​I’ve been thinking a lot about what God said to the prophet Micah, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justice and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)
 
Our world is filled with everything but mercy. The word mercy in the Bible comes from the word “Hesed” in the Old Testament and is translated as God’s “Lovingkindness” toward mankind. The Psalmist says, “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His truth endures to all generations” (Psalm 100:5). Mercy and kindness is a necessary ingredient in worship. Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7). If you’re going to receive mercy, you must be ready to give it to others. Without mercy our world is continually at odds with itself. We need a healthy infusion of God’s “Hesed” these days.
 
What is God’s justice?
 
There is much confusion about that. God’s justice is defined and laid out in this verse from the Bible, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). We are all sinners and guilty of breaking God’s commands. Instead of our paying the penalty for sin, which is death, God loved us enough to pay our sin debt through Christ’s blood shed on the cross. Justice is God’s gracious and full acquittal. We are set free from the penalty of sin through faith in Jesus. That’s real justice.
 
God’s justice is not the same as man’s justice. Men are found guilty and sentenced to serve time as payment for their sins. Man’s justice sometimes is not fair. It is not always impartial. Sometimes it can be flawed. God’s justice is always perfect. It is never out of place or less than necessary. God’s justice makes us right with God.
 
I used to preach occasionally inside local and state prisons. I was always amazed by the way prisoners sang hymns during the services, especially “Amazing Grace.” Men who were paying the penalty for their wrongdoing could sing “Amazing Grace” with all their hearts. They were not bitter. They were not depressed or discouraged. It was liberating to them to know that they could be justified with God even while serving a prison sentence for some wrong they had committed here. Isn’t that something? These men would always carry the mark of their conviction with them, but not with God. With God justice means being completely set free.
 
Trophies are not awarded to people who come in last. There is a new Allstate Insurance Commercial I like. It pictures two dragster speed cars racing each other. One car goes as fast as possible. The other car follows the Allstate safe driving guidelines, not exceeding a certain speed and comes in behind the other. The driver of the second car crosses the finish line with his hands in the air celebrating as if he had won the race. That guy is humble. Humility is about doing what God says rather than what the world says, “...humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time” (1 Peter 5:6). Humble people seek to please God more than anything.
 
Mercy, justice, and humility is what God is looking for today. Don’t get distracted by all the hype and noise saturating today’s world. It is better to be pleasing to God rather than the world’s standards. 

​It was an incredible blessing to meet this past Sunday afternoon with Deacons and Church Leaders to plan and pray for the ministry of our church. Our Deacon Body talked about the ongoing work they do keeping in touch with their Deacon Family responsibilities and maintaining a contact schedule of over 100 contacts per week. I felt God’s hand upon their discussion because they are so committed to sharing the ups and downs of ministry in the lives and homes of our people. They have literally assumed the care and shepherding work of God’s people as the number one priority. As your pastor, it is an awesome blessing to have deacons who help carry the load of ministry. I feel like Moses must have felt when Aaron and Hur held up his arms in the middle of the battle against the armies of Amalek (Exodus 17:12-14). It’s great to have deacons who hold up your arms.
 
Our Leadership Team also met last Sunday afternoon to plan and prepare for new ministries that will come in the months ahead. As our leaders brainstormed and prayed together, I could feel the enthusiasm and encouragement begin to flow. It was like feeling new energy pump through your body after you have been sick with a cold or a fever. You simply begin to feel better. Our better feeling, after months of uncertainty due to COVID, consisted of planning these ministries:

• Spring Renewal Saturday Night – May 22nd
• Vacation Bible School – July 18-22
• Churchwide Picnic at Boling Mill Park – July 25th

 
The Spring Renewal Saturday Night will be sponsored by our Senior Adult Sunday School Class led by Doug and Janet Bryant. It will include our first fellowship meal (Barbeque) in over a year. We will invite Central Baptist Church folk to join with us as our guests. Reverend Jerrell Beatty, pastor of Tate’s Creek Baptist Church in Toccoa, will be our guest evangelist for the evening. It was wonderful to hear our leaders plan and encourage each other building momentum toward this exciting opportunity.
 
We are really good when it comes to planning and carrying out Vacation Bible School. We have the best children’s ministry volunteers a church could want. It was terrible last year to cancel our plans for VBS. It was like sinning against the church’s character to not have this special week of family and children’s ministry that we are accustomed and extremely good at leading. Not this year!
 

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL IS COMING!
 
Praise the Lord.
 

On Sunday July 25th, we will complete the VBS week with our Church Picnic at Boling Mill Park. We will observe Baptism again at Lake Lanier. Our fellowship and church family will enjoy great food, fun and friendship throughout the evening. It’s like getting back to normal. That’s how I felt listening to and participating with our leaders last week. It felt like we were getting back to normal in the ministry of planning, praying and expecting God to do the extra-normal. I thank the Lord Jesus that He has brought us through this difficult year. He has shown us His mighty power helping us overcome the difficulties and we have lived through them together, “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)

Robbie and I always place Easter Lilies in the worship center in honor of our parents on Easter Sunday. We owe so much to the faithfulness of John Frank Williams, Maxie Lee Williams, and Gloria Swanson Patterson. We want to think about or parents on Easter Sunday. It is a day in which we reflect on our love for them with gratitude for all they instilled in your lives. They were certainly special people because of their strong faith in Jesus and their enduring example that guides us every day. They truly live on in our hearts.
The Easter Lily is called the “White-Robed Apostle of Hope” because of its fragrance and white appearance symbolizing the purity of Jesus. In classic artwork as far back as the 14th century the angel Gabriel is pictured giving Mary a white lily when she learned that she would conceive and bear a Son by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The trumpet shape of the Lily demonstrates the sounding hope of the empty tomb. The Easter Lily has meant throughout the centuries that new life is possible by way of the resurrection of Jesus from the tomb. Lilies are planted into the ground as ugly bulbs and, after a period of three years, they emerge into fragrant flowers. Jesus came forth from the grave after three days. His life was transformed from death into new life prepared for His ascension into glory. The lily represents the transformation of life that is possible through our faith in a risen Savior who lives today at the right hand of God.
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It is a rich blessing this morning to remember people who hold a special place in our lives. We especially think about those who taught us about Jesus. Those who loved His word. Our parents who took us to church and showed us how believers are supposed to live pure and Godly lives. The Easter Lily not only tells us good things about Jesus, it represents our heritage through which we continue to live out and proclaim the gospel today.
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​“Therefore,
since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us,
let us also lay aside every encumbrance and
the sin which so easily entangles us,
and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
fixing our eyes on Jesus,
the author and finisher of our faith,
who for the joy set before Him endured the cross,
despising the shame,
and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
​(Hebrews 12:1-2)