25 Days Of Christmas (Day 4: His Endless Mercy)

Day 4 in our 25 Days Of Christmas, I want us to go to Lamentations 3:21-24...

"But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him.” -Lamentations 3:21-24

One of the single most seemingly absurd and scandalous truths of God is that His mercy is never ending!! Limitless!! Inexhaustible!! There simply is not depth so deep or height so high to outreach or outstretch the grace of God!!

Many people think this is how God became after the death of Jesus and that He was completely different in the OT. They see God, before Jesus, as a harsh and cruel Overseer scowling at humanity with an itchy trigger finger on the "Lightning Bolt Button" and a gruff "Make My Day" look that would make Dirty Harry look like hister-skinny jeans-turtle neck wearing worship pastor.

Yet this amazing set of verses highlighting the amazing mercy of God towards His people is found in the Old Testament!! Not only that, it's found in one of the more depressing times of the OT when His people have been particularly disobedient!! Yet still, God is shown to be infinitely merciful and gracious!! God has always been infinitely merciful and gracious from start to finish!!

So what...How does this relate to Christmas?? How do these old verses relate to Jesus being born??

Jesus being born was God's amazing mercy and grace incarnate!! He was here!! He was with us!! He was touchable and seeable and could be heard and even smelled (I bet Jesus smells good btw)!! He was "REAL"!! He was Immanuel meaning "God with us".

The game-changer is this:

Because Jesus came..Because He was born a baby in a manger...Because He grew up fully man and fully God...Because He lived the perfect life and died the perfect death for sin...Because He became Immanuel...We know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Lamentations is true...His mercies never come to an end!! His love knows no bounds!! He is completely faithful!!

Today let's celebrate the promise that Christmas brings!! Let's celebrate the fact that God is with us!! Let's celebrate that through Christ we have living proof that God's mercy and grace have no bounds!! Let's celebrate the fact that even in our circumstances and sinful nature, Christ came and lived and died for us...And it all started with Christmas!!

"Love one another." -Jesus