"New Mercies"
Overview
New Mercies
In the middle of Lamentations—a book of five carefully crafted poems grieving the destruction of Jerusalem—an unexpected song of hope rises: "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness" Lamentations 3:22-23. The structure itself is striking. Each chapter contains 22 verses, matching the Hebrew alphabet, while chapter 3 multiplies that to 66. Within this disciplined poetry of sorrow, God's mercies are declared inexhaustible.
To grasp the weight of this promise, three words must be carefully distinguished: justice, grace, and mercy. Justice is getting what you deserve. The criminal crucified beside Jesus confessed it plainly: "We are receiving the due reward of our deeds" Luke 23:41. Grace is getting what you don't deserve. When the angel Gabriel greeted Mary as "favored one" Luke 1:28, she had done nothing to earn this calling—she was an ordinary sinner chosen to bear the Messiah, and her Magnificat Luke 1:46-49 marvels at this unmerited gift. Mercy is not getting what you deserve. When Joseph's brothers stood before him in Egypt, having sold him into slavery, he could have rendered justice—but instead he forgave and provided for them.
The Hebrew word translated "mercies" in Lamentations 3 derives from the word for womb—evoking the tender, active compassion of a mother for her child. Mercy is sympathy and compassion put into action. And as Paul writes, this mercy is born of love: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved" Ephesians 2:4-5. Love births mercy; mercy births grace. They are two sides of the same coin.
This is the gospel pattern: we do not want God's justice, and we do not have to receive it, because at the cross Jesus bore the wrath our sin deserved. God's justice was satisfied in His Son, so that mercy might flow to us, and through that mercy, grace—forgiveness, reconciliation, the promises sealed in baptism, the victory of the empty tomb applied to our lives. And the mercies do not stop there. Every morning brings fresh evidence of God's compassion in action: His guidance, His sovereign care over every detail of your life, His unwavering commitment to you. When the weight of yesterday's failures presses in, or when grief like Jerusalem's threatens to drown out hope, return to this anchor: the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.
Transcript
Let's open up our Bibles, please, to the book of lamentations for our study today. 3s
Lamentations the third chapter. 10s
We're continuing this sermon series, simply entitled new, which is a celebration of that 13s
which God makes new and we come today to this incredibly important book, a meaningful 20s
book, and holy scripture, lamentations, studying from the third chapter. 27s
So we come for the text for today as we come to it. 33s
There are three words that I think are so important to understand. 37s
In fact, I would maintain that if we understand the meaning of these words and how these 42s
words differ from one another, we'll really understand the text that we'll really get 49s
it. 55s
So here's the three words, justice, grace, mercy, justice, grace, mercy. 56s
Understand the difference between those and we'll understand the text. 70s
Lamentations. 78s
It is a series of five laments. 80s
It's laments over the destruction of Jerusalem. 83s
There is an incredible amount of emotion that is poured out in this book of lamentations. 88s
As these laments are expressed. 95s
And there is a precision in the crafting of this book. 99s
There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet. 105s
Each of the chapters of lamentations has 22 verses with the exception of chapter 3, which has 66 verses, 3 times 22. 110s
So not only do you have this, outpouring of emotion, but you've got this poetry. 124s
You've got this precision of expression. 128s
An arising pertinier in the middle of this book is this beautiful expression of hope. 134s
Look at it with me. 148s
Would you please? 149s
Verse 22 of chapter 3. 150s
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. 154s
His mercies never come to an end. 159s
They are new. 163s
Every morning, great is your faithfulness. 165s
The Lord is my portion says my soul. 170s
Therefore, I will hope in Him. 174s
Let's focus on the second part of verse 22, where it says, 178s
His mercies never come to an end. 182s
His mercies. 187s
What is mercy? 190s
What are the mercies of God? 191s
What's mercy? 195s
Is mercy justice? 198s
Is it justice? 201s
I think the scene of the cross. 205s
There is Jesus in between two criminals. 208s
And the one criminal says recorded in Luke 23 chapter. 211s
And we, indeed, have been condemned justly. 217s
For we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, 222s
but this man has done nothing wrong. 226s
He's referencing, of course, Jesus, that Jesus had done nothing wrong 229s
to deserve crucifixion. 234s
But the criminal says, we, indeed, have been condemned justly. 236s
He says, we are getting what we deserve. 241s
That's a definition of justice, isn't it? 246s
Justice is getting what you deserve. 250s
Is mercy synonymous with justice? 258s
No. 265s
No. 267s
Is grace synonymous with mercy? 272s
I think of Mary. 280s
Luke the first chapter. 283s
Beginning with verse 26, it says, in the sixth month, 287s
the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 290s
to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph of the house of David. 296s
The virgin's name was Mary. 301s
And he came to her and said, greetings, favored one. 304s
The Lord is with you. 308s
The explanation then is given to Mary that she is going to bear the son of God. 313s
And Mary pondering this later in verse 46, 320s
and Mary said, my soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. 325s
For he has looked with favor on the loneliness of his servant, surely. 333s
From now on all generations, we'll call me blessed. 339s
For the mighty one has done great things for me, 344s
and holy is his name. 347s
Mary had done nothing to deserve this. 354s
Absolutely nothing. 357s
Was Mary ordinary? 360s
Was she a sinner like the rest of us? 364s
Was she somehow someone that God looked upon and said, 369s
there is someone close to perfection that will bear the son of God. 373s
No. 379s
Mary was an ordinary sinner. 381s
And yet God chose her of all the women. 386s
Of all the women in the world, one would bear the Messiah. 391s
And Mary was chosen. 396s
This was an act of pure grace on the part of God. 398s
Grace is getting what you don't deserve. 407s
Getting what you don't deserve. 416s
In fact, scripture draws a distinction between grace and mercy. 419s
Psalm 145 says, the Lord is gracious and merciful, 427s
slow to anger and abounding instead fast, love. 433s
So is, is mercy justice? 441s
No. 450s
And what is it? 453s
What is mercy? 454s
What are the mercies of God? 458s
His name, the Bible tells us, was Jacob. 466s
Jacob was the father of 12 boys. 470s
Number 11 was Joseph. 475s
Jacob gave to Joseph a beautiful coat of many 480s
colors and his 10 brothers. 484s
They didn't like that one bit. 488s
They were incredibly jealous. 490s
And so they threw their brother in a pit to leave him to die. 492s
Bible tells us some traders came along and they come across Joseph. 500s
And so they turned Joseph into a slave. 505s
Eventually he becomes a slave, a slave in Egypt. 511s
He's a slave in the household of the captain of the guard of Pharaoh. 516s
Joseph's falsely accused of rape. 524s
He winds up in prison. 526s
He interprets a dream of Pharaoh. 528s
He comes up with a strategy to deal with the famine in the land. 530s
And he is elevated to become the Prince of the land. 534s
He goes from the pit to prison to be the Prince. 542s
An incredible, incredible story. 550s
Well, Bible tells us that his brothers came. 554s
They were hungry and they were looking for food. 559s
And they come before the Prince of the land. 561s
Joseph doesn't reveal who he is right away. 565s
But then he does. 570s
And what does Joseph do? 572s
Did Joseph execute justice? 576s
No. 581s
Joseph forgave his brothers. 583s
He is cared for his brothers. 587s
What the brothers received was mercy. 595s
Mercy is not getting what you deserve. 602s
Not getting what you deserve. 610s
Justice, it's getting what you deserve. 612s
Grace, it's getting what you don't deserve. 619s
And mercy, it's not getting what you deserve. 625s
But that is the backdrop. 635s
Let's go back to our text and lamentations of 3rd chapter. 636s
Verse 22 again. 641s
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. 644s
His mercies never come to an end. 649s
They are new every morning. 654s
Great is your faithfulness. 656s
All the depth of this word, mercy, the depth of it. 661s
Sometimes you'll see mercies here and lamentations translated as compassion. 665s
That's a good translation also. 672s
Because mercy is not only has the understanding of not getting what you deserve. 675s
But mercy is also the expression of sympathy and compassion in action. 683s
Sometimes we can have a feeling of sympathy for someone, a feeling of compassion for someone. 693s
And perhaps that doesn't get translated into any action. 699s
But with God, the mercy of God is always sympathy and compassion in action. 703s
So you have the understanding of mercy, not getting what it is you deserve. 711s
There's also the understanding of mercy of sympathy and compassion in action. 717s
In fact, the word here for mercies. 725s
It derives from the Hebrew word for womb. 728s
So the picture here is the mother caring for a child. 732s
What is mercy born of? 739s
What's it born of? 745s
Back to the text. 747s
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. 750s
His mercies never come to an end. 755s
Mercy, not getting what you deserve. 761s
Rather being the recipient of sympathy and compassion put into action. 766s
That is born of love. 770s
We hear also Ephesians the second chapter. 776s
Paul writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. 781s
In chapter two Ephesians verse four, he says this. 784s
But God who is rich in mercy out of the great love with which he loved us. 789s
God loves and that love is expressed in mercy. 799s
It's expressed in sympathy and compassion in action. 805s
And then notice what comes. 812s
Back to verse four again, but God who is rich in mercy out of the great love with which he loved us. 814s
Even when we were dead through our trespasses. 822s
Made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved. 826s
Love, births, mercy and mercy, births grace. 840s
And grace and mercy, they're really two sides of the same coin. 851s
Not getting what you deserve and getting what you don't deserve. 855s
It's really two sides of the same coin. 859s
Oh the depth and the richness of mercy. 863s
I think of the story of the father and son. 872s
The boy had done something that well deserved the consequence. 878s
Something he said or something he did. 884s
The father went into the boy's room and said, you know what you did is wrong. 889s
Right son? 895s
Son said yes. 896s
Well they said, you know now there really should be a consequence for your actions, right? 899s
Son said I understand. 905s
But in this particular instance the father decided to use it as a teaching moment, a teaching moment about some terms. 909s
And so we turned to his son he said, you know what you deserve is me to give you justice. 922s
I should give you a consequence for your actions here. 932s
It's what you deserve. 936s
Instead, hop in the car with me. 940s
So the boy and the father they're driving along. 944s
And the father said, getting what you deserve that's justice. 947s
Mercy, the father said, is not getting what you deserve. 957s
The father said I really want you to understand the difference. 965s
And so I'm going to show you here. 969s
Mercy, you're not going to get what you deserve. 974s
Before long they came to the boy's favorite ice cream place. 982s
They got out of the car. 986s
They went in. 987s
They both got themselves huge ice cream cones set down at the table and the father continued. 989s
The father said, justice, you understand. 996s
And you understand what that means. 1001s
Mercy, you understand what that means. 1003s
Now let me tell you about grace. 1007s
Grace, it's getting what you don't deserve. 1011s
And in those exchanges the father took that moment and taught the boy about justice and mercy and grace. 1019s
You see beloved, we don't want the justice of God. 1038s
We don't want that. 1047s
We don't want God to give us what we deserve. 1050s
But God and His incredible love has set up satisfied his justice. 1057s
And he's always by placing the wrath for sin, the punishment for sin upon his son. 1064s
And at the cross the Lord Jesus Christ satisfies, satisfies God's justice. 1077s
Out of mercy we don't get what we deserve because the Lord Jesus Christ has born. 1088s
But we deserve. 1101s
Instead what we get is God's grace. 1105s
We get what we don't deserve. 1112s
Forgiveness, reconciliation, life being claimed in the waters of baptism and having the victory of the cross and the empty tomb applied to us. 1117s
We're splashed in the promises of God. 1133s
We get what we don't deserve. 1140s
And mercy upon mercy. 1151s
Each and every day God continues to put sympathy and compassion into action. 1156s
God looking upon each one of us and having compassion upon us, born out of his love. 1167s
It's a sympathy and compassion that is expressed in his continual guidance of us. 1175s
His continual directing of us, his continual sovereignty or every detail in our lives. 1181s
His continual expression of his commitment to us on and on and on. 1188s
It goes the expression of sympathy and compassion in action toward us. 1193s
Mercy upon mercy. 1204s
Justice. 1213s
Mercy. 1217s
Understand the difference between those terms. 1223s
And you understand the text. 1227s
Don't you? 1231s
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. 1236s
His mercies never come to an end. 1242s
They are new every morning. 1247s
Great is your. 1252s
Faithfulness. 1254s