James 2:12-13, “So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.”
How often do we live in the reality that we have been forgiven? Think about that for a minute. God forgives me multiple times throughout my day each time I confess to Him and ask His forgiveness of stupid things I have said or done and had regrets. I need God’s mercy every day. David sang to God after the LORD rescued him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul, in Psalm 18. “With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless, with the purified you show yourself pure, and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.” Verses 25 & 26. Then in Psalms 18:28 David states, “For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God lightens my darkness.” When God’s people sang this (Ps. 18), it was a hymn to remind David’s offspring to be faithful to the Lord so that Israel might carry out its God-given purpose of bringing light to the Gentiles. David maintained and sang about his steadfast trust in the Lord as his rock, refuge, shield, and stronghold, through many dangers, and his understanding of God’s mercy, in this Psalm.
Don’t we often rehearse in our mind what that other person did to us? We replay it in our mind over and over. “That person you find so offensive. Somehow, God sees something there. Something you don’t. Ask Him what it is. . . When you’re living in the reality of the forgiveness you’ve been extended, you just don’t get angry with others easily.” UN OFF-END-ABLE. How Just One Change Can Make All Of Life Better. Brant Hansen. Page 28;61. Mercy is a requirement, according to James 2:13, of believers. Could it be that showing mercy to those that have offended me is a way to shine the light of the gospel, as God lightens my darkness as I read His Word, over judging them? That is a way to not allow the enemy a seat at your/my table. Showing kindness and compassion when having the power to do otherwise, is showing mercy.
What about Matthew 6:15, from the Lord’s Prayer which states, “But if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Then in Matthew 18 is the parable of the unforgiving servant. We know that scenario and how the unforgiving servant that had initially been forgiven, ended up being imprisoned until he could pay his debt as punishment for his unforgiving heart. But do we remember verse 36, which says, “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
The challenge I am learning recently is how to love people I don’t like. How can I better show them I love God? Everyone is experiencing a crisis at one time or another. They may not show it. But I want to be the person they know will care for and love them, despite their flaws and without judgment in my disapproval of my wanting to change their moral behavior. Jesus did this frequently in His ministry. He had the saving power to change people. I do not.
The NLT version says it this way, “So whatever you say or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that sets you free. There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you.”
Listen to Casting Crowns Lyric Video “All Because of Mercy.”