Week 1: Grace “God’s love coming down to us” 1.Accept it - salvation 2.Reflect it- worship 3.Share it - fellowship 4.Declare it- evangelism 5.Demonstrate it- serving our world

Week 2: Compassion “Shouldn’t we just be concentrating on evangelism? Jesus feeding the 5000: 1.He taught them – the gospel is essential 2.He healed them – supernatural power 3.He fed them – practical needs What unreasonable request is God making of you?

Mercy 1 Peter 1v3-5 Steve Petch Sunday 4 th May 2014

“Why should we help people who don’t deserve it?

“Above all else guard your heart, for it is the well spring of life” Proverbs 4 v 23 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again” 1 Peter 1v3

MERCY is when God doesn’t give us what we deserve GRACE is when God gives us what we don’t deserve God’s mercy is also an active thing

Mercy is part of God’s nature “Gracious is the Lord and righteous; our God is merciful” Psalm 116v5 “Be merciful, just as your heavenly Father is merciful” Luke 6v36

God’s mercy cannot be exhausted “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning” Lamentations 3v22-23 “His mercy endures forever” Psalm 136

God’s is the initiator of mercy to us “He saved us not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy” Titus 3v5 “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy” Romans 9v15

God’s always has mercy on those who ask “Have mercy upon us O Lord, have mercy upon us” Psalm 123v3 “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Hebrews 4v16

Jesus won mercy for us “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” 1 Peter 1v3

Jesus demonstrated God’s mercy The woman caught in adultery - John 8v1-11 Matthew 9, Matthew 15, Matthew 17, Matthew 20, Mark 10, Luke 17 + more

Jesus calls his followers to show mercy too “Be merciful, Just as your Heavenly Father is merciful” Luke 6v36 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be receive mercy” Matthew 5v7 “If your gift is showing mercy, do it cheerfully” Romans 12v8 “Go and learn what this means, I desire mercy, not sacrifice” Matthew 9v13 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness.” Matthew 23v23

How religious Pharisees see the world: God has had mercy on me: I am special God has NOT had mercy on them: they are outside of his love Poor people are poor because of moral failing: they deserve it Sick people are sick because of sin: they deserve it

God calls us to show mercy! Mercy is part of God’s nature God’s mercy cannot be exhausted God is the initiator of mercy to us God always has mercy on those who ask Jesus won mercy for us Jesus demonstrated mercy Jesus calls his followers to show mercy

“Why should we help people who don’t deserve it? There are no other type of people!