Outrageous Mercy
The Glory of God in the Gospel-Centered Life
Books
Be watching for Bill’s upcoming book, Seven Dimensions of Spiritual Masculinity, How God Changes Biological Masculinity into Spiritual Masculinity and Why It Matters.
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How To Find Eternal Significance!
Many people spend a major portion of their life seeking notoriety. We want to be remembered, thought about, admired, and emulated. This includes a lust to be admired and remembered after death. Tragically, such endeavors are futile. The only source of post mortem meaning is God’s love, and that only for those who believe the gospel and turn from sin. David’s words in Psalm 103 make this point.
As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.
But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children.
Verses 14-17
I have a two-acre field of Idaho pasture grass in front of my house. Last Spring was unusually wet and the grass grew about three feet high. If a blade of grass died would I have noticed it? Would anyone notice or remember it? It’s a rhetorical question. The answer is obvious.

In the same way, no one will remember Bill Farley 100 years from now except maybe a great grand child with a vague memory of me from their youth. Like the blade sea of grass when the “wind” of death “passes over it” my place in the field will not be remembered for long.
If this is true, and it is, we should be looking for significance elsewhere, and this Psalm tells us where to look. The second verse answers this pessimism with “but!” What a wonderful word. There is a solution to the meaninglessness of existence. “The steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him.” What wonderful news. Here is the solution to the search for meaning and significance. God loves me. God is with me. I am his child, a member of his family. My relationship with God gives me “everlasting” significance.
David Brainerd

David Brainerd is a good example. Brainerd experienced more notoriety after death than most. He was a successful missionary to the Native Americans in the 1740s. After he contracted tuberculosis he moved to Northampton, MA where Jonathan Edwards’ daughter, Jerusha, nursed him. Her efforts proved futile, and Brainerd died at age 28.
However, Edwards read Brainerd’s diary and was so impressed that he edited and published it. The Diary of David Brainerd became an instant publishing success. Most people in 1850 knew Brainerd’s name. But even Brainerd has been forgotten today. Judy and I were in Northampton a few years ago and tracked down his grave. It was just a plaque in the ground about 24 X 12 inches covered with leaves, dirt, and debris. No one was tending it. The wind had passed over Brainerd and his place was “remembered no more.”
But here is the important point. I don’t think Brainerd cares. He is enjoying the steadfast love of God which is from everlasting to everlasting. Now his identity and significance are completely realized in the fact that he is God’s beloved son. Brainerd looked for significance in the right place.
What About Us?
Where are you looking for significance? We all need significance. We all want significance. It is not wrong to pursue it. But don’t waste your life pursuing it in the wrong place. Place all your hope in the father’s love for you and the life of the world come.
Those who seek significance in this world alone, will be greatly disappointed.
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About
This blog is about the gospel and how it influences every aspect of Christian life. Many Christians here the word, “gospel,” and think, that’s for beginners. I want to move on to the deeper truths. But this kind of thinking is a problem. Properly understood the gospel is the deepest truth in scripture. If you knew nothing about the Bible but the gospel, but knew it really well, you would have all the knowledge necessary for a life of godliness.
The gospel reconciles Old Testament and New. It is the center of the Bible. The Old Testament demonstrates the need for it . The Old Testament predicts it. Then the four gospels record the life and death of Jesus, the Messiah, which is the gospel. Last, the epistles look back on the gospels interpreting and applying them.
The gospel is also about ultimate issues. A display of the glory of God is God’s purpose for creation and redemption. The cross of Christ, the center of the gospel, is the greatest display of God’s glory in human history. It also displays the bankruptcy of man. In sum, the cross glorifies God and humbles humanity, and this is how it should be.
The gospel informs how married couples should relate, how they should raise their children, how they should relate to other Christians, why they should evangelize, and how they should conduct themselves in the market place. It’s all there for those who have eyes to see.
The gospel is the heart and soul of the Christian worldview. It explains how we got here, why life is often problematic, and the glorious hope that God has set before all true Believers.
These subjects and others, this blog will explore. Occasionally we will address culture and politics, but the main subject will be the gospel and its application.
If you have questions or concerns my email bfarley48@gmail.com
Older Posts
How To Find Eternal Significance!
Many people spend a major portion of their life seeking notoriety. We want to be remembered, thought about, admired, and emulated. This includes a lust to be admired and remembered after death. Tragically, such endeavors are futile. The only source of post mortem...
What The Super Bowl Says About American Religion!
WHAT IS CULTURE? There are many definitions, but the best is simply this. Culture is a nation's religion externalized. It is a snapshot of our values and beliefs put on display for all to see. The Super Bowl is the biggest cultural event in North America. It is a...
The Pilgrims and Socialism?
THE UNITED STATES IS SLOWLY MOVING toward socialism. However, although socialism—and its advanced form, Communism—have never worked, the naive in the U.S. pursue it anyway. Socialism doesn't work because the State finally runs out of other people's money. Then...
How Does Tradition Work for Protestants?
I GREW UP ROMAN CATHOLIC. We practiced many unbiblical traditions. For example, I prayed to St. Joseph. He was the patron saint that helped people find things that were lost. We said the rosary as a family around the dinner table every evening during lent. My father...
What Is A Circumcised Heart?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A CHRISTIAN? Are you one because you signed a pledge card, or raised your hand at a crusade, or walked to an altar and prayed the sinners prayer? In previous posts, we saw that conversion is likened to going through a New Birth or becoming a...
What Does Conversion Have To Do With The New Creation?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A CHRISTIAN? Are you one because you signed a pledge card, or raised your hand at a crusade, or walked to an altar and prayed the sinners prayer? In our last post we saw that conversion is likened to going through a New Birth. But there are...