One day, every person will need someone to have Mercy on them.

No matter what your status in life is, or how high you may fly, somewhere in your life you are going to make a mistake; an error in judgment or speak out of anger or defense to another person or people.

That old adage, “To Err is Human” is true whether we admit or accept it or not. Maybe it’s out of frustration or just being overtired but we all strike others at one time or another.

One thing is likely certain, if we have been the kind of person that seems to have no mercy on others, most people will tend to also have no mercy on us if we should need it. And we all need Mercy.

There are just some things God is very serious about. Things like forgiveness, grace, mercy, longsuffering and lifting up those who are weak and hurt, top His list.

In fact, God actually becomes very angry when we do not extend these things to others we meet or come into contact with.

Why would He be so serious and even tough on these actions? It is no doubt because He has given such untold and even unmentionable amounts of grace and mercy to us.

When I think just how patient and longsuffering He has been to me it overwhelms me. How many times has He given us pardon and grace when we really deserved justice?

The idea that He could forgive us so much and then watch us not be forgiving of others, must anger and frustrate Him in a super way.

Not to mention that He gave his only Son who was tormented, beaten and killed so that we might find this forgiveness and mercy we often take so for granted.

To face that, perhaps we have been heady or high-minded toward others in our Christian walk, or even in our Spirit-filled life, it is hard to see sometimes, and sadly a good dose of being tumbled from our high perch, is needed.

I absolutely confess that it has taken some pretty harsh lessons and some very dark days for me to confront the idea that I was perhaps not as righteous and holy as I thought I was.

Our judgmental spirits became ingrained in us over the years and it is a fact that it can take years of reconditioning to weed out this attitude that God actually does not like — at all.

It may not settle well with some easy-lovin’ folk, but God does correct His children, those He loves.

I am quite sure that He often looks down on us and says, “How could you be so hard, so snooty after all I’ve done for you?”

Oh, how much Grace He bestows upon us. His arms are forever stretched wide to keep loving us, forgiving us and extending that tender hand of Mercy to us. Without question!

But He also expects us to turn and give the same to others. Some of us are getting older and in the days ahead, we will likely need others to have mercy and to be patient and understanding with us.

Have we been so with the elders ahead of us. If we made mistakes in our youth and needed the mercy of our families or peers, can we show restraint, compassion and understanding for our youth today who struggle with so many issues in their striving to mature.

We like to quote “you reap what you sow” so quickly to others. Even though that verse is found in the chapter about restoring others, it is nonetheless true in all areas of our lives.

I so very much want other people to have mercy on me.

I have failed so often and I have hurt others and even though I surely did not mean to do it, I never set out to do it, I did.

I need their forgiveness and I need their mercy. But I can rest assure of one thing, if I have not and do not show myself merciful to others, it is quite possible that I will not receive mercy in the areas of my life that I need it.

I don’t know about you, but I do not want to bring any more trouble upon myself, I simply do want to suffer trials or hardships, because I won’t humble myself and do those things unto others that He has done unto me.

Jesus spoke deep things in simple words we often don’t get the true meaning of. He said, “Blessed are the Merciful, for they shall obtain Mercy.”

He left the rest for us to figure out on our own.

First published: December 13, 2010.

~ Robert Blackburn

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Robert Blackburn

 

 

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