335. Mercy and Jealousy
Ezekiel 39:25 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name.
After God brings Israel back again from captivity He will have mercy upon the people and He will be jealous for His holy name. This the Lord will do for us, the believers in Christ: He brings us back from our captivity to the Enemies of the soul in His great mercy. If it were not for mercy we could not live well; in fact, if God did not have mercy we could not even live. God’s just judgment upon our sin is certain and undeniable, with no possibility of parole or acquittal. We are declared guilty and the sentence of death is passed.
But there is Mercy. In mercy God saves; in mercy God forgives; in mercy God blesses; in mercy God gives life. Judgment is upon the sin; mercy is upon the sinner. Come to God, ask for mercy, and go to your house justified. God is merciful, but He does not just have mercy without cause. He has mercy on us only because of Jesus Christ. Mercy does not overlook or forget our sins; mercy forgives sins because Jesus suffered and died for them and paid the full penalty. God’s mercy put Jesus on the cross.
God’s mercy does not remove His jealousy. The Lord will still be jealous; He can tolerate no other rivals, husbands or gods. Thank God for jealousy, for the Lord zealously and jealousy guards His holy name. Thank God that He jealousy guards and protects us, His Bride. Thank God that no one can use His name frivolously or negatively. Thank God that no other sources of good will ever provide lasting good, but the best the other gods of the world can give is temporary thrills that only end and disappoint and crash. No other god can keep promises; only the Lord does that. And He is jealous to keep it that way.
The amazing love of God shows undeserved (though Jesus deserved it for us) kindness and mercy. The amazing love of God is so jealous of us that He will not let anything else that wants to be our god ever be able to do for us what only God can do. In any contest, the other god will always lose.