Right Thinking
The primary purpose of the teaching at Mercy Hill is to communicate the ultimate truth that is inherent in the Bible. Our goal is to preach, teach, sing and discuss what we know to be true from the revelation of Scripture. But this approach is unpopular with many churches. Many pastors are far more concerned with being perceived as brilliant self-help gurus than about communicating the truth of who God is. Rather than being faithful servants of the church and purveyors of the Gospel they become virtual PEZ dispensers of cheap, self-serving, advice capsules.
The communication of Biblical truth is foundational to any Gospel-focused church. Of course, the goal is not to be right just for the sake of being right. Rather, we promote faithfulness to truth as essential to the daily walk of the believer. As the old adage goes, “right thinking leads to right living”. In essence, if you think rightly about who God is you will begin to live rightly. This is because the relationship between God and His children is different than any other relationship you can experience. As we learn and experience who God is we begin to understand the depth of His love for us. The kind of love that led the Father to choose us as His children (Eph 1:4-5). The kind of love that led Jesus to the cross (Rom 5:8). The kind of love that leads the Holy Spirit to pray for us with groans that cannot be uttered (Rom 8:26). After we are exposed to this love we are forced to make a decision: Will I reciprocate the love that God has demonstrated for me and live my life in light of what He has done or will I ignore the wooing of the Holy Spirit and pursue my own short-sighted pleasure?
Ultimately, understanding truth is what drives us to live a life that is pleasing to God: a life of service, sacrifice and sanctification. Once the Holy Spirit moves that truth from a head knowledge to a heart understanding we are able to experience what Jesus described in John 8: you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.