Transcript of Sabbath Meeting - 05/12/00

I'm rejoicing tonight

I look at my life and consider the lives of others

I see this dismal world and its deceit

and I rejoice

I rejoice that Yahweh has called you

and all of us

But why has He called us

?

Is it because we are so wonderful?

Tonight I would like to talk on the subject of Yahweh's mercy

and to whom He will give it

Many are the studies on this website dealing with the importance of keeping Yahweh's commandments

Yahweh's law is the standard of righteousness for all mankind

However, we have all failed to live up to that standard

So what is Yahweh to do?

Psalms 103:8 - YAHWEH is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

Psalms 103:9 - He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.

Psalms 103:10 - He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

Psalms 103:11 - For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

Over a year ago I read a story on CNN's website

They took the Hubble Space Telescope..

Which is a telescope so powerful it could look at a penny 500 MILES away and tell you if it was heads or tails

And they opened the lens on this telescope on a spot in the sky as small as a grain of sand held to the end of your finger

They opened it for 10 days so that it could catch all the light possible

When it was over, they found something that was probably quite frustrating

More Galaxies!

When you consider that the stars in our sky is just one galaxy...then you can imagine how high the heavens really are above the earth!!

I think it is infinite

Psalms 103:11 - For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

Psalms 103:12 - As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

If you were to go east, how far would you go before you would stop going east?

It is infinite

forever

If you were to go west, how far would you go before you would stop going west?

It is infinite also!

forever!!

Even so are the transgressions of those who fear Him removed from Him!

Psalms 103:13 - Like as a father pitieth his children, so YAHWEH pitieth them that fear him.

Psalms 103:14 - For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.

Psalms 103:15 - As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.

Psalms 103:16 - For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.

Psalms 103:17 - But the mercy of YAHWEH is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children;

Notice also in verse 17

It says "His righteousness" is upon us

That can only be through Yahshua!

Yahweh has laid on Him the iniquity of us all

and laid on us the righteousness of Yahushua the Messiah, HalleluYah!

Notice also in verse 18

Psalms 103:18 - To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.

Psalms 103:19 - YAHWEH hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.

It is to those that are willing to keep His commandments and His covenant!

Upon who does He give His mercy?

This is an important question!

If we want to receive it, surely we would want to know how

Proverbs 3:33 - The curse of YAHWEH is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just.

Proverbs 3:34 - Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth favor unto the lowly.

These are the people that Yahweh would save and show mercy toward

For all have sinned

And to those who show mercy..

2Samuel 22:26 - With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful, and with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright.

2Samuel 22:27 - With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself unsavoury.

2Samuel 22:28 - And the afflicted people thou wilt save: but thine eyes are upon the haughty, that thou mayest bring them down.

Proverbs 15:33 - The fear of YAHWEH is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.

Psalms 51:17 - The sacrifices of Elohim are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O Elohim, thou wilt not despise.

We are not without hope

But how many tremble at His word today?

Rather, we hear the boasting of men..that they do not care that they have sinned because it is 'under the blood'

Though they don't care that they sin...

they boast that they are saved anyway

But Yahshua taught that He who endures to the end will be saved

Proverbs 24:13 - My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste:

Matthew 24:13 - But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Therefore, boast not!

to whom will Yahweh look? Blessed is the man to whom Yahweh will not impute sin:

Psalms 32:1 - Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.

Psalms 32:2 - Blessed is the man unto whom YAHWEH imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

Is their deceit in our spirit toward Yahweh concerning the seriousness of our repentence?

To whom will Yahweh look?

Will it be to those who rely upon their own righteousness?

Ephesians 2:8 - For by favor you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of YAHWEH,

Ephesians 2: -

Ephesians 2:9 - not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Surely it's not a free gift given to all. If it were, then all mankind would be saved.

But we know that not all are saved. So to whom will Yahweh look upon with mercy?

Isaiah 66:1 - Thus saith YAHWEH, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?

Isaiah 66:2 - For all those things hath mine hand made, and those things have been, saith YAHWEH: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

Jeremiah declared the mercy of Yahweh

Lamentations 3:18 - And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from YAHWEH:

Lamentations 3:19 - Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall.

Lamentations 3:20 - My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.

Lamentations 3:21 - This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.

Lamentations 3:22 - It is of YAHWEH's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

Lamentations 3:23 - They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:24 - YAHWEH is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.

Lamentations 3:25 - YAHWEH is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.

Lamentations 3:26 - It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of YAHWEH.

rather than boasting and bragging that we already have been saved, regardless of our attitude toward sin

Even Paul said

Philippians 3:12 - Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of the Messiah Yahushua.

Philippians 3:13 - Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

Philippians 3:14 - I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of YAHWEH in the Messiah Yahushua.

But he did press on..

seeking the perfection, hoping in Yahweh's mercy

For His word...even His LAW has mercy

Yahweh Himself declared His mercy to all people. In fact, He wrote this with His own finger:

Deuteronomy 5:8 - Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:

Deuteronomy 5:9 - Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I YAHWEH thy Elohim am a jealous El, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,

Deuteronomy 5:10 - And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.

Though the children of Israel moved Him to anger countless times, countless times Yahweh still forgave them when they humbled themselves

Exodus 34:1 - And YAHWEH said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest.

Exodus 34:2 - And be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and present thyself there to me in the top of the mount.

Exodus 34:3 - And no man shall come up with thee, neither let any man be seen throughout all the mount; neither let the flocks nor herds feed before that mount.

Exodus 34:4 - And he hewed two tables of stone like unto the first; and Moses rose up early in the morning, and went up unto mount Sinai, as YAHWEH had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tables of stone.

Exodus 34:5 - And YAHWEH descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of YAHWEH.

Exodus 34:6 - And YAHWEH passed by before him, and proclaimed, YAHWEH,

Exodus 34:7 - Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

Some view Yahweh as "Jekyll and Hide"

Mean in the OT and Kind in the NT

But this is not so at all

Yahweh is the same, He changes not

We need not read very far in the scriptures including the Torah to see that Yahweh has abundant mercy

Psalms 85:9 - Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land.

Psalms 85:10 - Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

Isaiah 55:7 - Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto YAHWEH, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our Elohim, for he will abundantly pardon.

Isaiah 55:8 - For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith YAHWEH.

As even the "new testament" says

Romans 2:4 - Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of YAHWEH leadeth thee to repentance?

Romans 2:5 - But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of YAHWEH;

Romans 2:6 - Who will render to every man according to his deeds:

Romans 2:7 - To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

Romans 2:8 - But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

Romans 2:9 - Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;

Matthew 6:14 - For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

Matthew 6:15 - But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Yahweh is righteous and He is merciful

Thus, if we want to be righteous then we must be merciful

So certainly are conditions to receiving mercy and forgiveness from Yahweh aren't there?

Some are living a life of sadness and pain and spiritual cancer because they believe Yahweh is holding a grudge against them for their lack of faith or lack of obedience toward Him.

Luke 7:47 - Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.

The humility and reverence for Yahweh is beautiful. But to those I ask one question, "Would Yahweh expect our mercy to exceed His own?"

Consider what Yahshua said here:

Matthew 18:21 - Then came Kepha to him, and said, Rabbi, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?

Matthew 18:22 - Yahushua saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.

But it is true that we must ask in humility and repentance

You see,Yahweh loves us..

1John 4:9 - In this the love of YAHWEH was manifested toward us, that YAHWEH has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.

1John 4:10 - In this is love, not that we loved YAHWEH, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

We did nothing but rebelled against Yahweh!

So what did He do? Destroy us?

Curse us? Leave us without a savior?

No way!!! He loves us too much

Will we love Him?

That is the question

We see that Yahweh's mercy was not without works that proved it

In sending His Son to die for us, He proved His mercy toward us

Will we show our love for Him?

John 14:15 - If ye love me, keep my commandments.

Not only in word..

But in DEED. How could any man after knowing such a love believe that it is ok to disobey Yahweh's commandments again? This is why Yahshua had to die for us.

Let's take hold of that love

and LIVE it in DEED.

For in DEED Yahweh showed us His mercy by offering His Son for us

Thank You Yahweh!! May His mercy be with you all!

And may Yahweh bless you all!