In the last devotional, I shared about God’s constant mercy that keeps us and aids us throughout our lives. His mercy is not something we earn, but it is out of his great love that He continues to give us generously what we don’t deserve.
A merciful God begets merciful children! If we have a Father who is rich in mercy what should that say about us!?
We were given mercy to be givers of mercy
Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.23 Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants…….
27 Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’….
32 Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ 34 And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.” Matthew 18:23-34
In the above parable, Jesus tells a story of an unforgiving person. The master forgave the great debt of his servant, however the servant was not willing to forgive the small debt that his fellow worker owed him.
The Bible continually reminds us that while God loves us deeply, He is not intending to raise spoiled brats! The difference between a spoiled child and one who is not, is that a spoiled child cares primarily about his/her own welfare. The world revolves around his/her needs. A child who is not spoiled has a heart to care for others and considers others’ needs. He/she doesn’t need to have all the attention be directed towards him/her. In the same manner, our spiritual walk is not just about us, but it is for the benefit of others and how we represent Him to the world!
When I look at this parable, the servant’s actions look very selfish and cruel in the light of how much his master had been merciful to him. Then, I think about all the times we are not willing to forgive the petty little offenses of others because we feel unjustly wronged. What if part of the reason God is merciful to us is because He wants to show mercy to others through us? Do we allow ourselves to become an outlet of His mercy?
Mercy in its nature has to be given out, or it looses its effectiveness in the believer’s life .The mercies of God should be like a flowing river in the life of a believer otherwise we become stagnant and self-righteous! If the above servant had been merciful to his fellow worker, it could have been a great testimony on how the servant had received mercy from his master. However, because he wasn’t merciful, he had no testimony to share with others. As a matter of fact, he looked wicked to his master as well as his fellow servant!