The Mercy of God
“But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.”—Titus 3:4-6
On Wednesday, December 21, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103, a Boeing 747, known as The Clipper of the Seas, filled with 243 passengers and 16 crew members, took off from London, Heathrow Airport bound for New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. At 7:01 pm local time, The Clipper of the Seas was just above Lockerbie, Scotland when a bomb went off, splitting the plane and killing all aboard, along with 11 men and women on the ground with pieces of the plane. Several years later, on January 31, 2001, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, a Libyan intelligence officer and the head of security for Libyan Arab Airlines was convicted of murder and sentenced to 27 years in prison by a panel of three Scottish judges for his participation in the bombing. However, on August 24, 2009, he was released from prison on compassionate grounds after serving only 8 ½ years of his 27-year sentence. Immediately, there were cries of outrage from both sides of the Atlantic, saying that his release was a “mockery of justice,” a “mockery of law,” and gave “comfort to terrorists.” But, what many have failed to understand is that mercy is part of the Scottish justice system. For them, mercy is just as important as justice.
Mercy and grace are two sides of the same coin, grace is the giving of what is underserved and mercy is the withholding of what is deserved. In the case of al-Megrahi, he definitely deserved his sentence. God, like the Scottish panel of judges, is merciful. We were guilty of acts of terrorism against God and we deserve death and condemnation. However, God, who is rich in mercy, sent His Son to die in our place, taking our deserved wrath. But, what is mercy? Mercy is, “an attribute of God, an infinite and inexhaustible energy within the divine nature which disposes God to be actively compassionate.”—A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, p. 90.
Tozer continues, “As judgment is God’s justice confronting moral inequity, so mercy is the goodness of God confronting human suffering and guilt.”—A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, p. 91.
God is merciful to us, even though He doesn’t have to be. There is nothing within God that compels Him to be merciful to us, He just is. He could execute justice or mercy and it would be right either way. In His own purpose and will He has mercy on those who are guilty. Or as the Apostle Paul wrote, “For He says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion’”—Romans 9:15. God has supremely made His mercy available through Christ, to all who come to Him in repentance in faith. His justice was shown at Calvary when Christ paid the price for our sins and His mercy was made available through that single meritorious act as well. May we see ourselves as we truly are, guilty and deserving of judgment, but may we also see ourselves as objects of mercy because of our faith in Christ. Amen.
On Wednesday, December 21, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103, a Boeing 747, known as The Clipper of the Seas, filled with 243 passengers and 16 crew members, took off from London, Heathrow Airport bound for New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. At 7:01 pm local time, The Clipper of the Seas was just above Lockerbie, Scotland when a bomb went off, splitting the plane and killing all aboard, along with 11 men and women on the ground with pieces of the plane. Several years later, on January 31, 2001, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, a Libyan intelligence officer and the head of security for Libyan Arab Airlines was convicted of murder and sentenced to 27 years in prison by a panel of three Scottish judges for his participation in the bombing. However, on August 24, 2009, he was released from prison on compassionate grounds after serving only 8 ½ years of his 27-year sentence. Immediately, there were cries of outrage from both sides of the Atlantic, saying that his release was a “mockery of justice,” a “mockery of law,” and gave “comfort to terrorists.” But, what many have failed to understand is that mercy is part of the Scottish justice system. For them, mercy is just as important as justice.
Mercy and grace are two sides of the same coin, grace is the giving of what is underserved and mercy is the withholding of what is deserved. In the case of al-Megrahi, he definitely deserved his sentence. God, like the Scottish panel of judges, is merciful. We were guilty of acts of terrorism against God and we deserve death and condemnation. However, God, who is rich in mercy, sent His Son to die in our place, taking our deserved wrath. But, what is mercy? Mercy is, “an attribute of God, an infinite and inexhaustible energy within the divine nature which disposes God to be actively compassionate.”—A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, p. 90.
Tozer continues, “As judgment is God’s justice confronting moral inequity, so mercy is the goodness of God confronting human suffering and guilt.”—A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, p. 91.
God is merciful to us, even though He doesn’t have to be. There is nothing within God that compels Him to be merciful to us, He just is. He could execute justice or mercy and it would be right either way. In His own purpose and will He has mercy on those who are guilty. Or as the Apostle Paul wrote, “For He says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion’”—Romans 9:15. God has supremely made His mercy available through Christ, to all who come to Him in repentance in faith. His justice was shown at Calvary when Christ paid the price for our sins and His mercy was made available through that single meritorious act as well. May we see ourselves as we truly are, guilty and deserving of judgment, but may we also see ourselves as objects of mercy because of our faith in Christ. Amen.
Comments
Post a Comment