God’s Heart toward us is Full of Kindness, Compassion, and Love; He calls us by name

When we see God’s heart toward us, when we realize that the heart of God is full of kindness and love toward us, we will not be scared of Him; rather, we will come to Him, for He calls us by name, and there’s such sweetness in His calling and welcoming!

In 2 Sam. 9 David sought out Mephibosheth and brought him to his own table, restored the possessions that his father had, and he did all this without Mephibosheth asking for it.

In this matter, David was a man according to God’s heart, for he expressed the heart of God in what he did and said.

Though Mephibosheth ran away from David and lived in a place without grass, a place without supply (Lo-debar), David had in his heart to bring him back and restore his father’s possessions, and he wanted him to come to his table to eat with him like one of the sons of the king.

Why would he do this? It was because of Jonathan, his companion, to whom David promised that he will not allow his seed to be cut off.

This is a very endearing story that happened many years ago – what does it have to do with us?

The story of David and Mephibosheth is a clear type of our story today.

We did not ask for God, we did not seek for Him, but rather, we even ran away from Him and hid, being in a place without any grass or supply.

But God, being rich in mercy toward us, showed us kindness in sending men to speak the gospel to us.

We had no right, no standing, and no merit to be in God’s presence, for we were sinners, dead in sins and offenses.

But praise the Lord, because of Christ, our real Jonathan, God brought us into His house and sat us at His table to enjoy the riches of what He is.

We may have hid from Him, and our sins created a barrier between us and God, but when the gospel reached us, when we heard of God’s kindness and were touched by it, we simply responded and came to Him.

How we thank and praise the Lord for Christ who came and died for us; He loved us so much that He gave Himself up for us so that we may be rescued and delivered from a place of no supply, a place of dryness and desolation, and be brought into the house of God to feast with God and with His people.

And even when we backslide from God and do not meet with the saints, God’s heart toward us is still full of love and kindness; in this age of grace, He is not here to judge us but rather, He’s full of compassion, tenderness, and care toward us.

God intimately cares for us; it matters to Him concerning each and every one of us.

And His kindness simply leads us to repentance; our reaction to His kindness is that we repent, we open to Him, and we receive Him and enjoy Him.

What a wonderful God we have, and loving and kind the heart of God is toward us!

God’s Heart toward us is Full of Kindness, Compassion, and Love; He calls us by name

When Mephibosheth came to David, the king simply said, Mephibosheth! When David said his name, there was a compassionate feeling in his heart and a pleasant tone in his voice (2 Sam. 9:6-7).

Underneath this word uttered by David was a heart that expressed God’s heart (1 Sam. 16:7).

David’s heart was one with God’s heart, and he was a man according to the heart of God. David’s heart was full of kindness and compassion (20:14-15).

David here was a type of Christ, who is the real David; His heart toward us is full of kindness, compassion, and love.

Satan wants us to think that God hates us and wants to punish us or destroy us; actually, God’s heart toward us is full of kindness and love.

After the Lord resurrected, Mary the Magdalene lingered in the garden, and she thought that the Lord was the gardener; she asked Him where did they put the Lord’s body so that she would take it.

The Lord’s response to her was simply, Mary! Such a tender response, filled with love, compassion, and kindness.

She knew that voice; she knew that tone and attitude, and she knew how much the Lord loved her. She simply replied by saying, Rabboni! (see John 20:1-16)

The Lord calling Mary’s name was like David calling Mephibosheth’s name. He had no hatred or accusation but He was full of compassion, kindness, and love.

When David saw the grandson of his greatest enemy, he did not hate him but rather, loved him and was full of kindness toward him.

We are like Mephibosheth, thinking that God is our enemy and He wants to call us to Himself to judge us and kill us, but He calls us by name, and in His speaking, there’s so much tenderness, compassion, love, and kindness.

We all can testify that we heard the Lord’s calling our name; we may have been in a meeting or in a conversation with someone, the Lord called us by name, and in His voice, there was so much love.

Before the Lord called us and saved us, we may have thought that His heart is full of hatred and condemnation toward us, even as Mephibosheth thought that the king’s heart was full of hatred toward him.

We may have thought that we want to come to God to be His servant, maybe in this way we would please Him.

This is what Mephibosheth thought, and his response to David’s calling was, Your servant is here (2 Sam. 9:6).

This was the response that the prodigal son also had in Luke 15:18-19; he thought that he will repent before his father and will just be one of his servants, for he was not worthy to be called his son.

Though this intention may not be evil, God doesn’t need servants: God’s heart is full of love and compassion toward us, and He wants us to be in His house as His sons, not His servants.

David’s heart testified of God’s heart when he told Mephibosheth, “Do not be afraid, for I will surely show kindness to you for the sake of Jonathan your father; and I will restore to you all the land of your father Saul, and you will eat food at my table continually” (2 Sam. 9:7).

We may come to God with much fear, but God’s heart toward us is full of love and compassion; His kindness disarms us, and when He calls us by name, we can only repent and come to Him as we are, for He loves us and wants us to be with Him, feasting at His table in His house.

May the Lord bring us into such a subjective knowledge of Him, a personal and intimate touch with Him, so that we may know the heart of God which is full of love, care, tenderness, and compassion, and know His attitude toward us, which is full of kindness.

Lord Jesus, unveil us to see Your heart toward us. Cause us to realize that God’s heart toward us is full of love, compassion, and tender care. We come to You, Lord, even as we are, for You love us and are kind toward us. Oh, the kindness of God leads us to repentance! Thank You, dear Lord, for calling us by name. Thank You for bringing us into Your house to enjoy You with the saints. We love You, Lord, because You first loved us. We respond to Your love and kindness by just loving You with all our heart. Your voice is so sweet and pleasant. There’s no condemnation in Your tone, Lord, for You are so kind and tender toward us. We simply love You, for You attracted us and You brought us back to our inheritance and into Your house to eat with You at Your table. Lord Jesus, we love You!

What kind of Love is this? God’s Heart full of Love Shortens the Distance of Sin and Receives us to Himself

Some people may say that they don’t see God’s love, for God never told them that He loved them. God showed us His love in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8).

There is nothing that we have done to attract His love; rather, we were His enemies, far away from God, living in sin and usurped by the world. Yet God loved us. What kind of love is this?

It is one thing when someone is lovable and takes a step toward you to show you his love and affection, and it is something else when someone is your enemy and stays far away from you.

May we know the kind of heart that God has and realize that God’s heart toward us is full of love, compassion, and kindness.

If we just look at the cross, we will see and realize that He has already loved us.

To all those who say they didn’t hear God telling them He loves them we just need to tell them to look at the cross.

We should be the ones receiving the punishment of the cross, but God made the Lord Jesus suffer for us because He loved us.

Christ came to die for us because He loved us. He loved us so much that He didn’t want us to perish without knowing His love; He came and died for us, though we were sinners and enemies of God. God has already loved us even before we were born.

What kind of love is this? God may not tell us that He loves us, but He is like the father of the prodigal son – He simply runs to us and embraces us and kisses us.

We may be like the prodigal son, having an apology ready to be spoken to Him, but He sees us from far away, He has compassion on us, and He runs to us and falls on our neck, kissing us affectionately (Luke 15:20).

God’s heart full of love toward us shortens the distance of sin, and He warmly receives us to Himself.

When He comes to us and embraces us in this way, we will know God’s heart; we may ask Him for forgiveness and beg Him to make us like one of His hired servants, but His heart of love melts us.

May we not misunderstand God’s heart but know that His heart is full of love toward us, and His kindness and compassion are shown forth toward us.

He has no conditions on us when we return to Him; He doesn’t ask us where have we been and what have we done, and how can we fix what we did wrong – He simply loves us and receives us to Himself. He simply gives us promises and grace.

If we understand God’s heart, we will simply believe in Him and come to Him again and again.

What kind of love is this? God loves us so much that He even sends out people to where we are, in our low estate, in the wasteland and dry place where we are, and He brings us to His house to enjoy Him.

When we see His heart full of love toward us, we will not only come to Him and enjoy Him in His house, but we will also put on inward parts of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and long-suffering (Col. 3:12).

As we enjoy His compassions and mercies, as we touch His kindness and love, we realize that we’re His chosen ones, holy and beloved, and we take Christ as our compassion, kindness, love, meekness, lowliness, and long-suffering.

As a result, our attitude toward others will be full of compassion and kindness, for the kindness of God is expressed through us as we meet them and greet them.

Oh, may the Lord reveal His heart to us and may He duplicate His loving heart toward others in us!

Lord, what kind of love is this, that caused You to die for us even while we were yet sinners? How we praise and thank You, dear Lord, for loving us so much that You gave Yourself up for us. Thank You for receiving us to Yourself in kindness and love, with no commandment or condition. We are so touched and warmed up by Your tender love and compassion. Father God, Your heart full of love shortens the distance of sin and brings us back to Yourself. Thank You for seeking us out and bringing us back to the Father’s house to enjoy His riches. Lord, we are not worthy to be called Your sons, but You love us and You made us sons of God, the holy and beloved ones of God. We want to put on inward parts of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and long-suffering so that we may express You toward others. May Your heart of love and kindness be duplicated in us and expressed through us!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Minoru Chen, and portions from, Collected Works of Watchman Nee, vol. 18, pp. 283-286, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization Study of 1 and 2 Samuel (2021 winter training), week 10, entitled, David, Mephibosheth, and the Kindness of God.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – How can I ever stay away / And grieve Thy Spirit all the day / While Thou dost wait for me? / I now am willing to return, / And wait no longer, for I yearn / Henceforth to follow Thee. (Hymns #471)
  – He left His Father’s throne above, / So free, so infinite His grace; / Emptied Himself of all but love, / And bled for Adam’s helpless race: / ’Tis mercy all, immense and free; / For, O my God, it found out me. / ’Tis mercy all, immense and free; / For, O my God, it found out me. (Hymns #296)
  – ’Tis mercy all, that Thou hast brought / My mind to seek her peace in Thee; / Yet, while I seek but find Thee not, / No peace my wand’ring soul shall see. / Oh, when shall all my wand’rings end, / And all my steps to Thee-ward tend! / Is there a thing beneath the sun / That strives with Thee my heart to share? / Ah! tear it thence, and reign alone, / The Lord of every motion there. / Then shall my heart from earth be free, / When it has found repose in Thee. (Hymns #423)