Paul confronted Peter in Antioch for standing aloof from the Gentiles when his fellow Jews arrived from Jerusalem. Paul recalls this story in his letter to the Galatians as a means of defending the gospel. The issues at hand were not small but the truth of the gospel was at stake—and not just the facts of the gospel, but how the gospel is lived out.

Walking in the gospel involves a considerable amount of effort. I want my life to reflect well on my Savior and so I try to please him by avoiding evil as I represent Christ. A good measure of my motivation for holiness is that I would adorn the gospel by my good behavior. But imagine if by my very consistency with such gospel living—by faithfully reflecting Christ—that the result was to make some people think of Christ as a minister of sin. Imagine that!

This is what was happening in Antioch. To a Jew, merely being a Gentile meant being a “sinner.” One might be a very upright, honorable, noble individual, but if a Gentile, he’s a sinner. To the Jews then, what was the net result of the gospel of Christ? It meant that Gentile sinners were being included among the people of God—and that without becoming “Jew-like;” no circumcision, no Law keeping, not kosher. As if this weren’t enough, good Jews (like Peter) were even starting to act less Jewish and more like Gentile sinners. To a Jewish mind this just could not be. If Christ was the messiah and the gospel was true, how could His church be so non-Jewish, so Gentile—so, so sinful!

But Paul would not water down the gospel. Surely, it would have been easier, more politically correct, and more diplomatic to just make some concessions regarding Christian practice so that the reputation of Christ would not be besmirched in the eyes of the Jews. After all we are His representatives and we want to reflect well on Him—if our behavior in the gospel makes some think of Christ as minister of sin—how could that be good?

But no. The gospel of Christ crucified is a gospel of grace. It is of grace and not by works of the Law. The gospel which brings justification by faith may not be entered into, or lived out as if it were by works of the Law. There can be no compromise, even if it means that some, many, or even most look on and think that such a gospel cannot be right. And such is the case even today. For the Western mind is just as opposed to gospel truth as is the Jewish mind. We just substitute a different kind of law. Salvation in Christ alone, by grace alone, through faith alone—without any basis in my worthiness or effort is inconceivable to the natural human mind. Yet entirely free and solely by grace it is—so that no man may never boast before God.

What does this mean for me today? It means that I should not underestimate how counterintuitive and God-centered is the truth of the gospel. If the effect of the gospel was so perplexing to the Jews and is so foolish to the modern mind I should not assume that my mind has been fully oriented to the radical truth of the gospel of grace. Paul rebuked the Galatians because they started off with the true gospel which was, and only could be, received in and through the power of the Spirit—and quickly departed to another gospel that tried to combine grace with works of the Law. If those Christians could so easily tip toward a version of the gospel that was no gospel at all, I am also susceptible to this kind of error.

The gospel causes me to die with Christ to the Law in such a thorough and complete way that the mere attempt to rebuild even part of the Law becomes itself the height of transgression. For I died to the Law with Christ and if I try to now live by the Law Paul says to me, “you fool, you are cursed if you go back under the law. Having been justified by faith do you now seek to be justified by your own efforts?”

And so I must dwell on the radical, Christ-centered gospel of grace and seek to root out all works oriented motives and efforts from my life. Only grace oriented efforts, gospel worthy motives, and Spirit empowered works are pleasing to God. And if the gospel life is a stench to some—the solution is not to change the gospel, but to pray that the noses that smell it that way would be changed.

Lord Jesus, open my eyes to the ways, both overt and subtle that my life and my heart move not by grace but as though I related to you by works. I have died to such “dead-living.” Reveal the areas of my life that have not been saturated by the gospel of grace and cause me to love only the true gospel of grace of Christ. Amen.

But he hesitated. So the men seized his hand and the hand of his wife and the hands of his two daughters, for the compassion of the LORD was upon him; and they brought him out, and put him outside the city.”

Genesis 9:15-16

What a marvelous thing that God counts sinners as righteous based not on their own righteousness, but on the righteousness of another. Because Christ is truly and thoroughly righteous and because he took my place under God’s just wrath, an unrighteous one like me has been declared righteous. Jesus fulfilled all the righteous requirements of the law and He satisfied all divine justice for me. The righteousness of Christ is imputed to me, that is, given directly, entirely, instantly and completely to me as a free gift. I am declared, counted, and credited as righteous because of Jesus.

The wonderful gift of righteousness is a gift of grace. It’s given for my righteousness, not because of it. There is no righteousness in me that prompts or merits this gift. And the gift is complete, because it was finished through Christ death’s on the cross. It is not a seed of righteousness, or a boost for gaining righteousness. Any good deeds I may do in Christ do not contribute anything to the righteousness of Christ that has been imputed to me through faith. Yet upon this competed and imputed righteousness, the Lord does begin to transform my character so that degrees of observable righteousness become evident in my daily life. It is the outworking, permeating effect of established righteousness that transforms my life. And this outworking itself is a gift of God’s grace empowered by the Holy Spirit.

While Christ’s righteousness is given instantly, its permeating effects develop slowly into observable, experiential righteousness. There is therefore a massive gulf between the delightful, complete righteousness of Christ, and the small, small righteousness that is actually observable in my life on any given day. An inner groaning persists in view of the depth and breadth of this gulf. I must face many failures of righteousness throughout my days. In view of this gulf the story of Lot is an encouragement.

When the Lord revealed his plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham pleaded to spare Sodom for the sake of a mere ten righteous people, if they could be found. But they came up nine short, only righteous Lot was found. Lot was the only one counted as a righteous in Sodom.

The Apostle Peter in his second epistle calls Lot “Righteous Lot.” He describes his righteous soul as being tormented by the gross immorality of Sodom. Lot did have an observable measure of personal righteousness in as much as he hatred the immorality of Sodom. But when you examine the story of Lot, observable righteousness is significantly lacking. Rather massive failures stand out strikingly.

I suspect that one reason Lot was in Sodom in the first place resulted from selfishness. When Abraham decided it would be better if he and Lot parted ways he offered Lot the choice of which direction to go. Lot had been greatly blessed having been taken along by Abraham. Here was a perfect opportunity to humbly thank him. For when he looked and saw that one direction seemed significantly more desirable than the other – he could have given the better place to Abraham, but he chose the good land for himself – not exactly the most gracious, generous act in the Bible.

Now when Lot saw the angelic travelers come into Sodom he immediately offered them hospitality – in which we see another observable measure of righteousness. But soon, when the men of the city come to molest the travelers, Lot offers his own daughters in place of his guests. Oiy! I do not want to be guilty, as a fellow sinner, of casting stones at Lot. But dang! Such a solution hardly seems a commendable example of righteousness.

From certain details in the story of Lot, it seems to me that he lacked respect from some people who ought to have respected and honored him. It can’t be absolutely determined from the text why Lot was so disrespected, but I get the sense that Lot was to some degree responsible for the dishonor he received. For example, the angels tell Lot to gather his family and take them out of the city. But when Lot appeals to his two future sons-in-law, they disregard him, thinking that he’s joking. I would expect these men to honor their future father-in-law. Instead they dismiss him flippantly. For me, this apparent lack of honor calls into question the observable measure of righteousness between Lot and his sons-in-law. I think it’s possible that their lack of respect was due, at least in part, to an observable lack of righteousness in Lot’s character.

Finally, at the deciding moment, as the angels were about to start destroying the city, they gave Lot the final word – “Go now!” And Lot hesitates. I can just imagine the angel’s looking at each other shaking their heads thinking, “can you believe this guy?” And Lot doesn’t snap out of it and come through in the end. He’s stupefied. The angels finally have to grab him by the hand and literally pull him out of the city.

I’m encouraged by the story of Lot not because I think I can look down on him to think “well, at least I’m not as bad as Lot.” God forbid! Rather I am encouraged because I know that I face many opportunities for faith in which I hesitate, or worse turn the other way. Yet I am counted as righteous in Christ, just as wavering Lot is counted righteous in Sodom.

I thank God for heroes in the Bible: David against Goliath, Gideon and his 300 men, the Apostles boldness in the face of persecution. But I am also deeply thankful that God’s Word also contains flawed and thickheaded saints like Lot, Jonah, and Thomas. Lot the hesitant is counted as righteous! And why is he counted righteous? Because, as it says in verse 16 “…for the compassion of the Lord was upon him…” Truly it is great compassion that has such longsuffering, unearned mercy upon those such as Lot, and me. What mercy! And this mercy is grounded in something else for which I am so thankful. God’s compassion upon Lot was not random compassion. No, it was based on the most concrete reality in the universe – God’s promises. Lot did not receive compassion because he was already righteous. He received compassion because God remembered Abraham (Gen. 19:29). God’s awesome promise to Abraham extended to Lot and thus Lot was counted as righteous because of Abraham. He received compassion not for his own righteousness, but by the gracious promise of God to Abraham. And this promise was ultimately the promise of Christ our Savior. Christ is the fulfillment of all God’s promises and because of Jesus – I stand under the unfailing compassion, mercy, and kindness of God – I stand counted righteous in Christ.

And now my spirit can pray like Lot…

“Now behold, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your lovingkindness, which you have shown me by saving my life…” Amen.

If I were to interview some of those seven thousand men who did not bow their knees to Baal, and ask them to describe instances where they refused to bow, I would probably hear some wonderful stories of heroic faith in the face of oppression and persecution. They might tell of times when a way of escape was opened. They might tell of sufferings they endured. No doubt there would be testimonies of God’s faithfulness and examples of how specific scriptures fortified and bolstered their faith in times of desperate need. I bet there would also be confessions of temptation and wavering – when competing desires between survival and obedience, the acceptance of man and the honoring of God, were at war. There may have been, from the perspective of these men some very “close calls” where it seemed they had barely escaped, or almost succumbed.

Yet God testifies that each of them was being kept ultimately by God Himself. He kept them, and He kept them for Himself – according to His gracious choice.

Thank God that I am kept by God, for God, and through His gracious choice. As I strive against sin, as I strive to see more of the glory of Christ, as I avail myself of all the means of grace, I can rest assured that my progress and my success are assured not by my taking hold of means (as necessary as means are) but rather because I have been laid hold of by Christ. I can strive with all my might because God is the God of my strength. I can endure weakness because God often preserves my faith through weakness. In all respects I am kept by God, for God, and by His grace.

Amen!

O Poor Pharisee, stuck in your old ways of performing righteousness – making much of your displays of prayer and fasting. You think such efforts will make you acceptable to God. You have drunk your old religion of law for so long that Jesus’ words are impossible for you to understand. Your legalistic ways offer no categories for this new wine of gospel grace. You question why Jesus’ followers don’t act like other religious people? The Lord’s answer comes back in riddles, stories, and parables you cannot understand by your categories of duty and performance.

Understanding this new wine – the gospel of grace – requires a new heart, one that delights in mercy, not one that boasts in self-righteousness. The gospel of grace cannot be ascertained from a mindset of works. It is perplexing, unworkable and paradoxical to such an approach to religion. Even the fundamental practices of religion such as prayer are altogether different, and fasting is turned inside out and upside down. All things are made new. Prayer changes, they are not coins of merit tossed, as it were, onto scales of self-righteousness – rather they become responses of joy in the presence of the Bridegroom – or equally poignant cries of longing for His return. The paradox of the new gospel heart is that it is full only when it is emptied and it trusts solely in the faithfulness of God to fill it. Old wineskins try to preserve meager quantities of religious effort, which quickly run dry.

O my soul, do you not see the sin of the Pharisee in your own heart? Do you not see how often you make the fruit of God’s grace into your own meager attempts to gain God’s approval? Spit out that old wine! Throw away that useless garment! Yes pray, and fast – but not as a pitiful performance to be seen by man, or to make yourself feel like your duty has been done – but only to see and rejoice in more of the Bridegroom’s glory.

O God you have taught me that prayer and fasting are not self completing actions – they have another end beyond themselves, a goal they strain toward. They seek out the presence of Christ. Jesus, make me pray – make me fast such that I might have more of you. More joy in your Word, more anticipation of your return, more desire for heaven and the eternal rewards that will come from your own hand.

Sustain the means of grace in my soul, in Jesus’s name I pray, amen.

“And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things;”
Luke 4:22, 28

How sobering is the sovereign will of God. He turns hearts one way or the other according to His eternal purposes. Jesus did not ride the wave of human of applause as he preached the gospel. By His own words He provoked the stubbornness and disobedience that was thinly concealed in the hearts of His own people. Even while the people of Nazareth wondered at His gracious words He changed the theme. Through true, prophetic words He announced that the kingdom blessings they had been longing for would not be given to them but rather to foreigners. By these words their pre-existing sins of stubbornness and rebellion were cemented – their rejection was firmly set, their blindness complete, and their backs forever bent.

That the people of Nazareth rejected one of their own was merely a foreshadowing of what the entire nation of Israel would do. For as the son of Joseph was to Nazareth, so the son of God would be to all Israel.

And this was God’s design from the beginning. The full-orbed totality of God’s sovereign control made sure that His judgment corresponded with Israel’s genuine culpability for their sin – for they indeed stiffened their necks in unbelief. Natural branches were justly cut off so that wild olive shoots like me could be graciously grafted in. One nation was hardened so that mercy might be extended to all.

O my soul – be sober. Do not be conceited but fear. You stand upon unheard of mercy – and that at the cost of others. You inherited a kingdom you did not build. You stand because of blood brought mercy and sovereign grace. Jesus, you bore the rage of your own people and much worse – the wrath of your very own Father. You secured mercy and gave it to unnatural branches like me. Make me humble Lord – properly humble as one who was once disobedient but now has been shown mercy, which resulted from the disobedience of others. Let me not be, in any way, arrogant – especially toward those that have been cut off. Rather call me to earnest prayer that I would continue in faith, and that those who were cut off might be restored – for what shall such a revival mean but life from the dead!

Be exalted Lord Jesus. Come soon. Amen.

According to Hebrews chapter 11, faith has two primary characteristics. One, it believes that God exists and that He makes all the things that exist out of nothing. Secondly, faith believes that God is a personal, covenant-making, promise-keeping God who rewards those that earnestly seek Him. This is the character of genuine faith and it is through faith alone that God saves, justifies and imputes the righteousness of Christ to undeserving sinners like me. And God determined to grant salvation through faith for a reason, which is that it might be – in accordance with grace.

When something is given in accordance with grace, it is given freely, without compulsion, without reference to something that is due. In accordance with grace is contrasted with reckoning something due as a deserved wage. God has granted righteousness only in accordance with grace, not as the result of works, in order to remove all boasting from the lips of man.

I am saved therefore by grace, through the mechanism of faith, which looks to God, believing in Him, banking on Him and hoping in Him for eternal reward.

Romans 4:17 reminds me of the first aspect of faith when it says that God “…calls into being that which does not exist.” It is extremely reassuring to my soul that my salvation is in accordance with grace, delivered through faith which looks to God to create something out of nothing. For I know that God requires faith as the basis for my salvation, yet I also know that faith simply has no existence in me, apart from God creating it out of nothing – giving this dead man life.

The Bible describes faith, faithfulness, and the fruit of faith in Christ. It uses rich language full of experiential words and phrases like joy inexpressible and full of glory, peace that surpasses all comprehension, rejoicing greatly, glory and exulting, gladness and confidence, and love that surpasses knowledge. None of these qualities are found in my heart apart from God creating them out of nothing by His grace.

If I was required to generate this kind of genuine faith on my own, I would be left for dead. But God, who gives life to the dead, and calls into being that which does not exist, calls faith into being in my heart as a precious and undeserved gift.

Now I can have hope against hope that though I detect weakness, deadness, and weariness in my body, yet God will implant, nurture and bring to life faith which can lay hold of God’s promises and experience the genuine fruit of faith to the glory of God and the delight of my own soul.

Lord Jesus, thank you for speaking life into my dead and dark soul and for calling forth the life of faith out from the nothingness of my heart. Now I hope against hope in your promise to complete that which you started. Let me taste the fruit of faith today, and let me not waver in unbelief, but rather grow strong, giving glory to you, fully assured that what you have promised, you will perform. Faithful God, I praise your name. Amen.

Angels are the Lord’s messengers; they do his bidding. This angel, in the empty tomb, had words for the women to give to His disciples… and Peter. Peter is singled out. He was a disciple so the general instruction certainly applied to him, but the Lord appended the address for this message to Peter, by name. And no wonder. I’ve experienced emotional turmoil in my life, but nothing compared to the heights and depths that Peter experienced over these few days. His heart rose with the joyous shouting of “Hosanna” at the triumphal entry and sank as Jesus cried out “my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” on the cross. Peter’s sorrows were intensified since he had boasted of his loyalty only to deny him three times right in Jesus’ view while He was in the midst of His trials. Peter’s soul must have dropped with a thud when he caught Jesus’ eye following his third insistence that he did not even know the man. He wept bitterly.

But oh, what high hope, what lift when he heard that the Lord’s instructions to meet Him in Galilee were addressed to him in particular. What healing words. What comfort. Yes Peter, you arrogantly boasted of your loyalty, you violently struck out with the sword without call, and in cowardice you denied the Lord three times. But listen, the Lord has risen and is calling His disciples… and you! You may have been faithless but He is remaining faithful to you. You are not cut off. The Lord still speaks your name. You are still chosen and called. The time for bitter tears is over – run, see for yourself – Jesus is alive, and He is calling you to Himself by name. He is calling you to His presence and He will have words for you, words to cement your humility, words to confirm His love, words to call you into service for His people. Wipe away your tears Peter and run to meet your savior – He loves you by name, and His love is everlasting!

O Lord personalize your grace to me – help me to hear my name in your promises. Let me hear my name so that my soul might be lifted and my heart may exult in being called to Jesus. Amen.

I am so glad that God’s glory and the revival of my soul can be connected together in one sentence. It is a wonder that, for the sake of the name of the Lord (that is, for His glory), I can appeal to God for revival. The connection of these two things is only by the grace and mercy of God. God could have chosen to be glorified in other ways. He could be glorified for instance (as it says in Romans 9), by my destruction as an object of His just wrath; had He left me in my wickedness. Psalm 143:2 highlights God’s mercy, “…and do not enter into judgment with Thy servant for in Thy sight no man is righteous.” It is only because God has graciously chosen me to be an object of His mercy that my revival and His glory can come together in such a beautiful way. But that is only half of the grace by which God’s glory and my revival come together. Removal of wrath alone is an astounding underserved mercy. Escaping the destruction ordained for the wicked is an unfathomable gift. Yet simply avoiding destruction is not the final result of God’s mercy.

There is a marvelous multiplier to mercy; that is, grace; God’s favor. His commitment to my good, my eternal blessing, and my undeserved right to cling to His promises to revive my soul! What a wonder that God has committed Himself to my good. Somehow God worked it out that my appealing to Him for a “quick answer,” or for a revelation of His face, or for a hearing of His lovingkindness, of for the leading of His Spirit to level ground, is not the greatest of presumption, but rather God’s explicit will. Such is the grace of God. That He would give me such blessings at all is joy. That He allows me, even teaches me to ask continually for such blessings is even more amazing. That such asking and appealing is for the sake of His name, for the sake of His glory, is a powerfully joyful perplexity.

Thank you, Lord, for your awesome, inscrutable mercy and grace. I want to honor you by seeking my revival in your presence. Grant me joy and gladness in seeing your glory in the face of Christ, and be glorified, be glorified. Amen.

Psalms 119:35

Psalms 119:33-40 is one of my favorite passages. I pinned it up on the wall next to my desk in my basement study where I seek the Lord in the morning. I love this passage because it helps me remain utterly dependent on God. Each verse asks God to do something for me; teach me, give me, make me, incline me, turn my eyes, establish Thy word, turn away reproach, and revive me. God needs to do these things for me so that my life will become what it needs to be for His glory and my happiness. His taking action to do these things is the means by which I will persevere to the end, keep God’s word with all my heart, delight in God, not be greedy, not be vain, fear God, find God’s will and His word to be good, and long for God Himself. I want these things, and they all require God to do something for me so that I will be this kind of faithful person.

However, I have often wondered about verse 35. It seems to break the pattern of the other verses. All of the verses in this passage seem to cry out to God for Him to do something for me in order that there would be a corresponding response in my heart. For example, in verse 35 God needs to “teach me” so that “I shall observe His law.” My observing is dependent on God’s teaching. All the verses in this passage of Psalm 119 reinforce the pattern that my seeking God is dependent God doing something that enables my seeking; all of the verses that is except verse 35. Verse 35 seems to ask God to do something (make me walk in the path of Thy commandments) on the basis of “for” something that apparently already exists, that is, “delight in God.”

This change in order puzzles me, especially since I have come to experience God’s grace so much more deeply as a direct result of coming to know by experience how utterly dependent I am on Him for everything, including my feelings and desires. So how do understand this verse that seems to flip-flop the order from God doing something because I need something, to God doing something because I have something?

As I ponder this verse however, I begin to see how it is not really different from the others. In fact, it makes my dependence on God’s grace even more urgent. To see this I need to remember where my delight in God comes from. I do in fact have delight in God. But this has not always been true. 2 Thessalonians 3:5 shows where my love for God comes from and where it continues to come from, “and may the Lord direct your heart into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ.” My delight in God exists because of the miraculous work of God. My love and delight in God is maintained by the supernatural work of God. I have no such thing as “delight in God” apart from God’s sustaining grace that keeps me in the love of God.

Having received a supernatural, God-given, grace dependent gift called “delight in God” I can now say as in verse 35 “make me walk in the path of Thy commandments, for I delight in it.” This prayer is no different from the others because the basis of my delight is no less dependent on God acting to give me delight, than any of the other prayers enforce my dependence on God. It does however intensify such praying. It intensifies it because it requires me to ask God to do something I need (make me walk…) on the basis of something I also need (delight in Him). A quality, for which, I am utterly dependent on God. In other words, to ask God to make me walk in Him needs to be based on my delight in Him. A quality which frankly, if not for a powerful ongoing work of God to produce such an affection in my heart, I would not have. If I did not have delight in Him I would not be inclined to even ask God to make me walk in Him in the first place. And even if I could ask God to “make me walk,” without actual delight, it would be a faulty an ineffective asking.

This places me in a desperate position. I need delight which I cannot produce on my own. Additionally, my experience of delight in God is often weak, fragile and ebbs and flows erratically. If this weak affection called delight is necessary for me to effectively ask God to do the other things that are necessary for the sustaining of my faith, I have desperate need upon desperate need for God’s grace and power. I am doubly utterly dependent on God to work on my behalf. I need Him to cause me to delight, and from this delight I need Him to motivate my heart to cry out for Him to do even more things like “making me walk” so that I might be steadfast in the love of God.

Now, if God were not a supremely powerful, faithful, trustworthy God I would be terrified at my double utter dependence on Him. But because He is righteous, gracious, and trustworthy I am able to count entirely on Him to do all that I need for my delight.

Since my experience has been that the more I learn how utterly dependant I am on God, the fuller my experience and joy in His grace becomes, such double utter dependence only makes me happier because I know is grace will be twice as rich a source of joy for my soul.

Psalms 136:1

The degree to which I feel the intensity of God’s love grows the more I receive it for me in particular. The more general I view God’s love, the less intensely I feel it. No doubt God’s love is broad and general. In Psalms 136:25 it is expressed by His giving “food to all flesh.” This is one example of how the everlasting lovingkindness of God is very broad. I should always be thankful and praise God for the simple, daily expressions of His love that I undeservingly receive such as family and friends, food, warmth and all other common provisions of God’s blessings for my good.

However, it’s the particular love of God for me that goes so much deeper. The lovingkindness of God is not expressed in the same way, to the same degree, to all people, at all times. Psalms 136:18 says “…and slew mighty kings; for His lovingkindness is everlasting.” I don’t think Sihon or Og king of Bashan experienced the lovingkindness of God in the same way that I do!; nor did Pharaoh and the Egyptian army, whose having been drowned in the Red Sea is mentioned as an example of God’s lovingkindness.

The Israelites were chosen by God as a particular people to whom God’s everlasting lovingkindness was to be expressed differently, in particular, and much more deeply. God’s love for them is expressed through promises of deliverance, blessing and goodness. The same act of God that destroys a kingdom (something which a kingdom would not experience as lovingkindness) is a strong act of lovingkindness to those particular people for whom the destroying represents deliverance and blessing.

What about me? By the unimaginable grace of God, I have been chosen to be in Christ, and as such, I am one to whom all things, all acts of God, are intentionally designed for my good, “…and we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God to those who are called according to His purpose” Romans 8:28. Even when God leads me through a wilderness, He does it for my good, because He loves me in particular. I have done nothing to be singled out for His love. I am guilty of rebellion against God, worthy of being cast into the Red Sea like the Egyptians. Had I been cast away like that, it would still be called the lovingkindness of God toward those whom He loves in particular. Yet He has mercifully delivered me from the dominion of darkness and transferred me into the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom I have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Only due to God’s mercy and His undeserved grace, am I loved by God, in particular.