Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!
James 2:12-13
James 2:12-13
Wow! What a comment on our lives. Our conduct is to be seasoned with the knowledge that we will be judged with the same measure we use on others. (Matthew 7:2) When we decide someone is mistreating us it needs to be with a measure of mercy. We need to take their situation into our accounting. Yesterday my wife and I were at a wedding practice dinner when the group began to discuss someone who was married into the family who had mistreated several people there. When they asked her to weigh in my wife graciously replied that she was probably feeling insecure as the newcomer into the group so she was acting defensively. One of the people said that was probably the right way to think about it. (By the way, the person began treating my wife well before the others.) My gracious wife had totally defused the situation with a little mercy thrown into the judgment. She hadn’t ignored the person’s behaviors or denied the mistreatment. She wasn’t being unrealistic about the situation but she had injected enough mercy into the decisions to allow that person to connect with her in a healthier relationship.
Mercy trumps judgment because we have a limited perspective on the person and their life circumstances so we cannot judge for true justice, only our Heavenly Father can do that. When we judge them with disregard for their wounds and burdens we invite God to judge us in the same way; without mercy! When I stand before Jesus I desire Him to judge me honestly without overlooking my defects but I know I will need mercy in that perfect assessment of my behaviors along with who I am. This means that I must give others this same grace. Then I make room for the Lord to be merciful to me.
Going Forth Shouting Grace, Grace,
Pastor Jason
No comments:
Post a Comment