Height, Breadth, and Pity of Mercy - Psalm 103:10-14

Introduction

This is a Psalm of David. This psalm is a palm for praise. It tells us that we should remember the benefits of the Lord and the marvelous things he has given us. Right away this psalm tell us that the driving reason to praise the Lord is because he:

· forgives iniquities,

· heals all your diseases,

· redeems our lives from destruction,

· crowns us with his loving kindness and,

· satisfies our needs in abundance.

He does this all the while we know, that he is a God of justice, and justice says that we should suffer his wrath. Yet he give us love and compassion instead. So the Psalmist commands his own soul, “Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.” In fact, he commands himself twice to bless the LORD before he continues to explain why.

Reading

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

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

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

13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.

14For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.

Prayer

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

This is grounds for worship and praise.

· What might have God justly done to us?

· What sufferings do we deserve?

· what pain of body, what distress of mind,

· what anguish of bereavement—

· what sorrow, danger, sickness, losses—

· we might have suffered before the point would be reached at which it could be said that we were suffering more than a holy and just God might properly inflict on us.

He sent his Spirit, gave us his commandments, sent his Angels, his prophets. He gave us miraculous signs. Gave us his Word, and finally sent his Son to deliver us.

We have been disobedient, ungrateful, filled with pride, rejected him, worshipped the creation more than the creator, worshipped idols made by the hands and vain imaginations of men, and murdered his beloved Son. There is none who deserve to escape his judgement and wrath.

Romans 3:23 - For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Yet he has provided salvation for us in Jesus Christ. He deserves praise, for “he hath not dealt with us after our sins. Nor rewarded our iniquities.”

He has not given to use the fruits of our wicked labors. He has not inflicted upon us any retribution for our transgressions against him. God is not the orchestrator of our demise. We are. He came to deliver us from destruction and into eternal life in Jesus Christ.

John 10:10 - The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

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

What young boy never stood at night gazing at the stars who never wished to be an astronomer or an astronaut? To see the heavens stretched out before them and feeling small and insignificant against the vastness of the heavens is such humbling place for a man.

Other than our sun, the closest star to us is Proxima Centauri. This is 4.24 light years away, or 5.88 trillion miles from earth. To the edge of our observable universe from earth is approximately 46 billion light-years away. The universe is still expanding at an accelerated rate of hundreds of thousands of miles per second.

There nothing higher than the heavens that we can see with all our powerful telescopes. We cannot imagine anything higher than the heavens. We have no concept for when they end, nor what is beyond. We don’t even have a term for this, for we call the throne room of God “Heaven”.

Psalm 57:9-10 - I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations. For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.

… So great is his mercy toward them that fear him.To those who revere and serve him.

His mercy is thus great in forgiving their offences; in imparting grace; in giving them support and consolation.

1 Samuel 12:24 - Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.

· We can take great comfort in remembering the great things the Lord has already done for us.

· Deliverance, Forgiveness, the comfort of his Spirit, the Promise of Eternal Life in Jesus Christ

Romans 12:1 - I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Deuteronomy 13:4 - Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.

Why is it right to give God praise?

2 Thessalonians 2:16 - Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,

· Without his forgiveness we are dead in our trespasses.

· Without his mercy we receive what we truly deserve.

· Without his love we are left in fear.

· Without his righteousness we cannot be justified.

· Without his give of eternal life in Jesus Christ, we have no hope.

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

The distance between the farthest point east to the farthest point west is immeasurable. From one point you cannot see the other point. This is how far God has separated our transgressions from us. So far that they are unseen and forgotten. This is the mercy of God.

Romans 5:8 - But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

No more guilt or shame. No more hiding in the bushes like Adam and Eve. No more hiding in the cleft like Moses. No more being afraid of judgment. No more being afraid of death.

Isaiah 43:25 - I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

· It is God himself who has blotted out our sins

· NOT because we sought it, but because he did it of his own will, for his own desire to show mercy to those who love and obey him.

· So that we who have received his benevolence should give him the glory that he so richly deserves!

13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.

Like a good father, our heavenly father has deep compassion on his children. What parent’s heart does not break when they see their child in pain and agony. What mother or father has not gone into sheer panic when they lost sight of their child in a crowd of strangers? What parent would not gladly die for the life of their child?

We endure sleepless nights with tears in our eyes, with fear wrecked hearts trying anything we can to bring a fever down from a flu. We feel every scrape of the knee or broken limb from a clumsy fall that our child suffers from.

Would God, who is LOVE be any different in seeing his son, Adam, fall? Would he not do anything to find him now that he is lost?

· He bore us in love.

· He seeks us in love.

· He delivers us in love.

14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.

· He who created us knows what we are made from: dust

· He who created us knows that we are frail: emotionally, physically, spiritually.

· He who created us knows that we are easily broken.

· He who created us knows that we cannot endure wrath.

Conclusion

Isaiah 55:7-9 - Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Put aside your old ways.

Put aside the wicked desires of your heart.

Bring your thoughts in obedience … repent!

Return to the Lord God

His thoughts are higher than your thoughts…

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Pray... Invitation.