In October 29, the film Joker starring Joaquin Phoenix was released in the Philippine cinemas. Rather than being portrayed as a wicked and insane monster, Joker was shown as a human being with issues that many can identify to. Hard to reflect, had an incurable condition that caused him to laugh involuntarily. He also suffered from mental illness and relied on social services for his medication. It all went down when he was fired from his work as a clown for bringing a gun into a children’s hospital which was for his protection since strangers often beat him up, making fun of him because he is abnormal. Eventually, the city cut funding for social services leaving him with no access to his medication. And when he attempted to relaunch his career as a stand-up comedian he was filmed and it went viral, not because he was funny or it was funny, it is because he was made fun of the people watching him. He was then invited to a live TV program only to be humiliated by his hero, the reporter. Because of that, he grew angry and apathetic at society because he felt helpless and hopeless. And within that scene, Arthur’s words show the very intention of his action. I would just summarise it he said: “nobody thinks what it’s like to be the other guy. You think men ever think what it is like to be someone like me, to be someone but themselves, they don’t.”
In our passage this morning, we see the opposite. We see the King who is concerned about those who come to Him for help and faith of who He is and what He has done. He used his strength not to oppress but to help and to redeem. He sought their highest good that is to be reconciled with God to show Himself as our gentle and mighty King. Turn with me to our passage this morning. It’s Matthew chapter 8 verses 1 to 4. That’s Matthew chapter 8 verses 1 to 4. Hear now the word of God. When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”
May the Lord add blessing to the reading of His word.
Matthew chapter 4 verse 23 tells us that Christ’s ministry is comprised of preaching the gospel, teaching in the synagogues and healing every sickness and diseases among the people. Matthew Chapter 5, chapters 5 through 7 covers the preaching and teaching part which is commonly known as the Sermon on The Mount. And in this portion, Christ preaches what the kingdom stands for and what it stands against. Chapter 5 tells us that the characteristics of the kingdom heirs and a new dispensation of the law, which is not mere compliance but obedience grounded in love and gratitude towards God for who He is and what He has done. And this characteristics and the law expounded which makes believers salt and light finds Its fulfillment in the King Himself, that’s Jesus Christ. And in chapter 6, we learned of two things which can hinder our pursuit of holiness. That is hypocrisy and anxiety and the remedy for both as Christ prescribed is that our heavenly Father sees us, He knows us and cares for us. And as a result, our acts of righteousness must be done not to seek man’s approval but to seek God’s approval. Also we must pursue God’s kingdom and His righteousness with a single-minded devotion— not letting anyone or anything conquer our hearts but Christ. While also having a heavenly focus as we live in light of the life to come, storing up treasures in heaven. Lastly, in chapter 7 we learned how to judge correctly. Not by hypocritical condemnation that ignores our sins and empathises the sins of others, but by considering our weakness and unworthiness and so driving us to gently correct others. However, discernment must be used so that our gentleness won’t be abused. We are to apply the golden rule in our interactions with others— that is to treat others the same way we want them to treat you. And Christ illustrates and apply this using the two gates which tells us to judge our way of life and to enter the narrow gate of the Gospel. The two fruits which encourages us to judge who are the true followers of Christ by looking at their fruit. And lastly, the two foundations— the the sand and the rock which encourages us not only to be hearers of the word but doers of the word. And just as the narrative were used to transition from the first major sermon, that is in chapters one to three, it talks about the King’s birth and preparation then it transitions to the first major sermon, chapters eight through nine transitions to the second major sermon which is found in chapter 10. And in chapters eight through nine, Matthew compiles the miracles which was performed by Christ showing the compassion and authority of the King, demonstrated in His power over nature, the kingdom of darkness, diseases and death. Moreover, we will witness how the King embodies what He has preached in The Sermon on the Mount.
And this morning we will be tackling the first miracle listed on this chapter which is the Healing Of The Leper. So the Jews here we know that they followed strict laws of ritual, uh purity or ceremonial cleanness. A Jew needed to be ceremonially clean to protect the sanctity of the dwelling place of God. Being unclean is a shameful state. Anyone who is unclean must reside outside the camp. He cannot enter God’s sanctuary and must undergo certain purification procedure, yet this doesn’t have the power to make someone who is unclean become clean. The priests can only pronounce if one is clean or unclean and there was no cure for this condition. What makes someone ceremonial and clean are the sources of corruption. They are made unclean by eating unclean animals as food, bodily discharge such as menstruation and semen, childbirth or touching a corpse. However, the most serious condition is the one with skin disease or leprosy and the state of uncleanness will remain as long as he has that sickness. And the way one should behave is listed in Leviticus chapter 13 verses 45 to 46. Let me read that to you “The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.
See leprosy is a helpless and hopeless condition which symbolically illustrates our state as a sinner. It is disgusting, nakakadiri siya, corrupting us from the inside and separates us not only from others but also from God. Yet God extends mercy and compassion and this is the encompassing theme of our sermon this morning. My message for you is this: that God Demonstrates His Love And Power By Healing Our Helpless And Hopeless Condition. Pinapakita ng Diyos ang Kaniyang pagmamahal at ang Kaniyang kapangyarihan sa pamamagitan ng pagpapagaling sa ating lugmok at walang pag-asa na kalagayan. Pinapakita ng Diyos ang Kaniyang pagmamahal at ang Kaniyang kapangyarihan sa pamamagitan ng pagpapagaling sa ating lugmok at walang pag-asa na kalagayan.
To expound on this message, we’ll go through two points: one, Why Was Touching The Leper Important? That’s my first point, the Untouchable Touched. What did Christ prove by killing the leper? That’s my last point, the unclean cleansed.
Let’s consider the first point. You see in our passage that Christ touched the leper who was considered untouchable by the by the Jews at the time. So hinipo at hinawakan ni Kristo ang ketongin na itinuturing na hindi dapat hawakan ng mga Hudyo noong panahon na yun. You know, in history, Josephus, a Jewish priest, scholar and historian wrote that lepers were treated as if they were in effect, dead men. In the Middle Ages, they were treated as if they were already dead. Once a person is confirmed to have leprosy, a leprous banished from human society, hindi na siya pwedeng pumasok sa anumang city, makisalamuha sa tao. And funeral services were conducted and relatives can claim their inheritance. So if we were alive, when you have leprosy, you’re dead, figuratively and also physically. Why? The affected person would also look like someone who is dead yet still alive. Leprosy attacks the nerves that carries pain signals which makes the affected person lose any feeling of physical pain. The disease also causes the body to disfigure, twisting the limbs, yung mga braso niya, nagt- twist, curling of the fingers and thickening of the ear and collapsing of the nose so para siyang si Voldemort. But that is why it is called the Living Dead. You look like, you look like a dead person while you’re alive. And according to William Barclay’s daily Study Bible, in the time of Jesus, lepers were barred from entering Jerusalem or any walled towns. If a leper was so much as put his head into a house, that house will become unclean. Even in an open place it was illegal to greet a leper. No one no one might come nearer to a leper than four cubits and that is the size of a basketball player, six feet. And if the wind was blowing towards a person from a leper, the leper must stand at least 100 cubits away so like five persons na nakahiga away, ganun kalapit, hindi siya pwedeng lumapit sa mga tao. As Christ finished The Sermon on the Mount, He descends from the mountain and is followed by a great crowd. It was told in Luke’s account that a man covered with leprosy saw Jesus. He came to Him despite of the crowd and knelt before Him. Now, one can imagine how the leper felt as he ran towards Jesus. Maybe he was shouting Unclean! Unclean! And the crowd having a stigma in their culture, that no one should touch or even get near a leper would have hardly run away trying to distance themselves or maybe throw rocks at him. We can also observe that the leper came to Christ in faith and humility. Having heard of Christ’s healing every kind of disease throughout Galilee, he knew that if Jesus was willing, he will be healed. He came to Him and bowed before Him. He did not demand it to be healed but appealed on Christ’s willingness to heal. What Christ did next would have surprised the crowd. Jesus stretched out His hand, drew near to the leper and touched him and he says I am willing, be cleansed, or be clean. He could have healed him with just a word but He chose to touch the leper even though He would be rendered unclean according to the laws of ritual purity. Yet what happened was the opposite. Rather than the leper’s impurity transferring to Christ, Christ’s purity transfers to the leper. Note that Christ also sent the healed leper only to give the offering as prescribed by the laws of ritual purity but commanded him not to tell anyone. You see here that Christ really wanted to help that leper. You see that Christ doesn’t want his good deeds to be made known. This is to show us that God’s compassionate love for us is demonstrated by His willingness to bear our sin and uncleanness. Ang mahabaging pag-ibig ng Diyos ay makikita sa Kaniyang kagustuhan na pasanin ang ating kasalanan at karumihan. One can look at it this way, sa isang magaling at mabuting doktor, ang isang tao na may malalang sakit, maraming blisters sa katawan, nade-deform yung kamay, yung paa, yung mukha, sa iisang magaling at mabuting doktor, hindi ito bagay na dapat niyang pandirihan kundi isa siyang tao na nangangailangan ng kahusayan niya. O kaya sa isang magulang na may anak na may nakakahawang sakit, malubha at nakakahawang sakit, titignan ba ng isang mabuting magulang ang kaniyang anak bilang banta o pabigat sa kaniya? Siyempre hindi niya ito titignan bilang banta o pabigat kundi bilang tao at anak na nangangailangan ng tulong niya.
God’s compassion for sinners was first shown after the fall. When Adam and Eve sinned, they covered themselves with pig leaves, and God search for them. God clothed Adam and Eve’s nakedness and promised a Saviour who will redeem His people and ultimately defeat the Devil who deceived them. This promise finds Its fulfillment through Christ’s incarnation. Without Christ’s incarnation o pagkakatawang tao ni Kristo, atonement can never take place and this action also conveyed compassion. The son who is the second Person of the Trinity, assumed a form of a slave taking on the likeness of men subjected the temptations from without, not from within, because He is without sin and experienced human limitations. In other words, binaba Niya ng todo yung sarili Niya. Hebrews chapter 2 verse 17 tells us why. Therefore He had to be made like His brothers in every respect so that He might become a merciful and high faithful high priest in the service of God to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For what purpose? To make propitiation that is to appease God’s wrath. How? By bearing our sin and uncleanness through the person and work of Christ.
Now if you’re familiar with Christ baptism, this was all right already foreshadowed. This was foreshadowed symbolically at His baptism as the pure one was baptized in the muddy river of Jordan being treated like a sinner. And then again symbolically foreshadowed here in our passage being treated as unclean in the eyes of the crowd. Ultimately, Christ’s compassion is revealed in His crucifixion. God did not forgive sinners by turning a blind eye for that will make Him unjust. God forgave sinners by giving Himself through His Son. At the cross, Christ willingly suffered on behalf of sinners bearing not only the guilt of sin but also the shame of sin by dying in the most painful and most shameful way possible that is dying on the cross and satisfying the fullness of God’s wrath so that anyone who will trust in His person and work will be forgiven of their sins and be reconciled to God. That is the gospel. He did not wait for us to come to Him but He pursued us. While we were powerless under the slavery of sin, death and the devil considered the sinners and enemies of God. He died that we may be redeemed. And at the cross, the fullness of God’s justice is poured out on Christ. It is grace and mercy is offered to all through the preaching of the Gospel. That is why if you are not yet in Christ, I would like to ask you to repent and believe in the gospel that you may be saved. Turn away from your sins and turn to God in repentance and faith through the person and work of His Son, Jesus Christ. And if you are in Christ, how does God’s compassion affect us? Does this make us merely recipients only? No. We are not merely recipients of this compassion, but also imitators of His example.
This is the challenge for us then. Reflect God’s Compassion By Cultivating A Compassionate Heart. Salaminin ang habag ng Diyos sa pamamagitan ng Paglinang ng pusong mahabagin. Again, affliction caused by others, may it be sickness, conditions outside their control or problems that they have personally caused, these things often harden us and make us pessimistic. Nega na tayong makitungo sa kanila. Or sometimes apathetic, wala na tayong pakialam sa kanila. It makes us look at people as if they will not do any good to us. They are only a burden. On the other hand are advantages or privileges when compared to others who are not faring well, contribute to a proud outlook; that is when we see ourselves better than them.
However, we should not be cynical about other people’s imperfections and we shouldn’t be proud of our strengths. Rather it should humble us by making us aware of our own weaknesses and our own unworthiness. Making us more sensitive to the pain and suffering of others. One miracle, Galatians chapter 6 verse 2. What may also be familiar with John Newton, who was the famous pastor of Olney in London, a famous hymn writer known for the hymn Amazing Grace and if you read his works, one of the best pastoral letter writer of his time. His life before coming to Christ was that of a sailor who indulged on sinful pleasures, a slave trading captain who went on African Coast to capture and sell slaves for profit until an epileptic seizure ended his career. And when he knew or he understood the gospel, he changed. And at the tail end of his life, he suffered from dementia. And this life can be summarised by his own words, final recorded words and he said: “my memory is nearly gone but I remember two things that I am a great sinner and that Christ is a great Saviour.” And knowing that he is a great sinner and unworthy of God’s love, he described his life as a believer as follows: “he believes and fills his own weakness and unworthiness and lives upon the grace and pardoning love of his Lord. This gives him a habitual tenderness and gentleness spirit.” Siya ay naniniwala at nadarama niya ang sarili niyang kahinaan at pagiging hindi karapat-dapat at nabubuhay siya sa grasya at mapagpatawad na pag-ibig ng Panginoon. Nagbibigay ito sa kaniya ng palagiang pagmamalasakit at kahinahunan ng espiritu.
The question for us is do you see your weakness and unworthiness in light of the gospel? Or do you only see your strengths and advantages, looking at others weaknesses as if you are not weak and unworthy. When you look at others and see their weaknesses, do you see them as a burden and just neglect them or in light of the compassion you have received and experienced in Christ, do you try to carry that burden with them while seeking God’s enabling grace for you know that you can bear them on your own? Have you ever had a friend who was patient with you and carried your burden with you? When you’re unable to pray because you’re overwhelmed by your struggles, your shortcomings, your failures, they are praying for you. When you find it hard to read God’s word, they speak His word as an encouragement for you, reminding you of God’s goodness and faithfulness. When you seem to alienate yourself from others, they run after you. Christ is this and more. He’s our dear friend that sticks closer than a brother. His compassion does not end in His crucifixion, but continues after His resurrection. He’s seated as our mediator King who is our great Shepherd. He rules and reign over all things way up, but He prays for our protection and sanctification by His word that we may maintain unity with each other as believers and enjoy intimacy with our heavenly Father. He listens to our every cry for help, every prayer for forgiveness and need, kahit na minsan, paulit-ulit na iyon. He cares for us despite our weakness, our failures, our faithfulness.
God still treats us as sons and daughters in Christ through Christ’s mediation. And all these things Christ shows that He is the gentle and merciful King. One who truly loves His neighbour as self, treating people the same way He wants to be treated, yet it is seen as grace because we are unworthy of it. You have learned how Christ’s compassion teaches us to imitate His example.
Let us tackle the last point, The Unclean Cleansed. You can observe that Christ immediately healed a leper who had been deemed to be incurable. Agad na pinagaling ni Kristo ang ketongin na itinuturing noon na walang Lunas. Many believe that leprosy is a curse given by God to certain people because of their sin. Though we know that not all leprosy falls under this curse, or this case. It was shown firstly as a sign of rebellion against God. In second Chronicles chapter 26 verse 16 to 23, King Uzziah acting in pride entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense which is only to be done by the priests. The priests rebuked him and he became angry. Yet while he was enraged, leprosy broke out on his forehead and he lived as a leper to his death and lived in a separate house because he was cut from the house of the Lord. In all the Old Testament accounts of leprosy, only two cases of leprosy were healed. In the twelfth chapter in the book of Numbers, Miriam, one who has considered a prophetess, spoke against Moses’ leadership and exclaimed that God also speaks through her and Aaron. But in response, God struck her with Leprosy. She was healed as Moses interceded for her, but she stayed outside the camp for seven days. In second Kings chapter 5, Elisha healed Naaman, the commander of the king of Syria. But Naaman needed to wash in the dirt in muddy water of the Jordan River seven times. At first, he was reluctant to do it but eventually obeyed and was healed. And since it was a punishment from God, they believed, the Jews believed that only God could heal this disease. And in the account of Christ’s healing of the leper, it shows us that He’s the better Moses, and he’s better than Moses and Elisha for He healed the man not not by instructing them or praying for them but immediately by merely saying a word and touch. By this example, we also come to know that He is the better priest. We said earlier that priests can only say clean and unclean. They cannot make someone clean. That is what Christ did. He’s not only able to pronounce who is clean and unclean, but can transform anyone who is unclean to become clean. This is to show us that God demonstrates His power by providing a remedy for sin. Pinapakita ng Diyos ang Kaniyang kapangyarihan sa pamamagitan ng pagbibigay ng lunas sa kasalanan.
In C.S Lewis’ book The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, there is a character named Eustace. And he is selfish, greedy, spoiled and complains constantly katulad natin. He boards a ship with his cousins Lucy Edmund and the ship stops at an island where he wanders away from the crew and finds a dragon’s cave full of treasure. And Eustace, being the greedy kid, he begins putting the treasure in his pocket and plans to keep all these things as a secret. He tires himself out kasi ang rami nung treasures na nilagay niya dun sa pocket niya, napagod siya and falls asleep on the treasure. Only to wake up as a dragon. Eustace, the dragon eventually meets Aslan. Aslan the lion we know and gestures to follow him. Sabi ni Aslan, sundan mo ako. He guides Eustace to a public well, and with marble steps leading down into it and Aslan instructs Eustace to undress. So Eustace, being the dragon himself, he scratched himself. But the scales, yes, they fell off but then it began to grow again. The scales won’t go away. The more he scratches, the more he finds more scales. Then Aslan said you will have to let me undress you. Aslan, the lion, tears away at the scales to reveal the boy beneath. And this is an illustration for our salvation.
Only the grace of God in Jesus can free us from our sin. All of our efforts to remove it, to earn our way into heaven through good behaviour or anything else, are doomed to fail. Sabi ni Jeremiah chapter 13 verse 23, can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? The Ethiopian is a dark-skinned person so we know hindi pa na-imbento yung glutha noon, so hindi niya kayang mag- change ng skin. But, again, the point is he’s helpless. He concludes then that then also, you can do good who are accustomed to evil. Meaning, you, who are a accustomed to evil can never do what is good. We can stop sinning and even if we try to do good, it is still stained with sin. Sabi sa Isaiah chapter 64 verse 6, all our righteous deeds are filthy rags or in the literal translation, menstrual cloth or yung ginamit na napkin pag may menstruation.
Within human means, there is no cure for the guilt and shame of our sins. But God provides the remedy through the cross of Christ. In the cross, Christ was treated as a sinner. Sabi sa second Corinthians 5 21, for our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. The sins of His people are imputed to Christ and the righteousness of Christ is reputed to His people; and this is commonly called The Great Exchange. This is foreshadowed by the cleansing procedure in Leviticus 14 which assures that the cleansed person returns to the community with a complete and unquestioned blessing of purity, meaning he is so assured that he is clean.
According to Warren Wiersbe, it is a beautiful picture of Christ’s work for sinners. If you’re familiar with this, purification procedure, there are two birds, one bird is killed in the northern vessel, there are some other stuff dipped inside that earthen vessel. Then another bird, the other bird was thrown away and then the leper is then declared clean. Then he will wait, he will shave every hair of his body, then after that, he will offer the guilt offering that is a a ram. Now sabi ni Wiersbe, the the bird’s slain pictures the death of Christ, the bird released pictures His resurrection. Putting the bird into a jar, the earthen vessel pictures the Incarnation. When Christ took a human body that He might die for us. The application of the blood to the ear, thumb, toe, illustrates the need for the personal faith in his death. The oil on the blood reminds us of the Spirit of God who enters the person when he trusts the Saviour.
If you’re also familiar with the consecration of Aaron, the high priest, this is somewhat the same. The offering specific to the cleansing of the leper treats the leper like that of a consecrated high priest. Putting blood and oil in the ear, symbolising to listen, right thumb symbolism for worship and service, right big toe, to walk is to consecrate, to clean that person. And this is to show that Christ is the fulfillment of Zechariah 13 Verse 1, the fountain opened to cleanse sinners from sin and uncleanness. What happens? The blood of Christ washes our sins away, forgiving every sin past, present and future, and at the same time is righteousness clothes us, justifying us, declaring us righteous in the sight of God. And this is something we often forget when temptations overcome us, when problems overwhelm us. That is why the challenge for us is this: Increase Your Love And Assurance By Beholding The Glory Of The Mighty Crucified And Risen Christ. Linangin ang iyong pag-ibig at katiyakan sa pamamagitan ng pagtingin sa kaluwalhatian ng Makapangyarihan, napako sa krus at muling nabuhay na si Kristo.
Apostle Paul in the eighth chapter of Romans moves our gaze away from ourselves when we are accused by the devil and leads us to look at Christ through the questions that he asked. Ano yung mga tanong na yon? Romans 8 31-35. What then shall we say to these things if God is for us who can be against us? He who did not spare His Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died. More than that, who was raised who is on the right hand of God who indeed is interceding for us? And lastly, who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness dangerous sword? Nothing can separate us from the love of God. Question for us is how do we see ourselves in light of the integrity and sufficiency of Christ’s person and work? Whenever we fall into temptation, do we wallow in our sin? Do we feel powerless against our daily struggle with sin? Do we think that Christ’s mercy is not enough and Spirit, the same Spirit which empowered Him in His early life is enough? Whenever a love for Him grows cold, do we doubt our relationship with Him and think that His love for us has changed? Or do we rekindle our love for Him by meditating on His love for us? Look to Christ and inflame your heart with His mercy and love. Find assurance amidst your doubts, unbelief or accusations of the enemy. Be empowered as we depend on His strength, by His word. Have hope in your ongoing battle against sin and be secured in the rock that is Christ by reminding yourself of the Gospel. That is you preach to yourself the gospel over and over again, thinking of His love, thinking of His word, thinking of His person. Si Tony Reinke, in his book “Newton on the Christian Life” tells us that for John Newton ,looking to Christ is the great duty of the Christian Life. Newton writes this life of faith looking to Christ and treasuring Him is one great duty that simplifies the Christian life. Sobrang simple ng instruction niya na if if you are struggling with hope doubt sin anything you are to look to Christ. And in one of Newton’s sermon, he gives us a direction on how we are we who are struggling with sin are to Behold The Glory of Christ that we may that we may find hope and assurance increasing our love for God as well live the Christian life. Let me read his quote; says here: “look unto the Lord Jesus Christ. Look unto Him. He hung naked, wounded, bleeding, dead and forsaken upon the cross. Now, look unto Him again as He now reigns in glory, possessed of all power in heaven and in earth with thousands of thousands of saints and angels worshiping before Him and ten thousand times ten thousand ministering unto Him. And then compare your sins with His blood. Compare your wants with His fullness; your unbelief with His faithfulness, your weakness with His strength, your inconstancy with His everlasting love. Sa Tagalog, tignan mo ang Panginoong Hesukristo. Tumingin sa Kaniya habang Siya ay nakabitin na hubad, sugatan, duguan, patay at iniwan ng marami sa krus. Tumingin ka muli sa Kaniya habang Siya ngayon ay naghahari sa kaluwalhatian na taglay ang lahat ng kapangyarihan sa langit at sa lupa kasama ang libu-libong mga banal at anghel na sumasamba sa Kaniyang harapan. At sampung libo ulit ng sampung libo na naglilingkod sa Kaniya at pagkatapos, ihambing mo ang iyong kasalanan, ang iyong mga kasalanan sa Kaniyang dugo, ang iyong mga pangangailangan sa Kaniyang kapunuan at ang iyong kawalan ng pananampalataya sa Kaniyang katapatan, ang iyong kahinaan sa Kaniyang lakas, ang iyong hindi kapabagu- baguhan sa Kaniyang walang hanggang pag-ibig.
See how instructive that is to us. When we look at ourselves, we know that, sabi ng ibang theologians, if we look to ourselves, we know that we can lose our salvation. But we depend upon the integrity in person; integrity and sufficiency of the person and work of Christ.
In conclusion, kingdom heirs healed and redeemed by the gospel are to be filled or to be full of hope and compassion. Hope that our sin will never be accounted to us, hope that love is poured out to us in Christ, hope that no one will ever break this new relationship we have with God, and hope to wage war against the sin that remains in us. And as one who experience the grace which gives us hope, we are to be gentle and kind to those who are lost and suffering, reflecting the compassion of our compassionate Saviour.
Let us pray. Our gracious God and Father, we praise You that You have given to us our gentle and mighty King. We know that it is hard to cultivate a compassionate heart because we are often selfish. We ask Lord God that You may renew our hearts, renew our mind and convictions that we may extend compassion and cultivate this grace that we may bear one another’s burdens in love, enabled by your Spirit. Help us also to remind ourselves the gospel in times of doubt, unbelief, struggles, failures, help us to look to Christ, our all sufficient King who has redeemed us. Guide us Lord God in the remaining day, the remaining time of day. So sustain us Lord. In Jesus’ Name we pray, amen.