There is a song I sang as a teenager that went "How many times have I bowed before God just to ask His forgiveness for some wrong I had done? And how many times have I heard the Lord say, "Child, as long as I have mercy you're forgiven this day!"
Mercy is giving someone what they don't deserve. Christ had mercy on us when He died for our sins. And mercy is one of the three things that God requires from mankind.
Micah 6:8-He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
If you do these three things you won't wrong God or man, and you'll earn rewards in heaven. You need to do right, be merciful to others, and love God. That describes a soul winner.
Romans 9:15- For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Mercy goes hand-in-hand with compassion. If you truly think about the lost world- crying themselves to sleep, wondering if there's anyone who cares, and dying lost and alone to wake up in hell- it should evoke a feeling of compassion and a desire to share the mercy of God.
You'd help an animal if it were hurt, wouldn't you? I spent 30 minutes freeing a lizard from fly paper! Why? Because I felt compassion and wanted to show mercy.
Luke 7:47- Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.
Sometimes we fail to see our sin the way God sees it. We think we haven't committed such a horrible offence as murder so we aren't really that bad. And because we think like this, we love little. If we could truly understand what we looked liked to God before He saved us, and what He actually saved us from, we would stop at nothing to tell the world about Him- because we would love abundantly, as He did.
It's very important to have an attitude of mercy and compassion to those who have hurt or offended us. We hurt and offend God and He extends mercy to us! We are suppose to be Christ-like. How many souls has mercy saved?
Mrs. Elliott showed great amounts of mercy, compassion, and forgiveness. The Auca Indians killed her husband. She harbored no ill feelings and her mercy led to the salvation of the entire tribe! We haven't been wronged that badly.
A military man named Fuchida was inspired by a story that Japanese POW's in America told. A young American girl came to their POW camp every day bringing small personal items that they needed. And each time asked, "Is there anything else I can do?"
The Japanese didn't trust her, but after months of this kindness she softened their hearts. When they were about to be released they asked her why she had been so kind. She told them her parents were missionaries to Japan. When the war broke out they fled to the Philippines, only to be caught by Japanese soldiers there and beheaded. She told them she forgave them and wanted them to know Christ.
Fuchida didn't believe the story, but he never forgot it! He later read a tract about Jacob DeShazer, an American POW in Japan who survived and wrote about having mercy and compassion for his captors.
Fuchida ended up getting saved and testifying all around the world of God's mercy and compassion portrayed by these two Christians.
Now, how badly have you been hurt? Is it really so bad that you can't show mercy? If we desire to have mercy from the Lord, we need to show mercy to others. Someone had mercy on us!
Matthew 5:7- Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
