Orange Moon March 30, 2026 “Mercy: Abiding and Availing”

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

"Mercy: Abiding and Availing" 

    

     Our memory verse this week declares the marvel of abiding mercy, namely, "His mercy is everlasting."

    Mercy, of course, speaks to God's character and disposition to forgive.  How everlasting is this goodness of heart and bestowal of pardon?  This everlasting…

    "Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin" (Romans 4:8).

    Though the Lord Jesus Christ, God forgives those who believe to the degree He will not place sins on our account in any manner that might jeopardize our relationship with Him.  This does not simply involve a desire of His heart, vast as that is.  "He delighteth in mercy" (Micah 7:18).  Our Father rather relates to believers through the redeeming work of the Christ who "bore our sins" on the cross of Calvary, and was "made… to be sin for us" (I Peter 2:24; II Corinthians 5:21).  Bearing sins the Lord Jesus bore for us would indict His atoning work as less than adequate in God's sight to fulfill His righteousness and provide for our need.  This cannot occur…

    "This man, after He had made one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God" (Hebrews 10:22).

    "'We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Christ once for all" (Hebrews 1010).

    The Christ "made to be sin for us" is also "made unto us righteousness" (I Peter 2:24; II Corinthians 5:21; I Corinthians 1:3).  Our Heavenly Father will not impute sin to any heart enrobed with the righteousness of His beloved Son.  The Lord Jesus' atoning work is so complete and effectual in His sight that He views us through the lens of Christ, as it were.  Thus, "His mercy is everlasting" because the Lord Jesus "ever liveth to make intercession for us" (Romans 7:25).

     Without jeopardizing His relationship to us, our Father does "chasten and scourge every son whom He receiveth" (Hebrews 12:6).  As necessary, He administers discipline that is actually no less His mercy than pleasant blessing.  If God did not discipline believers, He would violate His integrity.  He would fail to fulfill our greatest need of being progressively conformed to the spiritual and moral image of the Lord Jesus (Romans 8:28-29).  Neither neglect is possible, based on our Lord's perfect character and way.  Thus, a secured relationship through everlasting mercy means that in this present life, the rod of correction accompanies the mercy of abiding relationship with God through Christ.

    Scripture commands believers to "confess our sins" in order to receive the forgiveness of restored fellowship with our Father rather than relationship (I John 1:9).  The latter abides forever; the former ebbs and flows during our earthly sojourn.  We require the assurance of everlasting mercy regarding relationship, and the application of applied mercy regarding fellowship.  God provides both in abundant measure through the person and work of the Lord Jesus.  We must understand the distinction regarding the mercy that assures our eternity with God, and avails for our walk with Him in this present life.

"Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for He is good.  For His mercy endureth forever."

(Psalm 106:1)

"When I said, My foot slippeth; Thy mercy, O Lord, held me up."

(Psalm 94:18)

Weekly Memory Verse 

    For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations.

(Psalm 100:5)

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Orange Moon Sunday, March 29, 2026. "Four Words"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

(For Ellie)

"Four Words" 

    

     Four one syllable words - "the Lord is good" - occur seven times in the Old Testament of the Bible.  Born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ affirm their truth with all our hearts, while knowing that even eternity will not allow our full discovery of the glory and meaning.

    One passage in the New Testament - one among many, actually - particularly rings with the glory of God's goodness:

    "But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace ye are saved,  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:4-10).

    Moses asked to see God's glory.  The Lord responded, "I will make all My goodness pass before thee" (Exodus 33:19).  Certainly, "glory" can be defined in countless ways.  However, the most direct Biblical affirmation is found in this declaration of character and nature of goodness.  Who our Lord is in heart most declares His essence, disposition, and way, revealing why the first command to us involves our hearts' primary reason for existence, namely, to respond to Him in kind:

    "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment" (Mark 12:30).

    "We love Him because He first loved us" (I John 4:19).

    Such consideration ever and always leads us to Calvary.  There, amid the blackest depths of all darkness, the light of "the Lord is good" shined most brightly.  For His enemies, God smote His beloved Son with untold sorrow, agony, grief, forsakenness, and death (Romans 5:10).  The Lord Jesus willingly gave Himself to the wrath of divine judgment against unrighteousness, bearing our sins, and in a mystery never to be understood by human minds, "made to be sin for us" (I Peter 2:24; II Corinthians 5:21).  The Lord is good?  With all due respect to His perfect and wondrous Word, how does this even begin to say it as it could and should be said? 

     As our Heavenly Father so often does, His gifts come to us in ways inconspicuous and seemingly insignificant, but which glimmer with eternally consequential glory.  Four words.  The Lord is good.  Four words that will require forever to even begin discovery of their meaning and impact on our existence.   Thankfully, for believers, the journey has begun and continues in this day.  How will our Lord reveal to us His goodness before we lay our heads to rest tonight?  We shall see, as we believe (Matthew 8:13).  May we all join Moses - "Show me Thy glory."  Doubtless, our Father will joyfully respond, "I will make all My goodness pass before Thee."

There is no end to the quest we know,

forever beckons on.

For we soar in skies so bright and blue,

above all clouds and storm.

Yes, we fly into the heart of God, 

as in His Son we trust,

and earth will soon be nothing more

than long forgotten dust.

So spread your wings and catch the wind,

o journeyman of hope,

and race toward horizons blessed

with those who also know

That the quest of hearts is Jesus,

He is our shining sun,

it matters not how far we've come…

the Journey's just begun.

"The Lord is good."

(Psalm 34:8; Psalm 100:5; Psalm 135:3; Psalm 145:9; Jeremiah 33:11; Lamentations 3:25; Nahum 1:7)

Weekly Memory Verse 

    For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations.

(Psalm 100:5)

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