The Richness of Mercy

FRESH Official Podcast

#Religion #Christianity #Christianityworks #Berni Dymet

22:08

Host Francesca Amiker sits down with directors Joe and Anthony Russo, producer Angela Russo-Otstot, stars Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt, and more to uncover how family was the key to building the emotional core of The Electric State . From the Russos’ own experiences growing up in a large Italian family to the film’s central relationship between Michelle and her robot brother Kid Cosmo, family relationships both on and off of the set were the key to bringing The Electric State to life. Listen to more from Netflix Podcasts . State Secrets: Inside the Making of The Electric State is produced by Netflix and Treefort Media.…

5 days ago 2:30

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British soldier and expert marksman Patrick Ferguson, way back in the 1700’s, invented and built his own rifle – which was no mean feat given the state of technology back then.

In September of 1777, during the American Civil War, he had the opportunity to kill an enemy officer who was riding away from him. Ferguson had a clear shot, saying “I could have lodged a half a dozen balls in him, before he was out of reach.” But disgusted at the notion of shooting a man in the back, he showed mercy. That officer was General George Washington.

That sort of mercy is, I think you’ll agree, uncommon to say the least.

Ephesians 2:4-5 But God is rich in mercy, and he loved us very much. We were spiritually dead because of all we had done against him. But he gave us new life together with Christ. (You have been saved by God’s grace.)

In the rough and tumble world in which we live, we don’t see a lot of mercy being shown. Hey, how often do you feel like showing mercy toward your enemies? Not so much.

But God is rich in mercy, he loves you very much. You have been saved by God’s grace.

Believe in Jesus. Receive God’s mercy.

That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.

301 episodes

The Richness of Mercy

FRESH Official Podcast

published 5 days ago

MP3•Episode home

British soldier and expert marksman Patrick Ferguson, way back in the 1700’s, invented and built his own rifle – which was no mean feat given the state of technology back then.

That sort of mercy is, I think you’ll agree, uncommon to say the least.

In the rough and tumble world in which we live, we don’t see a lot of mercy being shown. Hey, how often do you feel like showing mercy toward your enemies? Not so much.

But God is rich in mercy, he loves you very much. You have been saved by God’s grace.

Believe in Jesus. Receive God’s mercy.

That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.

301 episodes

#Religion #Christianity #Christianityworks #Berni Dymet

All episodes

1
Let The Love Flow 2:30

2 hours ago2:30

2:30

So much of the vitriol that swills around the arena of public debate emanates from a deep-seated, prideful belief that “I have to be the one who’s right.” You can’t pick up a newspaper without reading about one group hurling insults and criticisms at the other. Of course there is such a thing as objective truth; objective right and wrong. Consider the often-vicious debate between those who are for women’s so-called “reproductive rights” and the pro-lifers. It’s ugly … but objectively speaking, how can it possibly be right to take the life of an unborn child? Yet all too often, arguments are fuelled by pride … my ideas, my beliefs have to win the day over yours. And for me to win, you have to lose. That’s how it plays out. What’s really ugly though is seeing Christians beating others over the head with God’s truth. Sad to say, way too many of God’s people do exactly that … and how can that possibly be right? Writes the Apostle Peter to some terribly persecuted 1st Century Christians … 1 Peter 1:22 You have made yourselves pure by obeying the truth. Now you can have true love for your brothers and sisters. So love each other deeply—with all your heart. By all means, live your life out in purity, obeying God’s truth, even with the rest of the world raging against you. But do it with love; love for those who agree with you and love for those who don’t. Because truth without love isn’t just ugly … it’s plain wrong! So love each other deeply—with all your heart. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
The Life You Now Have 2:30

1 day ago2:30

2:30

Life’s a precious thing. The value of a single human life is incalculable … yet the evil perpetrated in this world will happily trash hundreds and thousands of lives for even the smallest personal gain. On the other hand, I was chatting with a doctor who’d been caring for his patients for over 35 years. Often he’s had to deliver bad news – a terminal cancer diagnosis – to a patient who up to that point had appeared perfectly healthy. That’s tough. Life, it seems, is precious in the eyes of good people, but cheap to those who are evil. Does that about sum things up? If you read the historical account of the life and crucifixion of Jesus, you see both good and evil playing themselves out at the same time. Jesus had only ever done good – healed the sick, loved the poor and marginalised – yet because He so threatened the power base of the religious leaders of His day, they conspired to kill him. Even then, God had a plan, a purpose, for you and me in all of that. 1 Peter 1:19 You were bought with the precious blood of Christ’s death. He was a pure and perfect sacrificial Lamb. Yep, they murdered Jesus. But through His death and ultimate resurrection, God Himself paid the price that His justice demanded for our rebellion and sin. And if that wasn’t enough, He gave us a brand new life. Evil human intent … but a good God. Life is precious. Your life is precious. That’s why … you were bought with the precious blood of Christ’s death That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
How Do You Respond? 2:30

2 days ago2:30

2:30

So … how would you feel toward someone who made a sacrifice so great that you owed them your very life. Come on, how would that make you feel? The first successful kidney transplant took place in 1954. The lead surgeon, Dr Joseph Murray, was awarded the Nobel Prize for his pioneering work. These days, over 100,000 kidney transplants take place each year, 36% of which come from live donors. Imagine someone going under the knife for you, putting themselves at risk gifting you, what is in effect their backup kidney, to give you the gift of life. How would that make you feel? Of course, Jesus did much more than that. He gave His very life on that Cross to give us the gift of eternal life when we believe in Him. So … how do we respond? Ephesians 2:10 God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us new people so that we would spend our lives doing the good things he had already planned for us to do. How? By spending the rest of our lives doing the good things that He made us to do; that He gifted us to do; that He planned all along for us to do. Pablo Picasso put it like this: “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” I can’t think of a better, more fulfilling way of responding to God’s free gift of eternal life than laying hold of your own unique God-given gift and spending the rest of your life giving it away to others. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
Save Yourself 2:30

3 days ago2:30

2:30

I’m a great fan of people (myself included) stepping up and taking responsibility – cleaning up after themselves; paying their debts; controlling their behaviour … how about you? What a different world it would be if everyone simply took ownership of the things they’re responsible for, rather than blaming their circumstances, others, or even God. And whilst that’d be perfect in an ideal world, you and I aren’t perfect and we don’t live in an ideal world. There are some messes we’ve created that we’ll never be able to clean up; some debts that we’ll never be able to repay; some entrenched behaviours that we’ll never be able to change. Just think of the blunders you’ve made in the past, the things – if you could turn the clock back – you’d do very differently second time around; the hurts you’ve caused that you can’t heal in others; the way in which you rejected God, knowing full well that the things you did were wrong … that sense of guilt that still bubbles away deep within. And yet this God of ours is a God of love, a God of grace, a God of forgiveness who, as you choose to trust in Him, in Jesus His Son whom He sent for you, will save you from the things you can never change. Ephesians 2:8-9 [What] I mean [is] that you have been saved by grace because you believed. You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God. You are not saved by the things you have done, so there is nothing to boast about. That’s good news. Very good news. And that’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
God's Kindness Towards You 2:30

4 days ago2:30

2:30

Often – in fact, more often than we might expect – a simple act of kindness on our part, which can cost us next to nothing, could brighten up someone’s day … even save their life. But then there are those times when showing kindness can imperil your very existence. Oskar Schindler was a German industrialist and member of the Nazi party who bribed his way into a business opportunity in Kraków, Poland as Jews were being rounded up, ready for the death camps being built in Auschwitz Birkenau less than 50 miles down the road. But as the horror of the “Final Solution” unfolded, Schindler’s focus shifted from making money to saving as many lives as possible. He risked everything – his very life – to save over 1,200 Jews from the Holocaust. Yep, sometimes kindness isn’t that simple. Sometimes it can cost you everything. Writes the Apostle Paul a couple of thousand years ago … Ephesians 2:6-7 Yes, it is because we are a part of Christ Jesus that God raised us from death and seated us together with him in the heavenly places. God did this so that his kindness to us who belong to Christ Jesus would clearly show for all time to come the amazing richness of his grace. God’s kindness towards you (and me) did in fact cost Him everything – the death of Jesus, His only Son, on that Cross to pay the price that needed paying that we might be saved; that our lives might be redeemed much like Oskar Schindler’s Jews. I don’t know about you, but I don’t deserve that … which of course is the whole point! Because had we deserved it, you and I, we would never have discovered for all time to come, the amazing richness of God’s grace That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
The Richness of Mercy 2:30

5 days ago2:30

2:30

Mercy is something that, intuitively at least, we want to pull up next to. It has what’s called ‘cerebral curb appeal.’ And yet, as warm and fuzzy and delightful as the concept of mercy is, in practice it’s becoming more uncommon by the day. British soldier and expert marksman Patrick Ferguson, way back in the 1700’s, invented and built his own rifle – which was no mean feat given the state of technology back then. In September of 1777, during the American Civil War, he had the opportunity to kill an enemy officer who was riding away from him. Ferguson had a clear shot, saying “I could have lodged a half a dozen balls in him, before he was out of reach.” But disgusted at the notion of shooting a man in the back, he showed mercy. That officer was General George Washington. That sort of mercy is, I think you’ll agree, uncommon to say the least. Ephesians 2:4-5 But God is rich in mercy, and he loved us very much. We were spiritually dead because of all we had done against him. But he gave us new life together with Christ. (You have been saved by God’s grace.) In the rough and tumble world in which we live, we don’t see a lot of mercy being shown. Hey, how often do you feel like showing mercy toward your enemies? Not so much. But God is rich in mercy, he loves you very much. You have been saved by God’s grace. Believe in Jesus. Receive God’s mercy. That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
The Doing Is Done 2:30

6 days ago2:30

2:30

Unforgiveness isn’t just something that you and I experience in our day-to-day lives here in the 21st century. Oh no! Unforgiveness is as old as time. Archaeologists excavating the Roman baths in the UK city of Bath uncovered a bunch of artifacts known as the “curse tablets.” As psychologytoday.com reports … “the sole legacy of these people who lived 1,600 years ago is their rage at others, memorialised in curses inscribed on copper or lead.” Tragic, but – come on, look around – hardly surprising. Unforgiveness is thriving, which is why so many find it impossible to conceive that God could simply forgive them. Surely we’d have to work our way back into His favour somehow. Yet there’s nothing simple about it. It cost Him everything to forgive the likes of thee and me upon that Cross! John 19:28-30 Later, Jesus knew that everything had been done. To make the Scriptures come true he said, “I am thirsty.” There was a jar full of sour wine there, so the soldiers soaked a sponge in it. They put the sponge on a branch of a hyssop plant and lifted it to Jesus’ mouth. When he tasted the wine, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and died. You and I can be forgiven, completely and utterly, because Jesus paid the price that we couldn’t pay … with His life. And when we believe in Him – let this sink in – there’s no more doing to be done. As Charles Spurgeon put it, “The general religion of mankind is ‘Do’ but the religion of a true Christian is ‘Done.’” It is finished. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
Three Things To Look For 2:30

7 days ago2:30

2:30

It’s ever so easy to become bedazzled by the success of others. And, as successful people go, businessman and investor Warren Buffet is right up there. Born in little old Omaha, Nebraska, he’s currently worth around $140 billion US dollars making him the world’s ninth-richest person. Not bad. Now, I’ve been to Omaha. It’s nice, but it’s nothing special. With a population of less than half a million, it’s your typical small mid-western American city. And yet, out of it arose perhaps one of the most successful investors in all of human history. But Warren Edward Buffet, as Chairman of investment firm Berkshire Hathaway, ain’t your typical loud-mouth rich boy. He’s smart, he’s humble and he packs quite a bit of wisdom. He once said, “I look for three things in a person – intelligence, energy and integrity. If they don't have the last one, I don't even bother with the first two." Proverbs 11:3 The integrity of the honest keeps them on track; the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin. Successful people are inevitably intelligent in their own particular way, and energetic; passionate about what they do. But unless that’s underpinned by honesty, decency and integrity, it will ultimately bring them to ruin. So, how is it with you? Doubtless you have your particular abilities and passions, but behind them, behind the façade, deep in your heart, how’s your integrity? Come on, let’s get real here …behind what everyone else can see, how honest, how decent, how dependable are you? Because … the integrity of the honest keeps them on track; the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
How to Treat People 2:30

8 days ago2:30

2:30

Most of us, most days, interact with quite a few people – at work, at home, on public transport, on the roads, in the shopping mall. Even if you’re alone, you certainly think about them. So, how do you think about them? How do you treat them? And how often do you wonder about how you impacted them? The answer for most of us is … not all that often. When people treat you well, it feels good. When they treat you badly, it stirs up all sorts of negative emotions and responses. So we very definitely think about how they treat us, but not so much about how we treat them. That’s just how it goes. Let me ask you … just the last three people you interacted with yesterday or today … how did you treat them? How do you think you made them feel? How are you positioned right now in their thoughts and emotions? I know I’m asking a lot of questions today … but no apologies because honestly, these are the questions we need to be asking ourselves not just in the aftermath, but in the leadup to our interactions with others. Here’s Jesus on this very thing: John 15:12-14 This is what I command you: Love each other as I have loved you. The greatest love people can show is to die for their friends. You are my friends if you do what I tell you to do. The bottom line? Treat others as though Jesus died for them … because He did. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
Don't Blame the System 2:30

9 days ago2:30

2:30

We don’t think about it all too often, but the world – my world, your world – is dominated by manmade systems; economic systems, political systems, social systems, healthcare systems, food production and distribution systems and so on. And essential though they are, many of them aren’t serving us all that well. It’s something of a cliché that the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer. But is that actually true? Well, according to Oxfam, the richest 1% of people in the world currently account for as much wealth as the rest of us put together. No, our systems aren’t all supporting us all that well. That’s a fact. And so what we tend to do is to blame the system for our woes; if only we had a more equitable economy, a better government, honest politicians, a more accessible and efficient healthcare system … and so on. But what about our own personal contribution to the darkness that’s creeping so effectively across the globe? What can we do, in the way we live life in our own little cabbage patch, to make a difference? John 8:12 Later, Jesus talked to the people again. He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never live in darkness. They will have the light that gives life.” As American author and educator Voddie Baucham recently said, “We’re not seeing terrible things in our culture because we vote the wrong way. We’re seeing terrible things in our culture because people love darkness rather than light." Stop blaming the system. Follow Jesus. Shine the light. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
Don't Participate in the Lies 2:30

10 days ago2:30

2:30

Without meaning to sound like a conspiracy theorist, because I’m not, the lies that permeate our social consciousness these days have crept into our lives like a cancer; like many cancers … and they’re killing us. What lies? Well, take your pick. Economic lies – you’ll be happy if you’re rich. Family lies – divorce? It's just another lifestyle choice. Health lies – take these pills and everything will be fine. There’s identity politics, religious lies … and people are swallowing them to their own detriment. Back in the day, Jesus lashed out at the religious leaders of His day (yeah, they’re not immune either) for their duplicity, their hypocrisy, their subjugation of ordinary people just to line their own pockets and increase their social standing. He said to them … John 8:44 Your father is the devil. You belong to him. You want to do what he wants. He was a murderer from the beginning. He was always against the truth. There is no truth in him. He is like the lies he tells. Yes, the devil is a liar. He is the father of lies. Jesus doesn’t mince words, does He? Look, it’s all too easy to get suckered into the lies that the world’s peddling, in many cases with a vehemency and vitriol that beggars belief. At some point, you have to stand apart from all that and say, “No!” Russian author and social dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn put it like this: "The simple step of a courageous individual is not to take part in the lie.” It takes courage to stand against the lies taking over our lives. It takes courage to believe in God, to follow Jesus, to allow His truth to permeate the deepest fibre of your being. Do it anyway. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
Have You Lost Your Mind? 2:30

11 days ago2:30

2:30

It’s never a nice feeling being the odd one out; the one who doesn’t fit in. How does it make you feel when you’re the one who’s different, who stands out like a sore thumb? I spent my whole childhood being that kid . At home we spoke one language, at school another. I was studious and overweight, the other kids were normal. I played the piano, they played sport. I hated that feeling. How about you? Now let’s crank things up a notch. Let’s say for a moment that you believe in Jesus. I mean, not just believe, but you’ve set your life on a course to follow Him. And these days, that’s just frowned upon. People think you’re a lunatic. Come on man, get with the program. The world’s moved on. And yet, should we be at all surprised? Jesus Himself put it like this: Matthew 7:13-14 You can enter true life only through the narrow gate. The gate to hell is very wide, and there is plenty of room on the road that leads there. Many people go that way. But the gate that opens the way to true life is narrow. And the road that leads there is hard to follow. Only a few people find it. Following Jesus has always meant going against the flow. As C.S. Lewis once said, “When the whole world’s running towards a cliff, the one who’s running in the opposite direction appears to have lost their mind.” The gate that opens the way to true life is narrow. And the road that leads there is hard to follow. Only a few people find it. Follow Jesus, no matter what it costs you. That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
The Prosecution and the Defence 2:30

12 days ago2:30

2:30

I sometimes try to imagine what it must be like to be charged with a criminal offence and end up in a court before a judge and jury. That’d be seriously scary. You’d hope that you had a good defence attorney, eh? Guilty or innocent, none of us wants to go to prison. And, let’s face it, as you and I look back on our lives, there are so many things that we are guilty of. Dishonesty, cheating, bad-mouthing, grumbling … the list, no doubt, goes on. So how is this thing playing out in your life – this tussle between right and wrong, between good and evil? Who’s winning – your demons or your better angels? It turns out that the original Hebrew word for “Satan” in the Old Testament, means “prosecutor”. How appropriate, as he whispers in your ear, “You’re not good enough. In fact, you never will be. So just give up on all this goodie-goodie stuff and go with the flow.” But that’s not where it ends because the Greek word for “Holy Spirit” in the New Testament means “defence attorney”. Here it is, direct from Jesus: John 14:15-17 If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. (NRSV) And the Holy Spirit is the best advocate, the best defence you’ll ever have. Jesus. He’s on your side. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
There Are No Shortcuts 2:30

13 days ago2:30

2:30

I don’t think there’s one of us who hasn’t wished that we could be an overnight success. Can’t we just dispense with the humdrum, the hard yards and arrive, for goodness sakes? What makes it even worse is when you hear about some kid becoming an overnight squillionaire as an Instagram sensation or by inventing something cool. And even though we know that’s one in a million, we still wish it could happen to us. After all, why not you, why not me? Back in the day, God was looking to appoint a king for Israel. The current one, Saul, was headed off the rails so He sent Samuel the Prophet out to anoint a new king. If you know the story, eventually he found David and … 1 Samuel 16:13 Samuel took the horn with the oil in it, and poured the special oil on Jesse’s youngest son in front of his brothers. The Spirit of the LORD came on David with great power from that day on. Wow. I’m going to be the king of Israel … but for David it was back to the humdrum of tending sheep. He subsequently fought many battles. Saul hunted him down and tried to kill him. David had so much to go through before ascending the throne. As Canadian Pastor Raymond Woodward puts it … “Anointing didn't take David straight to the palace, it returned him to the sheep pen. Anointing doesn't bypass process – it binds you to it. It's dangerous to be released without bearing responsibility. It's dangerous to become a king without first being a keeper.” #NoteToSelf: there are no shortcuts. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.…

1
Time Marches On 2:30

14 days ago2:30