Knowing God.

Understanding And Appreciating The Mercy Of God.

What I feel is a very important step in knowing God is understanding why Jesus died for us. That literally explains the mercy of God. Truly understanding why Jesus died will help us appreciate God's mercy towards us.

As my relationship with God grew,  I realized I didn't know that truth. The truth about His death. I only heard multiple times that He died for our sins. That He restored the broken relationship and all that. What exactly did that mean? I never understood it. So, I asked around but didn't get the answer I was looking for. There's a way you'll feel when you know that an answer isn't satisfying. Well, that's how I felt and that bothered me.

Thankfully, through the Holy Spirit, I finally got the answer I was looking for. A full detailed explanation given by God. That's why it's truly the best to seek God for yourself. Whatever He does, He does completely. Anyways, I'd love to share that knowledge with all of you. There's no way I can keep it to myself.

Let's start from the beginning, shall we?(By beginning, I mean when man sinned).

Genesis 3:22: Then the Lord God said, “Now the man has become like one of us and has knowledge of what is good and what is bad. He must not be allowed to take fruit from the tree that gives life, eat it, and live for ever.”

Man sinned... Making God angry and separating him from God. His sin destroyed the close relationship that God had with man.

Genesis 12:2
[2]I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing.
Genesis 15:6,18
[6]Abram put his trust in the Lord, and because of this the Lord was pleased with him and accepted him.
[18]Then and there the Lord made a covenant with Abram...

God made a covenant with Abraham because He was pleased with him. He made Abraham's descendants God's people. That is, the Israelites. The sign of this covenant was the circumcision.

Genesis 17:10: You and your descendants must all agree to circumcise every male among you. Genesis 17:14: Any male who has not been circumcised will no longer be considered one of my people, because he has not kept the covenant with me.

Here, the males who were not circumcised were to be removed from God's people—the Israelites.
Now we know that sin separated man from God, but God chose Israel to be His nation... Not other nations. Only the Israelites were God's people, only the Israelites could call Him God.
The Israelites, although God's people, sinned against Him. Their sin is the means through which other nations had the chance of salvation.

Romans 11:11-12
[11]I ask, then: when the Jews stumbled, did they fall to their ruin? By no means! Because they sinned, salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make the Jews jealous of them.
[12]The sin of the Jews brought rich blessings to the world, and their spiritual poverty brought rich blessings to the Gentiles. Then, how much greater the blessings will be when the complete number of Jews is included!

Jesus died to include us non-Israelites as God's people. He died to restore the broken relationship between man and God. They say God can bring blessing out of a bad situation. This is the blessing we have. God has always given us the freedom to make our own choices. The Israelites chose to sin against God, but what did God do? He used their sin to bring about salvation for us all. For every nation. This shows how merciful God is, for by Christ's death, we were given the chance to have everlasting life if we believe and accept Him. This is what it means when Scripture says, 'We are put right with God'

Romans 3:24-25
[24]But by the free gift of God's grace all are put right with him through Christ Jesus, who sets them free.
(25-26) God offered him, so that by his blood he should become the means by which people's sins are forgiven through their faith in him... In this way God shows that he himself is righteous and that he puts right everyone who believes in Jesus.

See this? Keywords: All Are Put Right With Him Through Christ. All, not some. Through Christ, we can talk to God, not through our goodness or sacrifices, through Christ. It's God's mercy, His gift to us. We didn't do anything to get this, which is why it's a gift... Which is why it's His mercy.

So then, shall we continue in sin because we know that God's mercy, through Christ's death is upon us to forgive us our wrongs? By no means!
The scripture in Romans 11: 16-25 explains why we shouldn't take advantage of His mercy just because the sin of the Jews made room for us but continue to live in His kindness.
Instead, we should appreciate God's gift to us by accepting Jesus in our lives and letting God's Holy Spirit influence us totally.

John 3:16 – For God so loved the world that He have His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish big have everlasting life.

Repent and escape damnation. Accept God's gift and dwell in His perfect love.

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If you have any questions for me, don't hesitate to ask and I'll pray to the Father that I'll answer you honestly. Stay Blessed.