“David said to Gad, ‘I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord,
for his mercy is great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men.’”
2 Samuel 24:14
Mercy is another attribute of God. Mercy is God not giving us what we deserve. It is God forgiving our debt because we embrace the sacrifice of His Son on our behalf. It is God throwing our sin into the sea of forgetfulness and posting a “No Fishing!” sign. But how can this be? “Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.” Micah 7:18.
Now we know God is just and requires the perfection of the law to be met and we know that none of us is perfect. What are we to do? Then God comes up with this brilliant solution only He could architect. He sends His Son to die on our behalf so the righteous requirements of the law can be met, but we can still live to tell about it. We who were worthy only of death due to our sins, now the righteousness of God. For “he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5).
Mercy is God’s response to the believer’s sin debt. We can say with the Psalmist, “Answer me, O Lord, out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me” (Psalms 69:16). And He can because the requirements of the law have been met – our deficiency has been filled by the blood of Christ. How great was our debt – we owed our very lives! Yet God sacrificed His Son so we could live and know the depths of His mercy. Therefore, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). Mercy is pardon of what we deserve – punishment for our sins. Grace is a gift we have not, and can never, earn. Mercy is the debtor being set free from debtors’ prison. But mercy only serves to bring us back to ground zero in our ledger. Grace puts us in the black, way in the black. It is the beggar inheriting the entire kingdom.
Mercy is the wrath of God avoided. It is the ultimate goodness of God not destroying the wretchedness of man because God has made a way for His goodness to fill our gap. It is the foreclosing mortgage paid. Just when we were about to lose it all, God steps in with His mercy and erases the debt and in its place writes, “Paid in Full!” on the bill. Here we are relieved of the debt, whew, but yet unable to buy the next meal so to speak. Grace makes us billionaires in the kingdom. “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved” Eph 2:4-5. “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship” Romans 12:1. Consequently, here is the reason why we owe God everything, He paid the bill. Our part is to play the indentured servant. To sacrifice ourselves back to Him for sacrificing Himself for us. He asks of us nothing He has not already done Himself. “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).
Our gratitude is displayed in our response back to him and to others. “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7). God expects the mercy He displayed to us to overflow into our showing mercy to others, “because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!” (James 2:13).
Almighty, powerful, awesome God, we humble ourselves before your great judgment seat. You have seen the error of our ways and provided our way of escape from your heavy hand of judgment. We are exceedingly grateful to you! Help us to display our gratitude to you by showing your mercy to others. Let us remember it is the goodness of God which leads to repentance. Thank you for erasing our colossal debt. Help us to remember the place you have made for us now and also the place from which you delivered us, that we might avail ourselves of all the fullness you died to bring us and remember the wretched state we were in without Your mercy. Oh great God be praised! We marvel in your mercy and thank you with sincere hearts, souls and minds!
References
All Scriptures not specified are quoted from Life in the Spirit Study Bible (NIV). Stamps, Donald C., and John Wesley Adams. Life in the Spirit Study Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. Print.
Tozer, A. W. The Knowledge of the Holy: the Attributes of God, Their Meaning in the Christian Life. New York: Harper & Row, 1961. Print.
