For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. (James 2:13)
Everyone (except the most hardened person) desires mercy for themselves, just as everyone desires forgiveness. After all, we all have wronged others and do not want every sin and mistake held against us! But James’ words are stern—even a bit frightening—because most of us fail to show mercy to others. It is easy to be frustrated with the flaws of others and forget to be merciful! How often we are impatient, short-tempered, quick to judge! Is judgment truly without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy? How much mercy do we have to show to get mercy?
James is no sterner than Jesus, though, who said, “If you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matt. 6:15). Again, how much forgiveness do we have to show? Peter asked that question, and the reply he received was daunting. Jesus’ answer was effectively, “All of it! All the time!” After telling a story to illustrate this, he repeated himself—forgiveness only comes to the one who shows it to others (Matt. 18:21-35).
In listening to these words, we must be careful. If we believe we earn God’s mercy by showing mercy or earn his forgiveness by showing forgiveness, we are gravely mistaken. We cannot earn anything from God. His grace is our only hope! But we cannot let the glorious truth of grace blind us from what the Bible says: Only those who show mercy receive it, and only those who offer forgiveness receive it.
Very simply, God’s mercy and forgiveness come first, but we cannot receive them without becoming people who show them. To refuse to offer these gifts is the same motion as to refuse to receive them. We cannot have it both ways—either we live in the realm of mercy and forgiveness, or we don’t, and if we live in that realm, it means both giving and receiving.
We live in a merciless time. The internet has given all of us the ability to vilify, slander, and attack others. One mistake, one poorly worded phrase, one foolish or sinful decision and the mobs leap in to cut the reputation down. Everyone justifies their response, of course! But the church should be different. We are called to live in a kingdom of giving and receiving mercy, of giving and receiving forgiveness. This isn’t easy—who enjoys showing mercy to the enemy?—but if we say yes to God’s call, we will find ourselves receiving the mercy we need and “shining like lights in the world” (Phil. 2:15), examples of Jesus Christ to those around us.
Steven+
Scripture Reflections
Receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. (James 1:21)
In his sermon on Sunday, Michael reminded us of the word God spoke at creation. God spoke, and light appeared, water and land separated, plants grew, animals sprang forth. (Every parent wishes that he or she only had to speak for toys to return to their bins and children to be at peace!) But now by his word of truth—by the Word of God, Jesus Christ himself—God has “brought us forth…that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures” (James 1:18). We were created by his word, and have now been redeemed his Word, and so James calls us to receive his word, implanted deep in our souls, which will bring about salvation in our lives.
This is the power of God’s word. If it sinks deep in us, it doesn’t remain alone. Like a seed, a grain of wheat buried in the earth, it begins to grow and bear fruit, and we end up transformed, healed, and saved. As Isaiah 55 reminds us, God’s word never returns empty, without causing the effect for which it was sent. The command is thus simple: receive with humility God’s word—let it be planted deep in your heart—and it will bring your soul health, safety, and salvation.
Many of us know this and can testify to it! We can point to moments in our life when the word of God pierced us deeply, bringing healing, peace, and forgiveness. We can point to moments when the word of God freed our hearts from overwhelming shame, burdens, and captivity. The word of God is powerful, and many of us can testify to this!
Yet the call to receive it is not easy. We want to, we acknowledge we should, yet who has time to stop and linger over the word till it is implanted in the depths of our heart? Who can even hear the word above the din and distractions of ordinary life? Who is still awake enough when all the day’s duties are done to listen to the word?
As I listened to James on Sunday, I felt a sense of identification with the nameless deaf man we encountered in our Gospel reading (Mk. 7:31-37). My ears are stopped to the word of God—stopped by the noisy and busy world, stopped by my own sinful inclinations, stopped by cell phones and the news, stopped by “I just need to get this one more thing done”—and I need Jesus to put his fingers in my ears and say, “Be opened!” I need him to open my ears, so that I can hear the word of God yet again, so that I can receive it and allow it to be planted deep within.
Let us pray that the Lord Jesus would open our ears so that we would hear and receive the implanted word, which is able to save our souls!
Steven+
Devotional
Something interesting happens whenever we meet someone who comes from our birthplace—there is an immediate assumption of comradery, a sense that “we are on the same side.” I’ve bumped into people in foreign countries who came from the same state as I did, and the eager conversation reveals the belief that we must have lots in common, and would certainly be friends if we met back home.
Of course, our hometowns, high schools, and colleges were full of people with whom we had nothing in common! People who get under our skin—with whom we most certainly wouldn’t be friends!—lived in our dorms, attended our classes, were born in the same hospital. But in those brief moments in an airport or at a party, we assume a commonality with the stranger.
The same tendency holds true in the Christian faith! When we initially meet someone who is also a Christian, our common faith excites us and makes us eager to talk. But in any given church you will find people at odds with one another, irritated over personality quirks and thoughtless words. In other words, being on the same side doesn’t necessarily mean that we like each other!
On Sunday, in Psalm 15, we heard that the one who dwells in God’s presence, “makes much of those who fear the Lord.” The previous Sunday, in Psalm 16, we heard David pray, “All my delight is upon the saints who are on the earth.” These verses call us to a particular inclination of the soul, an inclination that honors and delights in others, simply because they worship the same God as us. We all know how easy it is to be annoyed with other Christians, but these verses point to something important—the people who look like Jesus Christ strive to honor and even delight in other followers of God, simply because they are followers of God.
That this should be our perspective isn’t hard to prove. After all, if God loves that person who bothers us, we should love them, too. If they are “in Christ,” just as we are “in Christ,” hating them or gossiping about them is hating Christ or slandering Jesus! Jesus says that whatever we do to the littlest member of his body we actually do to him (Mt. 25:31-46)!
It doesn’t take much effort to honor and delight in the other Christians we enjoy. But there are people in all of our lives who are not so delightful! Yet the call is the same—we should honor them, delight in them, submit to them. This is what love looks like, and Jesus said that we would be known as his disciples by our love for one another (Jn. 13:35).
Pray with me that we would grow deeper and deeper into being people who honor, delight in, and submit to other Christians, simply because they also are in Christ. Pray that this love would shine forth in the world, revealing Jesus to those who are in darkness.
Steven+