In our lifetime we have all talked about God’s grace and his mercy. We have said it so much that it rolls off of our tongues without any power or authority. It has become so frequently that it sounds like a riddle or something from a fairytale. But I think that I need to remind someone this morning that mercy is still alive and well.
So, what exactly is mercy?
Mercy appears in the Bible as it relates to forgiveness or withholding punishment. For example, God the Father showed mercy on us when he sacrificed his son, Christ Jesus, on the Cross to pay the price for our sins.
Webster describes mercy as compassionate or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one’s person who has the power to show compassion, pity, or benevolence:
It means to have mercy on the poor sinner. The disposition to be compassionate or lenient: It means the discretionary power of a judge to pardon someone or to mitigate punishment. Mercy is an act of kindness, compassion, or favor. Mercy is something that gives evidence of divine favor; blessing:
Allow me ask a question this morning, what is mercy, how do we get mercy to move on our behalf
Mercy is a love that responds to human need in an unexpected or unmerited way. In other words, we really wasn’t looking for it, and the truth of the matter is that we really didn’t deserve it.
The bottom line is mercy at its core, mercy at its primary function is forgiveness.
The Word of God tells us about the love that God the father has for sinners, and that means for every one of us, that has come short of his will.
But the scripture also relates mercy to other qualities beyond love and forgiveness. Mercy is beyond our understanding, its beyond our comprehension, it is beyond our conception, because one day God’s wrath, and God’s mercy met at the cross where we should have been lost forever, and wrath and mercy had a conversation, and wrath understood that that he had to back us so that we could be transformed and made fit for eternity thru His mercy.
Come here Paul and tell the people what you said in Ephesians 2:4-5. Well, Ephesians 2:4-5 says. “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved).”
David don’t leave me hanging what did you ask God to do in Psalm 51:1-2. Well, I asked God, “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
I can here Micah saying please let me testify, I wrote in my book Micah 7:18, “Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? He retaineth not his anger forever, because he delighteth in mercy.
It is so far from our understanding that when wrath showed up, mercy showed out. Mercy said to wrath, hold up wait a minute and allow me to interject here before you drop your sentence.
So, how can we begin to understand the true meaning of mercy? Well, let’s look at some at what some of the patriarchs who found themselves caught up in a situation that needed the mercies of God and what they did to obtain God’s Mercy.
The backdrop of David’s lesson here to us, is that David was asking God to remember His unfailing compassion and lovingkindness. And I need to remind somebody this morning that when you are going through your trials and tribulations that we need to ask God to remember his unfailing compassion and his loving kindness, in other words his mercy.
In verses 1 and 2 he says “To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in You; Let me not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me.
This first and second verse of Psalm 25 is talking about a total surrender of our lives to God, casting all our cares upon him as the author and finisher of our faith. The first two verses are also saying that God when everything else fail I put my trust in you. When things are crumbling all around me, I put my trust in thee. When my friends and love ones don’t understand me, I put my trust in thee. When my church family doesn’t comprehend me I trust you. This verse also says, I’m pleading with you God that you don’t let my enemies have victory me.
Verses 3 and 4 Indeed let no one who waits on you be ashamed; Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause. Show me your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths.
Verses three and four is also talking about pleading to God Almighty. In these verses, King David was begging God not to put him to shame and begged God to put those who deal treacherously to shame. Instead of us getting in God’s way, we need to beg to know the way of God.
Verses 5 and 6 he says “Lead me in your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; on you, I wait all the day. Remember, O Lord, Your tender mercies and your loving kindnesses, for they are from of old.
Verse five and six shows a man seeking the counsel of God over everything he does. He’s asking God to be his counsel in everything that he does.
He also say lead me in your truth and teach me; this explains that as human we know nothing by ourselves, except God teach and show us the way to go, because we might be walking in darkness, and we might be on the wrong path.
In verse 7 and 8 he says “Do not remember the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; according to your mercy remember me, for your goodness’ sake, O Lord.
David is begging for God’s forgiveness and especially for the sins that one has committed in the days of the youth. But I need to tell someone that he’s not only talking about the days of when he was young, but he’s also talking about
the days before we knew the Lord.
So, he’s begging for God’s mercy upon our lives and seeking his forgiveness over every bad that we have done.
And I don’t know about you all this morning, but I need the mercy of God in my life, because his mercy kept me, his mercy has helped me. His mercy has led me since I’ve been on this journey.
He said Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses.
I know that he is a God of mercy and if you don’t believe me ask Adam and Eve, they messed up in the Garden of Eden and instead of God destroying them both and starting over God covered their shame with the skins of a sacrificed animal, that’s called mercy.
It was mercy that put the mark on Cain so no one would hurt him after he murdered his younger brother Abel, he deserved damnation but God showed mercy instead
It was mercy standing over Noah as he laid drunk and naked on the ground
even after God spared him and his family life from the flood, Mercy said to his son don’t look at him, walk backwards until you get to him and cover him, it was mercy.
Then I went down to King David house, this man after God’s own heart. He’s a giant slayer, he’s a King, and he danced before the Lord right out of his clothes.
Yes he was a praiser, and he was a worshippers, but he also was an adulterer, he’s a murderer, when God exposed him he cried out to God in the 51st division of Psalm, he said God create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me, truly that was Mercy.
I’ve got one person that I can remember, there was a time in my life when I was broken, damaged, injured and sad, and I just couldn’t seem to get it together. But I cried out to the Lord and he heard my despairing cry and he came down and rescued me.
