Introduction

Welcome, friend. Maybe you walked in today with a tired heart—a calendar full of commitments, a mind full of worries, and a soul that keeps replaying yesterday’s mistakes. Grace can feel like a foreign language when guilt is loud. Mercy can seem far away when shame sits close. But hear this: you are in the right place, at the right time, before the right God. The Lord who meets us in Psalm 103 is a Father who bends low, listens well, and loves long.

Have you ever watched a father stoop to lift a little one who fell on the sidewalk? Skinned knees and trembling lips, arms reaching up—then a strong embrace, a soft word, the careful wiping away of tears. That picture lives inside this psalm. God does not stand back with arms folded. He leans in. He knows our frame. He remembers that we are dust. He treats our weakness with tenderness. He handles our sins with mercy. He shepherds our fears with love.

John Wesley said, “Best of all is, God is with us.” That’s the hope that hums through these verses. God is not uneasy with your story. He is not surprised by your scars. He is the Father whose heart runs warm with compassion, whose patience is steady, whose forgiveness is thorough, whose love stretches from everlasting to everlasting. When the past accuses and the future intimidates, the Lord stands in the middle and speaks peace over the present.

You may feel worn, worried, or weighed down. The Psalmist brings good news for worn-out people. There is compassion for the contrite, pardon for the penitent, and kindness for the weary. This passage will show us three bright beams of God’s heart: - The Father who is compassionate and slow to anger. - Mercy that removes our transgressions. - Love that endures from everlasting to everlasting.

Before we open our hands to receive, let’s open our ears to hear the very words of God.

Psalm 103:8-18 (KJV) 8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. 9 He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. 10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. 12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. 13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. 14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust. 15 As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. 16 For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. 17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children; 18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.

Opening Prayer: Father of mercies and God of all comfort, we come with open hands and hopeful hearts. Speak your kindness over our confusion. Settle our souls with the steady calm of your character. Where guilt lingers, let the blood of Jesus assure. Where shame whispers, let your steadfast love sing louder. Give us soft hearts, clear minds, and yielded wills. Plant your Word deep within us, and let it bear fruit in faith, repentance, and joy. Lift our eyes to see you as you are—compassionate, patient, and rich in steadfast love. Through your Spirit, help us receive your mercy and rest in your everlasting care. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Friend, as we sit beneath these verses, expect the Father’s hand to be gentle, his mercy to be mighty, and his love to be lasting. Let’s listen for his heartbeat together.

The Father Who Is Compassionate and Slow to Anger

God shows us his heart at the start of this passage. He is kind. He is gracious. He takes a long time to get angry. His love is full and steady. This is not a mood. This is his very nature. When Scripture says he is slow to anger, it means there is space for us to breathe and come near. It means his temper does not flare with a spark. It means he is patient with people who take time to change.

Think of how this shapes prayer. You do not have to rush your words. You do not have to brace for a harsh reply. You can speak honestly. You can pause. You can start again. A God who is slow to anger makes room for confession and for questions. He gives time for tears. He gives time for trust to grow. Patience is the ground under your feet when you come to him.

This patience also shows up in the way he uses correction. The psalm says he does not keep pressing his case without end. His rebuke has a purpose and a finish. He will not hold anger forever. That means discipline is not a cold wall. It is a door back to life. His aim is healing. His aim is change that lasts. His aim is a clean heart and a steady spirit.

The next line says he does not pay us back in strict measure for our wrongs. Mercy shapes his response. Guilt is real. Grace is real too. He gives less penalty than we deserve and more kindness than we expect. This is why weary people can stand again. This is why prayers rise from low places. His patience is not a pause before a blow. It is a bridge that carries us to pardon.

The psalm then stretches our view of his compassion. It compares his love to the high sky above. We cannot measure that span. We look up and our eyes keep climbing. That is how big his loyal love is for those who revere him. The picture of distance continues when it speaks of our sins being sent away beyond reach. God removes the stain. He lifts the load. He creates distance between you and your past that cannot be crossed.

This is not a thin comfort. It rests on his deep understanding of us. He knows how we are made. He knows our limits. He sees our short life and our fragile frame. We rise and fall like a wildflower in a field. A gust can clear it. A season can change it. Our strength fades. Our grip slips. His compassion takes all of that into account. He does not pile weight on weak shoulders. He carries. He cares with the care of a father who knows the names, the fears, the rhythms of his children.

Because he understands our frailty, his patience has a gentle feel. He corrects with a careful hand. He speaks with warmth even when he must warn. He remembers that we forget. He steadies those who wobble. He meets us where we are and walks at a pace we can bear. This is tenderness with strength in it. It is firmness without a sharp edge. It is presence that stays.

There is also a calling here. The psalm keeps saying his love is great toward those who fear him. That fear is not panic. It is trust that bows. It is awe that listens. It is love that takes him seriously. When we hold him in holy regard, we find that his mercy does not run out. From age to age, his faithful love remains. It holds steady over families and over years. It does not blink when the calendar turns. It does not dim when seasons change.

This reverent trust shows in simple ways. We keep his covenant. We remember what he has said. We do what he commands with a willing heart. None of this earns patience. It enjoys patience. It steps into the field where his kindness is already growing. It stays close to the God who has already drawn near. And over time, this shapes us. We learn to be slower to anger with others. We become people who give room for repentance. We become people who forgive and keep on forgiving, because that is how we have been treated.

Mercy That Removes Our Transgressions

Now the psalm turns to what mercy does in real life ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO