Day 1: The Mercy Seat

The mercy seat... What a beautiful thought.... Jesus is the mercy seat. What does that mean for us? Well, it means Jesus is God's mercy. That's right. Where does God's mercy come from? Jesus. Where is God's mercy displayed? In Christ Jesus. God has been merciful from the beginning, and His mercy has always been available because of His plan from the beginning that involved Jesus!

I've heard it described like this before: "Grace is getting what you don't deserve, and mercy is not getting what you deserve." So, grace is a gift--like salvation--that we really don't deserve. There is nothing we have done or can do to make ourselves eligible for this gift. And mercy is a sort of cover--like Christ's sacrifice--that shields us from getting what we truly deserve, death. In other words, Christ is the very definition of mercy. He took on our sin, sacrificed Himself and paid the price so that we would not have too! You see, He is mercy!!!! The mercy seat.....

And to see how He was represented in the Tabernacle all along. As this unfolds, it gets more awesome! Don't you think?!....

And not only does He cover our sin and take it away, but in that, there is freedom from sin! We do not have to choose sin, we can choose Christ and His forgiveness which sets us free from sinning any longer! We have all experienced Christ's forgiveness in many ways....

What are a few ways that you are thankful for Christ's mercy and forgiveness?

Here are a few of mine:

1. I have struggled (and still do at times) with bitterness toward people and things in my past. I am so thankful for the freedom that comes in giving this over to Jesus!
2. I am thankful that God has revealed my true self to me in that I have seen the ugliness of my own sin--it helps me to forgive others when I see ugliness in them! We are all alike in this--we have darkness in our hearts and we are prone to sin. We do not all choose forgiveness and freedom, but those of us who know Christ and have experienced His forgiveness can at the very least forgive others who have hurt us!
3. I am so thankful that His mercy is ever available to me! Each day is a new day. And His mercy is available to me to cover my sin--where I have let others down, stuck my foot in my mouth (or both of them!), or had bad thoughts... Whatever my sin, His mercy is available to cover it and make me new! Praise God!!!