Webster’s 1828 Dictionary defines mercy as:
That benevolence, mildness or tenderness of heart which disposes a person to overlook injuries, or to treat an offender better than he deserves… (this is also compassion)
If original sin through Adam had never happened, would we still need mercy? After all, if there is no sin, there is no offense and therefore no judgment. But I know unequivocally that I could have never gotten to my teen years without sin of some kind, let alone to my forties. (Rom. ) Man was given free will and that free will leads us to sin simply because we want what we want.
We still need the mercy of God. We need it because no matter how hard we try we still sin by action, word, or even lack of action (Jam.
The thing is, that which we’ve been given by God, we are supposed to give out again. Some examples are comfort (2 Cor. 1:4), love (John ), and mercy as shown below:
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Matt. 5:7
Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Luke 6:36
The second one here is a command and not a suggestion. We are to be merciful. That means we are supposed to overlook injuries, or treat others better (than we think) they deserve. It doesn’t seem right, does it? I mean, Christians are supposed to know better than to injure us! And since we feel that injury, they are most definitely aware that they caused us that pain, right? As pointed out this weekend, we are all human, and we all make mistakes. Dealing with problems head on (not behind backs or with others who weren’t even involved) is the honourable way to deal with injury, but we must show mercy to those who may not deserve it remembering that we received great mercy from the Lord which we did not deserve.
If we do not show mercy to others, then why should the Lord show us mercy?