Jan 30 2022 God's Lovingkindness (Chesed)

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We are looking at the five attributes of God from this passage:

Exodus 24:6 The LORD passed by before him and proclaimed: "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and faithfulness,

Loyal Love: Chesed

Mercy, Lovingkindness, Unfailing Love, Steadfast Love

There is no English word – or any language, other than Hebrew, that can adequately express the meaning of this word.

So, in translations – you get all kinds of different words. Loyal love… The first 2 English bibles – Tyndale and Before KJV – Mercy

Then Lovingkindness – not really a word – so they took two separate words and put them together.

This concept is really important – 245 in NT – 127 in Psalms – speaking of God’s love for us – but can also talk about people’s love for one another. There are two aspects of God’s love described in this word.

This speaks of God’s relational covenant love. It speaks of God’s commitment to be faithful no matter what. That commitment is motivated by love and affection for us – not by duty.

Second – it is action – the action-oriented love of God demonstrated through kindness, generosity, and mercy – sometimes in the extreme – motivated by God’s love and affection.

Mackie: Like an elderly couple after 60 years of marriage and one spouse gets sick – and one of the spouses spends the final days caring for the other spouse. That puts all of this together – because of a covenant they’ve had for 70 years – and love they’ve had – and it is action-oriented. For me – I had an example in my dad until my mom passed away. For more than 5 years, his life was given to caring for her. I think that is a wonderful picture of God’s love for us.

Part of this aspect speaks to me – we talk about the five love languages – the way I express and experience love is through action – giving and receiving love through action.

We all have ways we like to experience love. But with each language of love, there is a dark side – other languages that are underdeveloped. God doesn’t have one love language. He has all of them.

Ephesians 3:17-19 And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord's people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.

It basically says that His love encompasses all of the space – there is no space that God’s love doesn’t fill.

He can love everyone in a way that specifically touches and connects with us and the ways we need to be loved. There are so many layers to His love that He knows how to connect intimately with each of us as we are.

Cindy and I love the mountains – we are drawn to the mountains – when we were visiting my son in Europe, we first visited some castles – and then we went to the mountains. God uses this – speaks to us, in mountains and in the beauty of nature. Each of us has our own way – and we can’t feel bad about the way God speaks to us – as if it is not spiritual enough. For some, worship is a quiet, contemplative thing – and for others – it is loud and lively! If you are quiet and contemplative, you might think – I’m not loud and lively, I must not have a worship heart… But the church – with all its diversity – can express multifaceted layers of God’s love to the world in all the ways He wants to express it.

Deuteronomy 7:9

"Know therefore that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments;

Deuteronomy takes Chesed – loyal love – and puts it at the heart of a covenant relationship – like a marriage – we, His humans are His bride – and He will be faithful to a thousand generations – ALWAYS. There is nothing that can stop Him.

This last line might sound conditional – to those who keep His commandments – but that would not be understanding this in its entire concept. Deuteronomy is quoting Exodus 34:6 – and adding verse 7:

Forgiveness

who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; (Exodus 34:7 NASB)

Israel continually broke their marriage vows -and each time they turned back to God, He welcomed and forgave them. Iniquity, transgression, and sin – 3 words for the same thing – He forgives them all – even the ones we think are unforgivable. Forgiveness is at the core of Chesed.

Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? (Micah 7:18 NASB)

What a phrase – Passes over – pardons. Just as there are many layers of sin, there are many aspects of forgiveness.

He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love.

This love never changes. He enjoys it. He enjoys loving us when we fail. Think about that. It is hard! Think if we were that way with one another – like, I really like this person the most when they irritate me! When they make me angry! I just love loving them at that moment!

A couple other actions in God’s action-oriented love:

You have known the troubles of my soul, Return, O LORD, rescue my soul; Save me because of Your lovingkindness. (Psalm 6:4 NASB)

In this lovingkindness – he protects and saves. All of us have experienced a protection – a rescuing from God – yes, in salvation – but also in so many different ways. Maybe driving here today in the snow!

As we move toward Lent – if you have a story of God rescuing and protecting you, could you share it with me, and we would love for somehow for it to be shared with the congregation.

God’s love must be understood in the context of a fallen world – although God protects us – well, let’s look at the next verses:

"For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, And My covenant of peace will not be shaken," says the LORD who has compassion on you. (Isa 54:10 NAU)

God will protect us – but mountains fall. The ground beneath us shakes. People get cancer – get in accidents – lose jobs. Everything else can change, but God’s love doesn’t – even when everything else falls apart.

Ps. 63:3 Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You.

In closing – there are numerous examples in the Bible. It is the love that Jesus demonstrates to us in the cross. That is God’s ultimate expression.

We know love by this – Christ died for us while we were sinners.

In the story of Ruth – there is this story of 2 women who live in Bethlehem – they were starving – and heard there was food in Moab – a place where ‘no good Israelite would go’ – and the boys marry Moabite women – the Bible is clear – stay away from Moabite women – but the men die, and Naomi tells the women to stay there, and Ruth says

Ruth 1:16 16 But Ruth said, "Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 "Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me."

This is Chesed – like a couple getting married and leaving for their lives – til death do they part – but that is not the case for Ruth – she is not going into a happy place – she is going into a place where she will be despised by all – an object of constant ridicule – always an outsider. But her love commitment makes her willing to do it. Who does that sound like – who left something wonderful to something terrible because of Love?

People coming from the south of the US pass through drug-lord lands, believing they will be better off than where they are. Whatever we think about immigration, we can at least admire the courage.

Ruth is not going to a better place –

So she goes – and goes to Bethlehem – and it is like she is a ghost – people talk to Naomi as if she is not even there. Ruth goes to get food – to provide for her and Naomi. The owner of the field tells her – just stay in my field, reap whatever you want – I’ll make sure you have food – you are welcome here. This is an incredible expression of lovingkindness…

Ruth 2:10 Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, "Why have I found favor (grace) in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?" 11 Boaz replied to her, "All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people that you did not previously know. 12 "May the LORD reward your work, and your wages be full from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge."

Boaz is so astonished by Ruth’s loyal love that it spurs him to do the same thing. It creates in him the same desire to be shown back to Ruth. God loves it when we love like He loves. In our church – we have many people who are examples of Chesed. Most do it very quietly and no one knows about it. They give themselves.

Ruth

And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, "May he be blessed of the LORD who has not withdrawn his kindness (Chesed) to the living and to the dead." (Rut 2:20 NAS)

And now Naomi responds in kind.

And Ruth basically proposes to Boaz – it is a fantastic story – you should read it…

Then he said, "May you be blessed of the LORD, my daughter. You have shown your last kindness to be better than the first by not going after young men, whether poor or rich. (Rut 3:10 NAU)

Boaz was a rich wealthy landowner – probably 50-60 years old – and Ruth is probably 20 or 18 years old. IN our world, that is weird -but it was a different world. For her to propose – basically making him propose – that was scandalous – this whole thing was scandalous – but it is a picture of the scandalous love of Jesus on the cross.