THE COST OF MERCY

Even in your sinful bondage, your heart’s cry reached Jesus and His tender mercy found you. He opened your eyes, changed you, and filled you with His Holy Spirit. Then He made you a vessel of honor to proclaim His gospel.

Make no mistake: it is a costly mercy you have received. We preach that God’s mercy is free, that it is unmerited, and that the price for it was paid in full by Christ’s shed blood. And, indeed, all this is true. God is fully satisfied by the price Jesus paid to bring us His mercy, give us the inheritance of heaven, and assure us that we have eternal life.

Yet there is a price on the human side — our side — of God’s mercy. What is the cost to us? It is the high cost of becoming a true witness to the power of the mercy we have received. The fact is, offering the same mercy that has been given to us will cost us dearly here on earth. It is a cost we can expect to pay in our everyday life.

CHRIST’S EXAMPLE

You see, Jesus commands us, “Be merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (see Luke 6:36). And, as Christ showed by example, to be merciful as the Father is merciful is very costly. The more Christ is exalted in our lives, the more we will experience the following from the world:

• Total rejection
• Unacceptance of our words
• Ridicule and rejection of God’s mercy

Jesus paid the price of mercy in His flesh and you and I can expect to pay a price, as well.