Life Of Mercy

Isaiah 55 is what I have felt to bring to the church as our scripture reading today, and present to you a thought that is something that feels important, that from the very onset of the message that I get everybody's attention before you drift, to just say this word's for you. Yeah, sometimes we come in and we're like, yeah, he's preaching on sin and I'm pretty good, so that's for my neighbor. Or he's preaching on this, and someone comes to your mind and you're like, man, I'm so glad they're here — boy, they needed the word pastors bringing today. I just want to say, before I — before I even announce a title or anything — just, just for everybody to just say this: this is for me. This is just for me. You know, I know Others May get something, but I know this one is for me.

Isaiah 55: "Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways," says the Lord. And somebody say Amen. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

I don't know about you, but that makes me happy. It makes me happy for multiple reasons, but the biggest one is I have a very vivid imagination. I got a big one. And I love that I still, in all my imagination, can't fit God in there. I love that he just goes ahead and declares that you can't even think about how big I am, because it's bigger than what you can think. That's what he's saying, right? That's a little bit of Kevin's and some Southern Blended in there, but I mean, listen: "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." For a little while today — and this is where I want you, everybody, to know — this is for me. Say one more time: this is for me. I want to preach on a life of Mercy. A life of Mercy.

Does anybody in here be — be willing to admit with me that you got spanked when you were a child? Now, yeah — anybody maybe, maybe with me? Because, because I'm the product of being born in the 70s, that what my parents called spankings would probably be beatings today. Yeah. Now, it did US good. I mean, look, you're in church today, so it did you some good. And most of — most of them I deserved. There's one or two that maybe is questionable, but most of them, most of them I deserved. But yeah, I grew up, I grew up in a home that believed in a, in a disciplined book. It was called the Bible. And if you did wrong, there were consequences that went along with those actions.

Now, the reason I bring that up is because in our world today, we live in a world that's all about tolerance. Now, I bring this up because tolerance comes at a very high price, and I feel like a lot of the things we're dealing with currently in our world is because we have been told to tolerate it. Now, there's a difference in Mercy and tolerance. I'm going to hopefully do a good job today in making that distinction. But let me ask this as well: is there anybody here that you ever got a spanking and you deserved it? Is there anybody that ever got a spanking — you deserved it, but you didn't get a spanking? Maybe you said you deserve a spanking, but he didn't get one. Anybody ever deserved one, didn't get one? Anybody, maybe like me, where you were driving home and you were promised that it was going to be bad when you got home, and you tried to fall asleep? Yeah. Or you turned into the best version of yourself. You replied and kind, please and thank you, and yes ma'am, I know ma'am. It did all that in hopes that, that maybe, just maybe, that behavior was going to occur. And then it worked, and you didn't get what you deserved. Anybody? Anybody there? Now, what that was right there, that was Mercy.

Anybody ever been pulled over by an officer, and you deserved a ticket, but you got a warning? Yeah, that's Mercy right there. And I could go on and on and on. This, I think you see where I'm going, is: is there have been times in life where our actions had caused there to be a, a debt that needed to be paid, but the debt got paid for you. That's Mercy. That's Mercy. We've all experienced that. And, and these acts of mercy — and then there are other forms of there that they come into us, and they, they're there to help us realize that there are times not only should I be able to receive Mercy, but I should also be able to give Mercy.

I'm so thankful that we serve a merciful god. I'm so thankful that his word tells me that his Mercy is new every morning. I'm happy for that. There's a reassurance in that, that I needed. And you've heard me say it before, and I'm thankful that I have a relationship with God, and that as I read his word, I come across passages that help me understand him better. Something like Psalms 145 and 8 says, "The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great and mercy." How wonderful is that passage right there, that he's slow to anger and that he is great in Mercy, because I need that. Because there's been plenty of times when I have pushed the limits with God, and he should have just wrote me off. But I'm thankful that Not only was he slow to anger, but that he was great with Mercy.

His Mercy has been clear and is shown from the very beginning of time, when he created Paradise at the very beginning. And in the start, back to the Genesis, our, our beginning, there we see Adam and Eve, and they are there, and God has a plan and an intention for them. But they, they make decisions that go against God's will for their life. Adam and Eve Sin. Sin always demands a payment. Say that with me: sin always demands a payment. And I wish we took that more seriously in our life, because I, I — the Bible also tells us in Romans chapter 6 and verse number 23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our lord." In other words, you can sin. You can do that. It's your choice. You can make that choice. You can make that decision, but the payoff is death. It comes with consequences. It comes with a choice, and you can choose. There is a debt created, and sin demands payment. And Romans says plainly it's death that it brings about.

Ephesians 2 and 4: "But God, who is rich in Mercy" — I love that. He's not got a little bit of Mercy. He doesn't have some extra setting on a shelf, but he goes ahead and tells us our God is rich in what? Mercy. Anybody thankful for that? I know I am. I need it. You guys are acting like y'all are good. Y'all ain't that good. I'm gonna tell you right now, I need Mercy every day, every single day of my life. I need this truth, then: my God is rich in Mercy. This isn't a license for me to live any way I want to live and act any way I want to act, but I'm telling you, I battle with flesh every day, just like you do. And every day there's a moment in time when I'm doing something that maybe I shouldn't do, or act, or behavior, say something, that I need the riches of that Mercy in my life. And I'm glad that I have more examples in the scripture that God is able to do it. He's there, and he's not short on it, because we need Mercy. So thankful for that God of roots and mercy.

In Genesis 18, it's a crazy story about Sodom and Gomorrah, but it's a story of Mercy. It's a very Wicked Place. Oftentimes our world today gets referred to as, as Sodom and Gomorrah — we're living in these end times — but because of all the stuff that's going on around us, and, and oftentimes usually what gets associated with the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah is usually homosexuality. But I want to draw your attention to a passage in Ezekiel, as, as he is pinning down some words, being led by God's spirit. Look at this. It says in verse 49 of chapter 16: "Look, this was the iniquity" — same word used for sin — "of your sister Sodom: she and her daughter had Pride, fullness of food, abundance of idleness, neither does she strengthen the hand of the poor, the needy, and there were haughty and committed Abominations." I don't know if you noticed, there were five things listed before we get to the thing that normally gets associated with Sodom. Now, when I read that verse right there, I don't know about you, but it sounds a whole lot — I like Tennessee today, the United States today. I think you could easily say "your sister Tennessee," "your sister the United States," is going, because these are all the sins that are going on in our world rampantly right now. Every one of them is something that we're dealing with in our world. We can't just stick our head in the sand and think God was so upset by those sins, he destroyed those cities, that he's simply happy with us right now. Does anybody feel like God's happy with us? No, no, no. Not as a whole. Not as a country. There's no way, because we are running hard away from his intentions and what his word says.

Here's the deal. I want you, if you're a note taker, write this down. This is a good one for you to write down. Wrong is wrong, no matter who says it's right. Wrong is wrong, no matter who says it's right. And right is right, no matter who says it's wrong. The word of God is right. Doesn't matter what society says. Doesn't matter what the Supreme Court says. Doesn't matter what any politician, or Hollywood actor, or athlete says about it. God's word is right. You can say you don't believe it, or you can say it's an old book, it's outdated, it was for a time gone past. But I'm here to tell you, this book was here long before us, and this book will be here long after we're gone. It doesn't have to have me defend it, nor you defend it. It stands all by itself. It's God's living, breathing word, and it is forever settled. And it's the only thing that you and I are going to be judged by. I'm not going to be judged by my neighbor. I'm not going to be judged by a politician. I'm not going to be judged by the president of the United States. But I will stand one day and give an account of my life and how it lines up according to his word. So because of that, I think it's important that we have a real good understanding of what this book says.

Right and wrong is always based on the word of God. Right and wrong cannot be based on human opinion, because we change. Some of you have changed your mind already 50 times today. Some of you stood in the closet and were almost late to church because you kept changing your mind. Some of you will get an argument after church because you can't make up a man on where you want to go to eat. That's why we can't simply say, "I know what's right and wrong." No, you don't. Oh, you know, because it'll change. Your emotions will change. Your feelings will change. That's why you got to have something that doesn't change. And there's only one thing I know that doesn't change, and that's our God. He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. He doesn't wake up today and say, "I think I'm going to be merciful today." No, he's a merciful god. He doesn't wake up today, say, "You know what, I think I'm going to rain down and do this over here, that over there." No, he is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And what he said he's going to do, he's going to do. And what he has done, he will do again, because that's our God. You can count on it. You can Bank on it.

I'll go back to Abraham for a minute. I know I mentioned him earlier in chapter 15. I think that that passage is so unique. It's amazing. There, Abraham's Faith didn't Wane over time. Instead, we're told quite the opposite, that as time went on, he grew stronger in his faith. What, what kind of a relationship is that? Things don't work out, and you get stronger in your faith. Because Abraham refused to quit. After that moment with Ishmael, he stopped looking at his problem, because God said, "Look up. Look up. Look up to where? Look up to where my help comes from. Look up to what I told you. Look at the stars. I gave you a promise. Just because you're a hundred doesn't mean I can't do what I said I'm going to do." I'm feeling in my spirit today to tell somebody: you're stuck looking at something that's temporary, when you've got an eternal God who's already declared over you what he's going to do. We got to base our right and wrong off the word of God. It doesn't change. It's settled. It's there. It doesn't change. It's right there. My moraled around me is changing. It's spinning. It's going out of control. My own personal feelings sometimes change. This doesn't change. It anchors me in. And when I read this, it tells me that he's a god of Mercy. Got to be careful how I process right and wrong. The word of God says in Isaiah 15 20: "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil." Be careful. We live in a day and age where everything is up for interpretation. Everything is being redefined. Everything is being Rewritten, as if we can somehow make it different, everything around us. They're, they're — they — and I hope you know my heart and what I'm trying to say here — is, is, is there's an undercurrent of, of evil behind all this to try to steer us around.

I'm gonna tell you, here, here's the deal, okay? As the United States of America, there's a lot of stuff that we did wrong. I got quiet in it. I'm gonna get on out of here on the medley porch, because I'm not even scared. There's a whole lot of stuff we did wrong. But here's the — here, there's the truth: we can't undo any of it. We can't. The only thing we can do is learn from our past and say, hey, we shouldn't have done that, or that, or that, or those things are all wrong. They're all bad. I don't care how anybody tried to justify, it was wrong. But it's like, if we erase it, it didn't happen. If we somehow sanitize it, it makes it as if it wasn't. I'm sorry, it happened, and it was wrong, and it was bad, and I hate a lot of stuff that happened out there. But here's the deal: I didn't live then. I can't undo what they did. But what I do have is an opportunity right now to, to live in a good way, to live in a right way. But what this is — what this has done, and this has happened over a period of time — is, is ushered in this thought of, that we can rewrite things, regardless if they're Bedrock truths or not. I don't have to agree with it, and just because I don't agree with it, it isn't, it, it just doesn't exist.

Follow me for just a minute. It wasn't that long ago when we understood what a family meant, but it's gotten Rewritten. It wasn't that long ago we understood what marriage meant, but it's been Rewritten. It wasn't that long ago that we understood what a boy and a girl was, but it's being Rewritten. The enemy has always attacked the family, because family has always been God's institution. Marriage has always been God's institution. And I know there's even stuff inside this book, sometimes it's hard for you to digest. That's why you can't take it in part. You have to take it in whole. You cannot take it in part. You have to take it in whole. And there are some things that I, I don't know why it's there, but it was written for me to understand, in the grand scheme of the entirety of the Bible, not to pull out by itself. There's polygamy in the Bible. God never one time condoned polygamy. And there's not one example where polygamy was ever honored by God. Not one time. But it's in the book. That doesn't mean I get to do it. God help me, I'm just now trying to figure out her. You gotta be nuts to get more. God didn't condone it.

Says what happens is, when we get on to ourself and we don't take things from where they were meant to be taken — we don't take the time to fully digest it and understand it the way it was meant to be — when I left up to myself and those people I put in my life, all of a sudden it's up for interpretation. Everything is on the table. And that's the world we live in today, that everything's on the table for interpretation. I'm sorry, there are some things that are non-negotiables. God already spoke about it. It doesn't matter what the world says. It doesn't matter what Supreme Court says. God said this is the way it's going to be. Our enemy fought the family, and then he tries to get to the part where he's trying to take life from the womb. And now he's got it to the point that we don't even know who's supposed to have a womb. That's why we got to have mercy, ladies and gentlemen. I need it. I need mercy, and so do you.

It was in a day of Pride and fullness of bread and the abundance of idleness and sexual perversion and Holiness that God's decided he was going to wipe out Sodom and Gomorrah. The master — my sermon today is not about the perversion of Sodom and Gomorrah and the downfall there. My, my message today is about righteousness.

I want this front row — everybody on this front row — to stand up. Feeling not — not here, not you guys. Getting ahead of yourself. I always want attention, don't you? There's this real right here. I love you, Kate. What we see right here, these 10, these 10 young ladies — just keep standing for just a second. He was a perverse City, a wicked City, a crazy City, stuff going on just like our world. I don't know how many people were inside them, but I know this: God was willing to save that City for that many righteous people. Look at this. I need this picture example for you. 10. That's what I got right here. I got 10 young ladies. And if you read the story that is there, he said — he got down, as Abram's talking to him, and they're having a conversation — he agreed to 10. "If I just got 10 who would lift for me, I'll save the whole city." Thank you, ladies. And we said, that's a god of Mercy. That's a god of Mercy. That's the God we serve, who's rich in Mercy, who's abundant in it. He's not short on it. He loves. He tries. He wants to be a part of it.

Now, now, now, forget that — I told you, don't, don't forget that I told you that the price of sin is death. Even in their perversion, even in the wickedness — and it's a crazy story, Genesis 19. It's a, it's a sad, crazy story about how there's, there was this family that was there, that God was loved so much, that he was willing to go into the city to pull them out. And even in the midst of all the crazy perversion, even in the midst of them trying to have inappropriate relationships and, and God blinds them in their perversion, they're still trying to get in the house. Now, we don't have kids church today, so there's a lot of kids in here, and I'm not going to describe that anymore. You can go to Genesis 19, read yourself about the perversion that was going on. And even when God blinds them physically — they can't see — they're still trying to beat the door down to fulfill their lustful desires. It's right there, Genesis 19. And God mercifully brings him out. Verse number 16: "And while he lingered, the men took hold of their hand, and the wife's hand, in the hand the two daughters" — this is a lot in his family — "and the Lord being" — what was he being? Merciful to him — "brought him out." Even in the midst of all that, God got a hold of him and Drug him out. God had to lead him out, because God is a god of mercy.

And there are many more instances, like, like Ezra 9-13: "And after all that has come upon us in our evil deeds and our great guilt, since you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, after giving us such Deliverance." What about Nehemiah 9, 17: "They refuse to obey, and they were not mindful of you" — want your Wonders that you did among them — "but they hardened their necks, and in their Rebellion they appointed a leader to return to their bondage. But you are God, ready to Pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abundant and kindness, and did not forsake them." That's our God. Same, same chapter, verse number 30: "Yet many years you have patience with them, and testified against them by your spirit and your prophets, yet they would not listen. Therefore you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. Nevertheless, in your great Mercy you did not utterly consume them, nor forsake them, for you are a god of gracious and mercy." Psalms 103, verse 11: "For as the heavens are high above the Earth, so great is his Mercy towards those who fear Him." He's a god of Mercy. This is a book full of God's mercy that we get to experience in our life. He is a God who loves us, and he's a god who's merciful.

But we have something to do on our part. Because as much as I love mercy — and I love Mercy, I gotta have it, you got to have it — as much as I love living a life of Mercy, there are some things I must remember. Having God's unconditional love does not mean we have God's unconditional approval. Um, just because you have his unconditional love does not mean you have his unconditional approval. To see, see what happens is, right now is, is, is, is, is — it seems like he gets quiet, and as if almost he's okay with the things I'm doing, even though I know the things I'm doing, he's already said I shouldn't do.

It's kind of like when we were a kid. You know, there's things your mama told you not to do. That — anybody besides me have, have furniture in the house you were not allowed — nobody was ever allowed to sit on? Yeah, it was just there. It's like a piece — I don't know why you bought it. It was there. Yeah. And then your friend would come over and they get like, "Hey, man, get off that. What are you doing?" Like, "No, I was just sitting in the chair." "No, you can't sit in the chair. It wasn't a chair there." I don't know why the chair's there. I don't have a clue, but I know if my mama sees you in the chair, she's going to beat me, so don't get in that chair. But let's be honest, there were times when you got in the chair, didn't you? He did. He just hadn't tried out. And she wasn't around. "What are you doing?" And you're like, I don't even know why this is — the chair is special. It's like, the moment someone says you can't, what do you want to do? "Well, why can't I?" I wouldn't even have thought about that chair, but you told me I can't sit in it. Now all I can do is think about, I want to sit in that chair. It's just what happens. Sometimes with God is, God puts down these things and he says you're not supposed to do, and then all of a sudden that's all you want to do. "Well, why can't I do that now?"

How many parents — and if you're a parent, just raise your hand. If you're a parent, you're 80. If you're a parent and you got a newborn — how many parents? Look at this, majority of the room. Now, how many times have you told your child to do something, and there was no way that they could comprehend the reason why you told them to do it, but they had to do it? Yeah. "Well, why can't I?" And you're like, "I know why you can't, but at the level of maturity you are, you want to understand. I know what you see is, it's something fun, but I'm older than you. I'm able to see things that you can't see. I'm able to know things that right now you can't know. And I'm telling you, you just can't." "But I want to." "But you can't." "But what if I do?" "Then you're going to be in trouble." Now, we get that with our kids, but how many times has God told you not to do something? "Why can't I do it?" "Because I, I don't want you to do it." "Well, I need to know why I can't do it." "Well, I can't explain it to you, because you're not able to comprehend it, not in this moment, not where you are." And I say that for this reason: is how many of us have lived long enough that we look back in our life and we see the times when God was right? Yeah, yeah. But in the moment, how many of us would also agree that we wanted to be right? Yeah, yeah. Now, there's a lot of good confessing going on today. Y'all feel that? Feels good. You feel that just right there? God's mercy, because confession is a big part of it. Yeah.

We have to learn how to do something that the World Views is ugly. You know, here's — I'm going to give you an ugly word. This is an ugly word in our world. It's ugly, dirty word. All of a sudden everybody's looking at me: pastor's gonna say a dirty word. You ready for the word? Submission. Somebody like, "Oh, had your phone." "I want to record me say something bad." I'm telling you, in the world it's bad. It's called submission. When we have to submit — but here's the deal: it's through submission that I find love and mercy. Obtaining Mercy is not just a one-way Street. What I do is, I please and play the mercy card when I need it, because a lot of times we use that as our get out of free car as well: "His Mercy's new every day, so I'm going to live like a Hellion right now, but I'm gonna ask for Mercy later." I would never do that. I know you never want to do that, but you end up living that way. And the way you live speaks volumes about what you believe. Oh, is it okay for me to say that? Yeah, yeah. The way you live speaks way louder than what you say. People can pick up on that.

Now, here's the deal, okay? Ready for some — I know I slowed down, but I slowed down on purpose. I'm okay. Are you guys okay? Because I'm okay. I feel really good right now. All right, because I'm actually just now getting into my notes. Here's my note: Proverbs 28 and 13. "He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have Mercy." They can't hide it. I don't care if nobody knows — he knows. I don't care if nobody's seen, if nobody has a clue, if you've done a good job of covering all your tracks and it was done in secret, under the cover of night, underneath the pillows and covers — he knows. He knows. And you can't simply cover that up. You have to learn how to confess. But not confession alone — or diverse go — there's another part up there. You have to confess, and what was the other part? Oh, you mean I gotta stop doing it? Yeah, you do. Here's the deal: if you don't learn how to walk away, it doesn't do you any good. That's like somebody's saying, "I want to lose weight," and you're going to the buffet after church. Okay, you can't lose weight at a buffet. "I'm eating grilled chicken. They got steamed veggies." Now, here's what happens when you go to the buffet: they may have grilled chicken, they may have steamed veggies, but they also have fried things, and bread, and dessert, and ice cream machines, and sprinkles. And what do you do? You eat grilled chicken and put sprinkles on it, and you tell yourself — you confess — "Well, I, well, I know I shouldn't. I eat grilled chicken." Hmm. You have to forsake.

I feel strong now. I'm, I'm being a little funny, but I'm fixing to change the gears. I want to be serious for a minute. I'm speaking to somebody here today, that you're only a few decisions away from being able to prosper like never before. Now, I'm not preaching a Prosperity Doctrine. I don't believe in that. That's a lie from hell. That's not what I'm talking about. Having a prosperous life, a prosperous life in him — that you're just a few decisions away from having a prosperous life, a prosperous new year in 2023. But I also know that someone here needs to understand that if you're covering your sin, you're not going to prosper. You're not going to prosper. I don't care how good you've been at faking it. It comes out. As you've heard me say before — and I quote him quite often, from time to time, when it's appropriate — the great prophet Jason Huckabee said, "Time is a tattletale." And time is a tattletale. Enough time passes, it reveals what's really going on inside your life, because you can only cover it up so long. I want you to have mercy, and I want you to have an abundant life, because God has those things for you. They're, they're for you. But you must learn to practice confessing and forsaking.

I know you've heard me quote First John 1 and 9 many, many times, that, that if we confess, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I love that verse that's there. It's a wonderful scripture. But you have to bounce that off of Proverbs 28, 13. That if you're not willing to confess and forsake, if you're trying to cover, it doesn't work. Because here's the deal: God's not going to counteract his own word. You're not going to be able to say, "Well, I found a loophole," because there's no loopholes in the Bible. Everything connects together. That's what's the beautiful thing about the word of God, is it doesn't contradict itself. That's why you can't just have a few candy cane verses you pull out and you say, "Well, I live my life because the word of God says." Well, you were correct — the word of God does say that. But the word of God also says this. And you can't accept the one without accepting the other. You can't take the part, not the whole. That's the way it works. That's why some people have such misled lives, and they get so frustrated with God, is because they only have one or two verses. Because that's all they've done, is ever grab up a little devotional here or there that made him feel good in the moment where they are, and they haven't took the time to study the word as a whole. It's a whole thing. It comes all together. Not a piece. Not a part. You got to put it all together. You get frustrated if you don't put it all together. You can't Prosper if you don't put it all together. And if you put it all together, you understand that Mercy is there, but I also got to do a little confessing and forsaking.

James 5, 16: "Confess your faults one to another" — exercise. Look at your neighbor right now. Say, "I'm fixing to confess something to you I've been hiding inside my heart for a long, long time, my deepest, darkest sin. I haven't told a soul here." And I'm just kidding. Lord help us. Some of y'all are like, like, you, you look — There Is Power when you allow yourself the vulnerability of confessing, because things we keep HID and locked up inside ourself have this ability to control us. But when we can learn to let some things out into the light — now, why would James tell us that? First of all, the Book of James — James don't sugarcoat anything. Yeah, I mean, he just rips the Band-Aid right off, and he says you got to confess for us to another, and pray for one another, that you might be what? "The effectual fervent prayer of the righteous man of nothing." He knows: if you got hidden sin inside your heart, you're not going to have a veiling prayers. It's quiet in here. And I'm here on to say — I say this with a lot of respect to the word of God — but the effectual fervent prayer will not set you free from what you need to confess. Someone, you need to take that and study on it. Spend a little time there.

In a world that finds it very difficult to take personal responsibility, confessing is a hard thing. That goes on all around, like: "Why did you do that?" "I didn't do that." "I literally watched you do that." "I didn't do that." "Like, I have it on video that you did it." "That wasn't me." What do you do in these situations? See, the enemy is so blinded us. He's so lulled us to sleep and rocked Us in, where everything's questionable, everything's negotiable, everything's up to personal interpretation. He's load us and rocked us to sleep. Then, when we're faced with black and white truth from the word of God, we'll look at it and say, "Well, I just don't believe that's for me." I didn't know we got an option out. I didn't know where there was ever a place: "This is what I want you to do — except for you, Kevin, you get an option over here, and if you don't feel it, I'm okay with it. You know, maybe it's negotiable." No, it doesn't say that at all. At some point, I just have to come to grips with the fact that this is the truth. This is the reality. I can choose to live it or not, but it doesn't negate God's word.

Now, I'm not saying you need to say something's your fault if it wasn't your fault, because some people are just good at confessing. You know, remember, sometimes we get onto my kids — something to go crashing, and all of a sudden everybody's screaming, "Their sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." "What, did you do it?" "No, but I'm sorry." "Well, if you didn't do it, why are you saying you're sorry?" "I know what it's thinking: I don't want no hankin." But that's the word we live in. "Well, I'll just say I'm sorry." But you — are you really sorry? Are you just saying you're sorry? Because there's a difference and those two things. Because, because words are cheap. I can say it, but doesn't mean I mean it. I can say it, but it doesn't mean I have to live it. I'm just saying it. See, there's the deal: it's like putting a Band-Aid on someone who's been diagnosed with cancer. The Band-Aid is not going to help you. There's a deeper problem that's there. Just saying you're sorry and not really meaning it doesn't fix the problem. Only true repentance and confession has the power to set you free. True repentance and confession requires more than just talking to God about it. It also has something to do with the ones you sinned against. Oh boy. Leave your toes out there. Just leave them out. Leave them out. This is going to hurt for a minute.

But you all raised your hand, for the most part, when I asked who likes Mercy. But there's more than receiving Mercy. There's also learning how to extend Mercy. Luke 19 — I brought it up this past Wednesday night — the story of Zacchaeus. From reading the story, you gather he was a wee little man, short fella. Reason to say that is, the Bible says it had to get up in a tree to look and see. Some of you can identify with that. Verse number 8, chapter 19 of Luke, says: "And Zacchaeus stood and said, Lord, behold, the Lord — half of my goods I will give the poor, and if I've taken anything from any man by false accusation, I would restored him for fold." See, I believe that the dynamic of getting things right should come and be important in the Apostolic Church. And I'm afraid that in a lot of apostolic churches, we know how to out holy each other, but boy, we sure are stingy when it comes to Mercy. Um, man, Pastor just said that. Now, I believe in Holiness as much as anybody. I think, if you've been here anytime, you know I believe in our Doctrine. I believe in our, in our lifestyle convictions. I believe in our separations. We live it. We, we believe it. But I'm telling you what: you can look real good and be rotten inside. You can be rotten inside. So just because you know how to dress and act, and know how to say hallelujah when you're supposed to, and know how to get you little Jesus — it doesn't mean you're right, especially if you don't know how to give Mercy. I know it's gonna be this kind of message.

Proverbs 28, 13: "He Who covers his sin will not Prosper. Whoever confesses and forsakes will have mercy." Forsaking — we've spent the last few minutes discussing confessing, but there's also forsaking. Because some of you are okay saying, "Yeah, I did it. I did it." You better know those people. Like, "Did you?" "Yeah, I did it." "Oh, okay. Are you sorry?" "Yeah, I'm sorry." "Are you really sorry?" Maybe. But there's a forsaking. He didn't get to opt out of one. They all go together. It's the same verse.

One of the greatest acts of Mercy recorded in the Bible is destroyed them bringing the woman who was caught in the act of adultery and presented — they said — there's a lot of — I tell you, the Bible is a funny book to read. It's just the word. There's some stories in there, if you, if you don't laugh, something's wrong with you. Like this act right here. It says that she was called in the very act. I'm like, well, why were y'all watching? And then, why did they only bring her? Because, honey, it takes two to tango, but they didn't bring the other part. They only brought her. Then this whole encounter goes on. But here's a beautiful Act of Mercy: when Jesus looks at her and says — after he stood down and wrote and saying the whole thing — alone, verse number 10 of Chapter eight: "Jesus lifted himself up, saw no one but the woman, that said her, Woman, where are thy accusers? Hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said in her, Neither do I condemn thee." What's the rest of the verse? He didn't say, "Go and sin a little less." "Go and try to be better." "Go and sin the more." As he's saying: you need to forsake that. Mercy was extended, but Mercy also come with a forsaking part at the end. Jesus, again — the word always backs itself up.

So what is forsaking look like in our world today? Forsaking is taking another Direction. For those of you who feel God's presence and confess to him, that's great, but there's another step you have to take. You cannot just be locked in the cycle of confession. You have to forsake, and that takes action on your part. This means that we, every one of us, having so — we got to learn to how to start build fences. You got to take some precautions. There are some things that you just need to learn to do on your part. Because here's the deal: if you don't take action, you're just going to be caught in the same cycle over and over and over and over and over again. And I just feel like there's a lot of people in this room today that's being tired and stuck in that cycle, over and over and over and over again. And maybe you can be good for a week, and maybe you can be good for a month, or maybe you can even be good for five or six months, but at some point along the way, you fall back into that same thing, over and over and over again. I'm here to tell you: you have to learn to build fences in your life. There's just some things you can't do anymore. Maybe your brother can do it. Maybe your sister. Maybe your cousin. Maybe your friend. Maybe your neighbor. Maybe your spouse. But if it bothers you, if you can't handle it, then learn to build a fence in your life. Because eternity is not worth you spinning in hell because all you were good at was confessing.

Hebrews 12 — I feel strong. Paul wrote Hebrews, but we can't confirm it. Whoever the writer was talks about the fact that we have these easily ensnaring sins. King James says besetting sins. They're there. All of us have — every one of us — we all have a besetting sin, because there's something that's unique to you that just has the ability — it just seems there's that one or two things that always seem to — if it's there, it's like, oh man, it's sweaty. Because you know, everybody has them. Everybody has a besetting sin that's there in your life. When you've got to start praying for wisdom, and how to build some fences and boundaries before we get to that sin — yo, you okay with me right now? Is everybody all right?

Well, here's the deal. Like, if for some of you that sin is, is, is alcohol — you can't handle it. You can't be around it. You know, there was, there, there was a guy that I used to meet from time to time, and, and he just couldn't handle the alcohol. He had a hard time with it. So I tried to never pick a place where I met him where there was a bar. Now, I personally have no issue with alcohol. It doesn't bother me. There's, there's no poll. There's no, there's no draw to that for me. But I knew he did. And he was trying to live a life. I was trying to set some things up in his life, to set boundaries about it. You know, for some of you, if that's the story case, he needs to set boundaries. There's, there's wonderful things you can get involved with that will help you break that cycle of addiction in your life. Set in a boundary is, is admitting it, confessing it, but also setting a fence up in your life. So go pour it all out.

For some of you, it's drugs. That's your coping mechanism. That's how you deal with life. For some of you, it's prescription drugs. You're hooked on those things, and it's ruining you. It's causing you to be numb, and less than what God wants you to be. I'm gonna tell you what: one of the best steps you could do is march right out of here, and go around that bathroom, and flush that stuff down the toilet. These Apostolic told us love drugs, just flush them. Lord knows y'all put everything else in there.

Some of you, today, is pornography. And now, when I say that, they get uncomfortable. But you know what? I love you enough to wait out in the middle of it. It's, it's, it's an epidemic in our world. In our, in our, in our society has normalized it. There's nothing normal about it. Nothing normal about it. It's perverse, and it's wicked, and it's pulling our young men and our young women down. And it's causing them to, to, to, to deal with situations and circumstances they should never have to deal with. Like, you need to bring somebody into your life and have some accountability. And if you can't control things, then get rid of the stuff. It — there's nothing that says you have to have a laptop. I'm going to go further: there's nothing that says you have to have a cell phone. If you can't control yourself, do yourself a favor. Build a fence. You know, the Bible talks a whole lot that if your eye offended, pluck it out. You know what? If this thing offends you, get rid of it. We managed to function a long time before we got them. Now, I know it brings some convenience in your life, but I, I firmly believe that one of the biggest things we face in our day is because people can't control this. They can't control it. Whatever it is, you got to learn how to build a fence in your life.

Some of you, your sin is your mouth. You need to learn to control that tongue. And just because you can say it doesn't mean you should say it. You gotta learn to confess if we want a life of Mercy.

Mercy — earlier I showed you just how merciful our God is, when I showed you that God would save an entire city for just 10. If I don't show you one last thing — I'm getting close to wrapping this up. Matthew 5, 7: "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain Mercy." Do you notice how that starts out? It didn't say you can get mercy so that you can be merciful, but it says, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain Mercy." It bothers me when, as a pastor, I find myself around people who, who will not give Mercy. And what I have found in my life, more often than not, the people who refuse to get mercy and to give Mercy are the people who are the most out of touch with their own heart. They're the most out of touch with their own reality and their own circumstances. Because here's what I know: if you're really tuned in to how much you need Mercy, then you find yourself being willing to give Mercy, because you know how much you need it. But I've met some pretty hard-line apostolics, to make some pretty cold statements and treat people in a terrible way, only to come to find out later that they themselves will really needing Mercy too. We have to become people who give Mercy.

Luke 6, 36 — my last verse for you today: "Be therefore merciful, as your father also is merciful. And judge not, and you shall not be judged" — but we all know that one, don't we? — "condemn not, and shall be condemned. Forgive, and it shall be forgiven. Given — it shall be given unto you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and runeth over, shall men give unto your bosom." Look at this last part there: "For with the same measure that you might — for the same way that you give, it shall be given." Oh, remember I told you, I take it all. You can't take part. Can't take peace. All of a sudden there's a connection here. All of a sudden there's a realization and understanding, that if I want Mercy in my life, I got to learn to give mercy. And what I really need to understand is, I need to be able to give enough Mercy in comparison to the mercy I need to get, because the way I give it is the way I get it.

I preached this one time long, many, many years ago. Some of you may remember. It was over in the old Sanctuary where I preached, and I had a spoon, and I had a corn scoop. Y'all remember that? I preached that message, and I talked about how we need to be able to give Mercy based off this first scripture here. Because here's the deal: a lot of us are willing to give about a thimble full of Mercy, but the way we live, we need a skid steer full back. But that verse, that verse tells me that the same way I give it is how I'm going to get it.

See, I, I know this: There's Something About This World we're living in that's so hard. It's so, it's so tough. We're dealing with so many things, that, that inside the house of God — this should be the last place where we have to find someone who's not willing to extend Mercy. But here's the deal: we're, we're just a big broken mess. And if, and if you're looking for perfection, you're not going to find it in a church, because the church is full of people, and people are broken mess. "I can't believe that would happen inside a church." Really? Nobody's perfect here. The only one who managed to be perfect, we killed him. Thankfully, he died for us.

So what am I saying? I want to end this way, okay? Part of living and overcoming life is learning how to extend Mercy to those that are around us. What about the really frustrating people? Yeah, tell me about it. Even the really frustrating people. What about the people that take up all my time? Yeah, tell me about it. Even the people who really take up all your time. What about the people who text me at all hours a night? Yeah, tell me about it. Even them people too. I know I'm being a little funny, but here's the deal: I need Mercy. I need an abundance of Mercy in my life. So in order me to get the mercy I need, I gotta learn to give the mercy, even when I don't necessarily want to. I gotta learn to give it, because his word says it.

Now, I know in this place there's a lot of Brokenness that is here. There are people here today that need Mercy in their lives, and they need it now. And I want you to know, it's here for you. It's here for you today. There are people here that also need to learn how to confess some things. I'm not telling you to turn to your neighbor and confess, but I'm telling you, I would find an altar and lose some confessing today. Get yourself where you need to be. There are also some people in this room that need to learn how to do some forsaking. What I mean by that is, you come down here time and time again, and you confess. You come in here time and time again, you receive Mercy. But you know, you leave, and you go back to the same thing that you confessed about. You need to learn how to change and forsake. Build a fence. Do it right. And there's a whole bunch of us here that need to learn how to give Mercy. Need to learn how to give it. I'm afraid that we're going to be really shocked one day, when I've dressed apart and I've acted the part and have spoke the part, but inside, there were still some dark stuff that I didn't deal with, because I myself was not willing to extend Mercy.

So as I close, if you're comfortable bowing your head — about your head in this prayer — do a little self-reflecting about where you are, and be honest with yourself. Holy God, you are so good to us. You're beyond anything that we ever deserve. Lord, as you walk down these aisles today in this room, you know every heart that is here. You know every life that is represented. You know where we are, God. You know those of us that are in the room, that we need to do some confessing in our life, for things that we've done that are wrong. I pray, God, that you would give them a courage to speak these things out loud to you, because you are a God who is rich in Mercy, and you're willing to meet us where we are today. For some in this room, God, I pray that you would give us an understanding of how we can build a fence, so that we can better forsake the things that so easily ensnare us. There's some in the room today — you need to help us, God, be able to live a life of Mercy, and extending it to our brothers and sisters around us. Help us to see that need. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray.

These altars are open. I, I invite you to come, wherever you are, whatever you're dealing with. Doesn't matter. I'm not going to put a label on you. You know where you are, and you know what you need. I wouldn't miss the opportunity that we have here today, because the god of Mercy is here. Whatever you need, he is able to provide.