Being just like Dad… merciful. Luke 6:27-36
Progressing over time, with our cooperative effort, we see God more and more for Who He is, and in seeing Him, we see more and more who we are - at all, let alone to Him. And then, as we grow in character and into the full measure of what He is creating us to be, we begin to see others as God intended – through what they are, to what they could be, and treat others as they ought to be treated – as God's image in need of restoring and renewing, as we ourselves have been restored and are being renewed.
Mercy begets life and that life of mercy begets mercy
Titus 3:3-11 (Romans 2:1-4; 2Tim 2:14; Col 2)
3At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived, and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
9But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. 10Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them. 11You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful; they are self-condemned.
Luke 7:36-50. What does this mercy and changed life and life’s perspective look like in real-time? Loving much, because we have been forgiven much – mercy’s indelible mark.
Mercy’s perfection, being perfect just like dad… merciful: minds and hearts changed, a Spirit of divine seeing and acting… apprehended by God, I now strive to apprehend God – to see as God sees and act as God, our Father, acts – formed and informed by God’s Spirit of Truth, empowered to act with the mercy acted upon – me…
1Cor 3:9-16; Ephesians 5:1-20 yes, we have the Spirit of God who teaches us the heart of God, the source of divine intelligence, God’s mercy expressed, His Spirit’s enablement and empowerment through the work of Jesus. This Spirit is the source and substance of Divine intelligence… seeing through the eyes and heart of our Heavenly Father.
1Corinthians 3:9-16
“What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” —
the things God has prepared for those who love him—10these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.
The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. 13This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. 14The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. 15The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, 16for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
What does that Spirit compel us to do?
2Cor 5:11, 14-21
11Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience…
…14For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 16So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: a The old has gone, the new is here! 18All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21God made him who had no sin to be sin b for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
…and this Spirit/spirit of mercy enables us to see what the world cannot see. What we could not see before. Divine intelligence is what enables us to see God, come to trust God, place our faith in God, believe in God, and believe God, to trust God, and to obey God. Because we can see… we have knight and discernment into God and His intentions - looking for the good He will accomplish.
Divine intelligence helps us to see that God is triune - a community. There is a Father, a Son, and a Holy Spirit.
Divine intelligence allows us to see beyond the senses, and into the spiritual. Divine intelligence enables us to discern what is actually right and good and true and just and fair. (Proverbs)
Taken along by the Holy Spirit, it is God‘s word that illumines and validates our seeing for us, enabling us to apprehend God’s truth, governs our understanding, defines it for us, and the Spirit translates it for us, showing us how we can apply it to our lives and express to the lives around us.
One who has divine intelligence, in essence, begins to see creation through the lens of a designer, The Designer.
The one who has divine intelligence is able to attribute to God good things, that His word is true, hard to wrestle with sometimes, but ultimately good and beneficial.
Divine intelligence allows us to recognize God’s attributes and His invisible qualities, and then prompts us, compels us, and even leads us, to want the same attributes and qualities, not just because we are made in His image - and therefore have a semblance of them by nature of that fact - but knowing Christ, having that illuminating Spirit, we want even more, because we can see more - we see Jesus, know Jesus have been apprehended by Jesus, so now long to apprehend Jesus - we want to be the same, to work with the Spirit and Truth to be what we are being created to be, and eventually do what that new nature does - live Jesus’ life in us with mercy.
Attitude, and perspective, have much to do with how we view and treat others. How we see them, determines how we treat them, shows whether we actually believe God in his declaring love for the world, his desire for men to come to him, and recognize her privileged responsibility to demonstrate the mercy to others that we are Celtic received.
This is the renewed mind given the ability to discern God’s will, to accomplish the works prepared in advance for us to do which are always those with whom we share any and every encounter - again, as we cooperate with Him in His word and Spirit. (Gal 5)
Romans 12:2 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Ephesians 4:23 “be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
Colossians 3:10 “put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.”
By the Spirit of God, we are able to see this world, other people, ourselves, and God Himself, through the lens of that Spirit – putting it all together…. So, then, how do we treat people?
The precursor is to not see them for their sin or as their sin, but to see them as broken because of sin, and lost in their sin - Romans 2:4 - they cannot yet see or apprehend God and His grace and their lives are marked then by not living according to God’s design and will and purposes for them(selves) - ours is to reveal God to them and His dearie for them.
First, they have value - see them, each and all, as God's making.
Second, assume that they need mercy, grace, and love.
Third, assume kindness
Fourth, assume God‘s desire for them to draw near
Fifth, treat them with the mercy you’ve been treated. Dignify them as you would like to be dignified, love them as you were desired to be loved, treat them, the way you wanna be treated.
Finally, be prepared to give a reason for your help when you are asked Dash and we ask because you’ve lived in such a way as to be asked.
Kind
Approachable
Accessible
Humble
Colossians 3:12-17
