and persistent love of the Creator for His children. And now this morning we open our Bibles to find our attention directed to the denunciation of godlessness, the condemnation of foolish wisdom, the articulation of the laws of atonement and the description of the final righteous judgement of God.

Psalm 53 likely never tops the "My favourite verse" lists. It is often read as harsh and wrath filled; it carries an even harder understanding if we approach it with our own self righteousness and pride. So today we must try to surrender ourselves before God's perfect and holy righteousness and then hear what is being said.

In many ways today God's Love, Mercy and Grace are being given context. Do not hear these texts as the self righteous preacher declaring "THEY are corrupt, THEY commit abominable acts; THEY do no good!  God's wrath is coming - Hallelujah!" Neither should we hear our own arrogant self confidence shouting "they... they ... they" and imagine our finger pointed at "them."

To hear God rightly we must remember the Father who runs to embrace his son, that shepherd who risks all to rescue the one, that woman who searches tirelessly. We are deserving of wrath - there certainly is no question of this. But that makes God's Love all the more wonderful! God's wrath is for what separates us from Him - and that wrath is terrible! But for us His Love, Mercy and Grace seek our restoration. The curtain has been rent and we can look upon God - if we truly believe Jesus is the Christ then we can know the tender heart of God - if Jesus is our Saviour then we can see the Light shining in the darkness drawing us into God's warmth and loving embrace. "I am corrupt, I commit abominable acts, I do no good, I deserve God's coming wrath." Yet my Saviour lives! He is Jesus the Christ! In Him I have received salvation! On His word I stand and to His work I am called.

God is Love; A love indescribable. Let us read the hard passages always knowing that in them and beyond them is the compassionate heart of God the Father, the Loving way of God the Son and the persistent desire of God the Holy Spirit. Let us surrender all that "I am" and all that "I have" so that all might come before God and sing “Hallelujah!" For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns - let us go into the world and reflect God's Love and Light. Amen

Good Good Father