A few years ago, I was driving with the music blasting when suddenly an ambulance struck my car as it rushed through an intersection on its way to an emergency. I didn’t realise it in that moment, but failing to yield to an emergency vehicle can carry severe consequences: a $10,000 fine and even jail time.
I stood before the judge, knowing I was guilty. He asked, “What were you thinking?” I told him, “Your honour, I wasn’t paying attention, I didn’t hear the sirens, and I’m sorry.” I had no defence. No excuse. The judge looked at me, took a long pause, exhaled and said, “Next time, be more alert. Case dismissed. Next.”
What!
That was not what I expected. When he threw my case out, I really understood mercy for the first time. Mercy is God withholding the punishment we deserve. That's what I experienced in that moment, and it left me in shock.
Mercy has a way of doing that—it shocks us. Adam Ramsay, in his book Truth On Fire, says it this way: “Mercy changes us first by startling us with its unexpected presence. It is both jarring and gentle, it's both glorious and scandalous. And that’s because mercy is the very heart of God”.
I love that. Mercy is not a mood God slips into—it is His nature. The Old Testament prophet Micah tells us that God delights in showing mercy (Micah 7.8). Paul calls Him “the Father of mercies” (2 Corinthians 1.3). Mercy flows from Him as light flows from the sun.
But to truly grasp and appreciate God’s mercy, we must first understand the nature of sin. Sin is not a small thing in the eyes of God; it is an egregious offence against a holy God. So no one can ever say God owes them mercy. In the courtroom of divine justice, we all stand guilty. Paul reminds believers in Ephesians 2 that we were dead in our trespasses, children of disobedience, by nature children of wrath.
But Paul continues: “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us...made us alive together with Christ.” R.C. Sproul once said, “Those two words—But God—change everything.” We were dead, but God made us alive. We were guilty, but God showed mercy. We were condemned, but God gave grace.
What the gospel shows us is that mercy triumphs over judgment. And the implication for believers is that there will never be a day when God looks at us and says, “That’s it. I’m done forgiving you.” There is no future in which sincere repentance is met with divine exhaustion. Instead, each morning, we can expect God to meet us with fresh mercies (Lamentations 3.22–23).
When we grasp the mercy of God, it should cause our hearts to worship! Knowing that God does not give us what our sins deserve ought to lead us to declare with the psalmist, “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever” (Psalm 89.1, KJV). As we ponder the mercy of God, let our song be: “Praise the Lord, His mercy is more—Stronger than darkness, new every morn. Our sins, they are many, His mercy is more.”
These articles are 100% man-made, without the use of generative AI.