Grace, The Lord’s Nature

"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go and sin no more." John 8: 11

Some religious teachers and leaders brought in a woman caught in adultery to the Lord Jesus Christ. They made her stand before the crowd and said to the Lord Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing the Lord Jesus (Read John 8: 1-6). But the Lord Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with His finger. When they kept on questioning Him, He straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." John 8: 7. Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

Those who heard what the Lord said began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. The Lord Jesus straightened up and graciously asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" John 8:10. And humbly the woman said "No one, sir," And again The Lord Jesus with full of compassion and grace said to the women, "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go and sin no more." John 8: 11.

What a nature and character of our Lord Jesus Christ. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees are a symbol of religiousness. The religiousness looks holy and godly but it tried to kill the sinner without any second chance or hope. No mercy or grace was extended to the adulterous woman. But the Lord Jesus extended His mercy, compassion and grace to the hopeless and sinful person.

See the first part of the verse, "Then neither do I condemn you". These few words proved the very nature and the heart of our Lord Jesus Christ; His forgiving nature and compassionate heart towards the lost. After the Lord extended His grace and forgiveness to the adulterous woman, then He gave her the command of what to do next, "Go and sin no more."

Why He extended His grace (Then neither do I condemn you) first before the comment (Go and sin no more)? Dearest, it is only by His grace we can do His commandment and live a holy life for Him. Only through His strength and His beauty we can walk in His Holiness. It is not by our strength or our will power. It is simply because of Lord Jesus Christ. If you are able to understand the very nature of the Lord Jesus, you will have an exciting journey of life with the Lord Jesus who is full of love, mercy, compassion and grace.

The Heart Of Lord Jesus

When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry." Luke 7:13

I may not understand what you are going through in this life right now but allow me to say this to you. The Lord Jesus who has a compassionate and a graceful heart knows you so well. It is because you are extremely special in His eyes. Whether you realize it or not, the loving Lord Jesus keeps you in the beautiful place of His heart. The world and the people may reject you but the Lord will never let you go from the palm of His gentle hands. He knows what your situation is right now and He saw everything.

The love of God never recognizes skin colors, gender, status or language. His heart always goes out for everyone, even for those who do not know Him. This is what happened to the widow who lost her only son. The Lord Jesus was on His way to a town called Nain, and His disciples and a large crowd went along with Him. As He approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out – the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. Then the Bible says, "When the Lord saw her, His heart went out to her and He said, "Don't cry." Luke 7:13. Then He went up and touched the coffin. He said, "Young man, I say to you, get up!" Luke 7:13. And the Bible says, "The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother." Luke 7: 15.

Look at the heart of the Lord Jesus Christ, even the widow who does not know Him but the Lord was moved when He saw her crying for her dead son. See carefully the last verse of Luke 7:15, "and Jesus gave him (son) back to his mother". Not only He has compassion to the widow but the Lord was able to bring back the great lost for the widow again. In other words, the gracious and the merciful God is able to fix the issues of life in His own wonderful ways.

Dearest, as how the Lord has compassion to the widow, He, the unchanging Lord has the same compassion for all of us today. And as how He sees the widow, the never changing Lord sees you in the same way. His heart will always move for you and the Lord wants you to know that you are deeply cared for and greatly loved by Him. No matter what you have gone through in life and regardless of what you are facing right now, it is time for the "Don't cry" because He wants to fix your situation. Your mourning season has come to the end. Be glad and start to praise Him.

Today's Prayer,

Dear Father God, thank You so much for everything. Lord I am so thankful for the greatness of Your heart, for the compassion of Your heart, for the grace of Your heart and for the love of your heart. I praise You for who You are, my Lord. I surrender all my heartbreaks into Your loving hand. For You alone are my heart's strength. Thank You, Lord. In Jesus Name' Amen.

Lord, You Are Everything…

"But what about you? He asked Him. "Who do you say I am?" Mark 8:29

The Lord was not so concerned about what the rest was saying about Him, but He was concerned about what His own disciple (Peter) says about Him (Mark 8:29). If today, someone asked you, "who do you say Jesus is", what will your answer be? Will you be saying He is just J.E.S.U.S? How will you address Him?

As far as I know, the Lord is your "Everything". He is the only One who truly understands you. He alone knows all your struggles and pains in this life. If you are having sickness in your body, then I would say He is your "Great Healer". The experts might give you a very discouraging report but the Lord's report will always say, "I am your Healer". He took all your sickness and was punished on the cross of Calvary so that you can be healthy again. He was wounded so that you might live again, "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed". Isaiah 53:5.

If you are facing lacking in any of the areas in your life, then I would say that He is your "Generous Provider". He gave away everything for you and humbly went to the Cross of Calvary just for your sake. He became poor so that you might have abundance in this life, "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich ". 2 Corinthians 8:9.

Besides that, He is your "Good Shepherd" who cares for you so much. He is always there for you to make sure everything goes well for you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. The Lord guards you as a good shepherd guards his own sheep, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul. Psalms 23:1-3.

Above all, He is the "Savior" of your soul. The Lord willingly sacrificed Himself on the cross of Calvary so that you might live again. His death on the cross brought us forgiveness and redemption from sin. There is no being in this world that would willingly sacrifice their life for you and me. The Lord Jesus alone has done a great work on the cross for you and me. Dearest, our words are not enough to say about Him, for He is so great. He alone is your "Everything".