Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Matthew 5:7 NIV
What is mercy? Mercy is not giving someone something that they deserve, such as a police officer not writing a ticket to a driver who was speeding. When was the last time you were shown mercy? When did someone withhold a punishment that you should have received or showed you compassion?
The wonderful thing about mercy to me is that is costs you nothing to give and you receive in return the gift of knowing that you have given another person a chance to then go and show mercy to someone else. You do not tend to give mercy as freely to others if you yourself have not received mercy at some point. A person who has not received mercy has a hard time fully understanding the gift that mercy truly is for the person who receives it.
A person who has received mercy themselves is typically quicker to give mercy to others because they know what relief mercy brings. This has a wonderful circle effect in that we receive mercy so we show mercy which can then result in us receiving mercy again from a different source. Mercy is a component of love and since God is love, it is no surprise that mercy is a gift from God. He has been so merciful to us over the years, think of all the times He withheld punishment from all of us, but the most merciful moment was when He sent His son to pay for OUR transgressions.
God didn’t have to send Jesus. Jesus didn’t have to come down. Jesus didn’t have to let the Roman guards nail Him to that cross. He didn’t have to pay the ultimate price for us so that we did not have to spend eternity separated from God in a place of damnation. He didn’t have to do any of that, but that is exactly what He did. He showed us mercy. Jesus showing mercy for all of us, laid down on that cross and gave His life so we would all be able to choose freedom from the bondage of sin.
Have you made that choice? The choice to be free from the chains of sin. Have you accepted that gift filled with mercy from God? I beg you to come to Jesus if you have not already. Come, accept and be free from the power that sin has over you.