The next two virtues, or qualities of Gods wisdom, that the book explores are MERCIFUL and FRUITFUL. The opposite of merciful is merciless. The perversion is to be indulgent. We also find indulgence frequently within the body of Christ. Item times we equate mercy with compassion. The fact that Jesus frequently repeated healings shows a profound sympathy for the suffering, impaired and hurt. In spite of official opposition He was determined to heal. 1 He entered again into a synagogue; and a man was there whose hand was withered. 2 They were watching Him to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. 3 He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and come forward!” 4 And He said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5 After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. Mark 3:1-5 Mathew frequently mentions the compassion that a large crowd aroused in Jesus. 36 Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. 14 When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. 32 And Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “I feel compassion for the people, because they have remained with Me now three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.” Mathew 9:36, 14:14, 15:32 To quote the author, I believe the years of Lazaruss tomb were partially a result of the empathy He felt for Mary and Martha. Through Jesus we know the compassionate heart of God, yet never to be marred by indulgence. James 3:16 tells us that Gods wisdom is fruitful. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. James 3:17 The term fruitful can be applied to the Spirit or to the fruit of our witness for Christ. The opposite is fruitless and that is dangerous. Jesus was the most fruitful man who ever lived. He drew thousands of people to Himself and possessed the fruit of the Spirit. He changed the course of world history. His followers numbered in the millions if not billions. The perversion is to be obsessed with numbers. To quote the author, God blesses few persons with an all consuming desire to win souls for Christ, and these become fruitful people. The obsession, as an obsession, is relatively rare. It occurs only in persons preoccupied with numbers at the expense of genuine conversion. For the sake of effective witness, we avoid that perversion. Have you ever thought about this; earlier the author said that Jesus changed the course of world history. Did he ever! The actual calendar of time or record of time was changed according to when he died. No other individual, who is claimed to have been God in flesh or from God, has ever changed history the way Jesus Christ did. Not Muhammad, not Buddha, not a single God that humanity has worshipped; ONLY JESUS CHRIST, the one TRUE AND LIVING GOD! The only one to have beaten the sting of death and risen from the grave to live forever! If anyone out there doubts what I just said, I humbly challenge you to seek after God, read His word and pray that He will reveal Himself to you. I am willing to bet that You will get to know Him intimately! Have a wonderful day!
Posted on: Wed, 19 Nov 2014 05:25:10 +0000
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