I love how God brings new revelations of truth from familiar passages of Scripture. I love the ah-hah moments. The times when a well-known parable or statement of truth is illuminated with new and very specific application. And they come (no coincidence!) at just the right moment. In part, that’s what God meant when He said His Word was living and active, sharper than a double-edged sword, able to divide soul and spirit (Hebrews 4:12).
I had one of those moments recently from a passage of Scripture that was not only familiar, but one I had memorized:
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:37-38.
That last line is where it really hit home:
“For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Put more literally – if we need mercy, let’s pour out extravagant mercy on the people around us. If we want to walk in the lavish forgiveness of God — being cleansed from all unrighteousness — let’s be lavish in giving forgiveness to the people who hurt and sin against us. If we want to embrace more of the love of God, then let’s love others as God has loved us.
Sometimes I need to stop and ask myself: Why am I being stingy, stingy in giving mercy, stingy in giving love, stingy in giving…?
We have a God of infinite resources and He offers all of Himself to us. In fact, He’s already given everything to us. When we received the Holy Spirit we received everything needed to live a God-glorifying life. We must believe it. We must learn to appropriate it. Moreover:
We must stop blocking the flow by withholding from others the things freely given to us.
This is a principle for living in the kingdom of God — the spiritual “home” of all Christ-followers, one more real than most of us realize. When we live God’s way, implementing His kingdom principles, we reap blessings and supernatural provision we would not receive otherwise. In them, we experience Him. We know Him. As a result, we fall more deeply in love with Him.
This principle is crucial as we seek to live in community with one another. To be safe people and loving truth-tellers, we must be acutely aware of the depths of sin from which we’ve been forgiven and delivered. Let’s not forget the extravagant mercy and grace God gives us daily. Let’s be people through whom God can release His miraculous provision as we practice Way #16 of 52 Ways to Glorify God:
Give generously.
For Scripture says,
“Freely you have received, freely give.” Matthew 10:8
The reward is great: Give generously and you will reap generously!
I recently watched a very short video on this very topic. I think you’ll be blessed by it.
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