| | Mercy is one of the attributes of God that we don't often think about in terms of our relationships with others. And yet, it is one of the most renowned of his attributes. William Langland, 14th century poet of Piers Plowman, said of mercy, "All the wickedness in the world which man could do or think is nothing more to the mercy of God than a live coal in the sea." William Shakespeare wrote in The Merchant of Venice, "In the course of justice, none of us should see salvation. We do pray for mercy. And that same prayer doth teach us all to render the deeds of mercy." In Exodus, as God is passing before Moses, he declares his name to be full of mercy: "And the LORD said, 'I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.'" And repeatedly in the Epistles, the Apostles greet the churches and fellow believers with mercy. So what does it mean to display God's character by giving mercy to one another?
I think many people are uncomfortable with this idea because the act of giving mercy necessitates the need for judgment and punishment. Christians may think, since it's not our place to enact God's judgment on others, it's not our place to give mercy either. It may seem like the prerogative of God. I disagree with that view, and honestly I think that if people showed more mercy to one another, the church and the world would be relieved of so much bitterness. Although we may know that true judgment is reserved for God, often we do not hesitate to give people exactly what they deserve.
We need to show mercy when others are foolish and stupid. When you encounter someone who is making an idiot of himself, the world encourages you to ridicule him, to prove how much better and smarter you are. Have mercy, instead. Pass over the stupidities committed by others and you can hope to be spared ridicule in your turn.
We need to show mercy when others are cruel and selfish. The world teaches us that those people ought to be brought down so that they will cease persecuting others. It tells us that we ought to meet cruelty with better, more righteous, cruelty. The world is lying to us. Have mercy. Mercy and forgiveness are the only things that will change people and stop unkindness.
We need to show mercy when others have wronged us. Our culture is full of stories, movies, songs, that teach us that nobody deserves to be forgiven until she has acknowledged her wrongdoing and apologized. We are taught to never forgive someone who has wronged us or trust her again, unless she can somehow prove she is sorry and has changed. Give mercy. Some people will never realize how much they have hurt us, so the best answer is for us to heal regardless. Some people may never change, so the best answer is for us to be changed instead.
We need to give mercy to others because God gives mercy to us every day. The character of God is never one of resentment, never one of bitterness, never one that holds on to wrongs and withholds forgiveness.
I have a dear friend who has recently filed for a divorce. Despite all the pleas and exhortations of the church, she is determined to carry this through, not because she is sure it will make her happy, or because her situation is unbearable--her faithful husband is a nice Christian man who, despite admittedly contributing to their marital problems in the past, is really making an effort to save things now. But to her, it's too little, too late. She has hardened her heart. She is withholding the mercy she needs to give, because to her, the most important thing is that her husband get what he deserve for hurting her in the past. God forbid that this merciless vengeance should exist among us! God, in his great mercy, forbid that we should harbor such bitterness and resentment!
Give mercy to someone today. Give mercy to the coworker who is the butt of all the office jokes, and resist the urge to roll your eyes and sigh when he comes your way. Give mercy to the person in line in front of you at the grocery store, and don't glare at her as she fumbles through her wallet and takes ten minutes to write a check. Give mercy to your spouse who snaps at you, to your sibling who keeps making the same silly mistakes over and over again, to your parent who just doesn't seem to understand you. And realize that God is living and working in you, changing the world through his inexhaustible, unquenchable mercy.
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| | Posted 5/28/2009 12:49 PM - 12 Views - 0 eProps - 0 comments
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