The Mercy of God

I don't go to church to hear about healing my hurts and I cry Lord Have Mercy often. I go to hear  Christ took my sins away and redeemed me from death and devil and to partake of the Sacrament. The penalty for my sin without Christ would be  far greater pain than being forlorn of a woman or not living "the abundant life". I think the point that is missed with abundant life types is Christ dying for your sins and having the Gift of  Eternal life and life with him now this is the abundant life, because it lasts forever in faith which alone justifies,  through him we have peace with God  a far greater gift than rubies. Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is wonderful but yet is taken as given when it is something we can and should cherish every day. Grace and Mercy came at a big price Christ's life yet it is so free and given freely to those of us who ask and unfortunately too cheap for many, that is the sad part.

The  life we have now is not guaranteed to be easy and is often not worldly abundant.Consider our Lord's life here wasn't easy and if we look further it was not a cake walk for the Apostles either. There are many occasions in our lives where we may have to suffer as well. Doesn't sound too abundant does it. But Our Lord says in the Gospel of John 10:10 I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. He came so that we could have life abundantly not to give us material things as some sort of reward for living the Christian life. This abundance is also in the midst of suffering as he is Gracious. Paul calls it letting Christ's power rest on him    2 Corinthians 12: 9-10 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰ For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. If you look and see he makes it even in suffering because Christ provided him what he needed and it was not worldly abundance.

 Believing in Jesus does not guarantee you a trophy wife or husband, a Ferrari, or someone else's version of the abundant life. No it is life eternal and abundant with him because of God's Grace and Mercy, Christ's Atonement, and the gift of the Holy Ghost who strengthens and creates faith. This is the Mercy of God and His Good News which is often what abundant lifers want to hear, when they wake up from Joel Osteen and his deceptions.

Living abundantly in Christ is not about living aloha. Those wordly things  the prosperity pimps are pushing are stumbling blocks and distractions and are not always there. Where does the person who breaks over and over again after listening to another Christless Self Help Sermon go? Hopefully to Christ . But since we are sheep until we finally learn that the preaching isn't helping because there is no mercy dispensed only failures that we could not live up to anyway, we will usually keep coming back for more to dos.

 So if your abundant life is running out go to Christ and ask for his abundance and not the abundance of the world which is fleeting.