St Peters RC Church Hamilton

“Return to the LORD your God, for He is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish.” (Joel 2 v 13 NLT)

How do we know this?

By experience of Christ Jesus’ friendship.

His perfect holiness is our worship,

For Christ Jesus’ life was sacrificed for us.

Our aspiration for humanity to live peacefully

Finds the possibility given by salvation.

The Eternal Word of love and mercy

Comes to us from the Father,

To redeem us by His Son’s sacrifice at the †.

“For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3 v 16 NLT)

This sacrifice is resulting in the outpouring of mercy.

This mercy is holy, it is God’s gift to us.

We return by grace, love and mercy shown us

By the Father, as we turn to belong to Jesus.

He casts out guilt and the shame of sin,

Quite literally we begin anew through Christ Jesus.

He is Saviour for us, now, here today.

This Man who is God, is a gift to humanity,

A gift from our Father intent on making us holy.

“God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through Him.” (John 3 v 17 NLT)

“There is no judgment against anyone who believes in Him...God’s one and only Son...God’s light come into the world...those who do what is right come to the light, so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” (John 3 v 18, 19, 21 NLT)

Let us pray with thanksgiving for the:

supreme love offered us through forgiveness;

life and death of our Saviour Brother;

justice meted out mercifully at the †;

the calling to repent with a contrite heart;

possibility to wipe the record of our sinfulness away;

blessings of a fresh start;

recognition of the grace won for us;

the resolve to live in holiness, sin’s power broken;

an increase in understanding that when Christ Jesus “...died, He died to break the power of sin” (Romans 6 v 10 NLT);

daily prayer of thanksgiving as “Now that He lives, He lives for the glory of God.” (v 10)

the reality to be evident that we too, are called to share in this glory;

understanding to know we are “...dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.” (v 11)

the realisation that we have to call upon the Holy Spirit daily for this to happen;

no part of us to become evil, succumbing to temptation;

acknowledgement of how grace and favour is won for us to bless us;

statement as to who we are in Christ Jesus, our faith brought fully alive by the Holy Spirit;

people not yet believers;

those new to faith, yet to be baptised;

many seeking healing of body, mind and spirit;

God of peace to make us perfect and holy;

continuation of our safety, us being kept blameless in spirit, soul and body for the return of our Saviour Christ Jesus.