“OUR GRACIOUS AND MERCIFUL LORD”
PSALM 103:8-14
INTRO: Friends, God is truly good to all. As Psalm 100:5 tells us—“For the
LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all
generations.” He has revealed Himself to us by His grace. Titus
2:11-14 tells us—“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath
appeared to all men, For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath
appeared to all men, Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious
appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ; Who gave
himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify
unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” The Lord is
always full of compassion. The Scripture speaks much about the
great mercy of God and we have all experienced it. Psalm 86:5, 15
says—“For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in
mercy unto all them that call upon thee…But thou, O Lord, art a God
full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy
and truth.” And in our text, the psalmist said in v8—“The LORD is
merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.”
David, in this Psalm, rejoices over the graciousness and mercy of our
Lord. He calls on his soul, and all its faculties and powers, to magnify
God for his mercies. Listen to what David says in vv. 1-2—“Bless the
LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless
the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.” He says to “bring
them to mind, emphasize the chief of them, and speak of them
always.” Friends, we all have much to praise God for! He is been so
gracious and merciful to each and every one of us! Our blessings
always outnumber our burdens! Our triumphs outweigh our
troubles. Our pleasures overshadow our pains. God is so good!
I want to share with you this morning some of the blessings we enjoy
because of OUR GRACIOUS AND MERCIFUL LORD. Note with me
that…
(1) GOD DOES NOT CONSTANTLY REMIND US OF OUR PAST
PSALM 103:8-9—“The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and
plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will he keep
his anger for ever.”
A. HE FORGIVES. Forgiveness is one of the greatest blessings that God gives
unto us. As I noted earlier, the psalmist said—“For thou, Lord, art good, and
ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.”
(Psalm 86:5). David said in v3 that we should praise the Lord because He
“forgiveth all thine iniquities…”. The pardon granted is a present one –
forgiveth; it is continual, for he still forgiveth; it is divine, for God gives it; it
is far reaching, for it removes all our sins. (Charles Spurgeon. The Treasury of David. eSword. Version 9.0.3. Copyright 2000-2009. Rick Meyers. All Rights Reserved Worldwide).
B. HE FORGETS. David says in v9—“He will not always chide: neither will he
keep his anger for ever.” God is not continually reminding us of our past
failures and sins. The word “chide” means “to contend”. Aren’t you glad
God does not deal with us like many who call themselves our friends? If
God dealt with us like some deal with us, where would we be? What hope
would we have? No the Bible says that God forgives and then chooses to
forget. In Hebrews 8:12 the Lord promises—“For I will be merciful to their
unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.”
And Hebrews 10:17 the Lord says—“And their sins and iniquities will I
remember no more.” All of this we enjoy because of God’s mercy that was
given to us through Jesus Christ!
(2) GOD DOES NOT CRUELLY REPAY US FOR OUR SINS
PSALM 103:10—“He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded
us according to our iniquities.”
A. HE OPERATES BY GRACE. David said—“He hath not dealt with us after
our sins…”. God does not give us what we deserve. We deserve hell but by
grace we are given heaven. We deserve death but by grace we are given life.
We deserve justice but by grace we are given mercy. Aren’t you glad that
“He hath not dealt with us after our sins…” ? God’s grace is not given on
our merits nor is His mercy extended to us because of our goodness. The
truth of the matter is that none of us are good! Romans 3:10 tells us—
“There is none righteous, no, not one.”
B. HIS OBJECTIVE IS GODLINESS. God’s design and desire in extending us
grace and mercy is we might be holy as He is holy. 1 Peter 1:15 says—“But
as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of
conversation.” Holiness should be the desire and duty of every believer. We
should be holy at all times, in all affairs, and towards all people.
GOD DOES NOT CONSTANTLY REMIND US OF OUR PAST, GOD DOES NOT
CRUELLY REPAY FOR OUR SINS, but…
(3) GOD DOES COMPLETELY REMOVED OUR SINS
PSALM 103:11-12—“For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great
is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from
the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”
A. HE HAS REMOVED OUR SINS. As the east and the west will never meet
in one point but are forever the same distance from each other, so our sins
and the punishment of them are removed to an eternal distance because of
His mercy. Micah 7:18-19 says—“Who is a God like unto thee, that
pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his
heritage? He retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.
He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our
iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” I love
that phrase in used in Micah 7:19—“…thou wilt cast all their sins into the
depths of the sea.” Friends, that means He will fully pardon them, and
never more remember them against us!
ILLUS: A pastor’s son and his mom had been to a shopping mall and the
boy had acted badly, wanting this and that, running off, etc. As
they were driving home, he could sense her displeasure and said,
“When we ask God to forgive us when we are bad, He does, doesn’t
He?” His mother replied, “Yes, He does.” The boy continued, “And
when he forgives us, He buries our sins in the deepest sea, doesn’t
He?” The mom replied, “Yes, that’s what the Bible says.” The boy
was silent for awhile and then said, “I’ve asked God to forgive me,
but I bet when we get home, you’re going to go fishing for those
sins, aren’t you?”
Too often, we do “go fishing” for other people’s sins that God has
already buried. (Illustrations Unlimited. Copyright © 1988 by James S. Hewett. All Rights
Reserved.).
ILLUS: Corrie ten Boom, in her book Tramp for the Lord had these words to
say regarding forgiveness:
“It was 1947.…I had come from Holland to defeated Germany with
the message that God forgives. It was the truth they needed most to
hear in that bitter, bombed-out land, and I gave them my favorite
mental picture. Maybe because the sea is never far from a
Hollander’s mind, I like to think that that’s where forgiven sins are
thrown. ‘When we confess our sins,’ I said, ‘God casts them into the
deepest ocean, gone forever.…Then God places a sign out there that
says No Fishing Allowed!’” (Illustrations Unlimited. Copyright © 1988 by James S. Hewett.
All Rights Reserved.).
B. HE HAS REDEEMED OUR SOUL. David said in v4 that we are to bless the
Lord because it is He “Who redeemeth thy life from destruction…”.
Ephesians 1:7 says—“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the
forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.” Colossians 1:14
tells us—“In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the
forgiveness of sins.” These words assert in the clearest manner that our
liberation from the penalty and bondage of sin comes through Christ’s
death upon the cross. (BEET'S NOTES ON ROMANS THROUGH COLOSSIANS & PHILEMON, VOLUMES
1-4 by Joseph Agar Beet. The Master Christian Library Version 5. Copyright 1997. AGES Software. Albany, OR).
ILLUS: Nothing could be clearer than the teaching of the New Testament as
to the effect of the death of our Lord on the cross. According to it,
that death is the means of eternal salvation to believing people;
through that sacrifice they obtain the Divine forgiveness; Christ did
something on the cross which was of vital importance for mankind
and which we could never have done for ourselves. I take it for
granted that we all believe and preach this as the Gospel of God.
Christ is to us the supreme and infallible Master in all spiritual
things. His word about the eternal realities is to us final. He said
that He came to give His life a ransom for many and that His blood
was shed for many for the remission of sins (Matt. 26:28). We accept
the words of His servants who declare that He bore our sins in His
own body on the tree, that He is the propitiation for our sins and not
for ours only, but also for the whole world. We say after His apostle
Paul with devout thankfulness and joy, “He loved me and gave
Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20). (Heartwarming Bible Illustrations. © 1998 by AMG
INTERNATIONAL, INC. All Rights Reserved. Electronic Edition STEP Files Copyright © 2005,
QuickVerse. All rights reserved.).
(4) GOD DOES COMPASSIONATELY REMEMBERS OUR SITUATION
PSALM 103:13-14—“Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD
pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he
remembereth that we are dust.”
A. HE KNOWS OUR FAULTS. None of us are perfect. All of us have faults.
But Praise the Lord! He loves us in spite of ourselves! He knows our
Temperament. He knows our traits. Look what v13 says—“Like a father
pitieth his children, so the LORD piteth them that fear him.” Matthew Henry
said, “The father pities his children that are weak in knowledge, and
teaches them; pities them when they are forward, and bears with them;
pities them when they are sick, and comforts them; pities them when they
are villainy, and helps them to rise; pities them when they have offended,
and, upon their submission, forgives them; pities them when wronged,
and rights them: thus the Lord pities those that fear him.” (MATTHEW HENRY’S
COMMENTARY ON THE WHOLE BIBLE CONDENSED VERSION by Matthew Henry. The Master Christian Library
Version 5. Copyright 1997. AGES Software. Albany, OR).
B. HE KNOWS OUR FRAILITIES. David said in v14—“For he knoweth our
frame; he remembereth that we are dust.” Friends, this is why he pities.
He considers the frailties of our bodies and knows the folly of our souls, he
knows how little we can do and how little we can bear and in mercy shows
us compassion! He knows our lives are short (vv. 16-18) and He knows our
lives are stressful and because of grace in mercy He shows compassion!
ILLUS: Careless drivers often push their automobiles beyond their designated
capabilities, and the poor vehicle chugs and chugs until the motor
finally dies. Daring and foolish engineers will put too much pressure
on their boilers, or try to force more power from an engine than it can
provide. But our Master guarantees that tasks shall be balanced with
the precise strength we possess. He knows our frame: He remembers
that we are dust (Ps. 103:14). He will not be less merciful to us than
the merciful man is to his beast. He knows the exact pressure we can
stand, for He has made us; He knows the utmost load we can lift, and
will not suffer us to be tried, tested, above what we are able (1 Cor.
10:13). He is a Faithful Creator, because He is an abiding Sustainer.
(Practical Bible Illustrations from Yesterday and Today. © 1996 by AMG INTERNATIONAL, INC. All Rights
Reserved. Electronic Edition STEP Files Copyright © 2005, QuickVerse. All rights reserved.).
CLOSING: Friends, I want to close out this morning with a passage found in
Psalm 63:1-4—“O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my
soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty
land, where no water is; To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have
seen thee in the sanctuary. Because thy lovingkindness is better
than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live:
I will lift up my hands in thy name.” Let me ask you this morning,
Are you daily thanking Him for His grace? Do you delight in His
mercy?
Psalm 63:3-4 says—“Because thy lovingkindness is better than life,
my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift
up my hands in thy name.” Friend, are you doing that? He is truly
is a GRACIOUS AND MERCIFUL LORD!
(PREPARED BY BROTHER BRYAN L. BROWNING, PASTOR OF BEECHMONT BAPTIST CHURCH, BEECHMONT, KY
FOR SUNDAY MORNING, JULY 26, 2009).