God's Mercy is Truly Endless (Tues, Week 11, Year II)

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As reflected upon yesterday, often we expect everyone to reap what he/she has sown. If I sow wickedness and hatred, why on earth should I expect to reap the fruits of love and peace? When we hear about an expected turn of events for the wicked, we are very likely to say with joy, "YES, IT SERVES THEM RIGHT".

However, "God's ways are not our ways, and His thoughts not our thoughts" as the Bible reveals (cf. Isaiah 55:8-9). When we have thought of B, God does A. When we joyfully expect Him to do B, He shows up with D.

Out of sheer wickedness and greed, Ahab conspired with the wife Jezebel; killed Naboth a poor man and forcefully possessed his vineyard (cf. 1 Kings 21:1-16). I am very sure we are shocked by such a wicked and reprehensible act just as many of us are shocked by the suffocation of George Floyd by Derek Chauvin, a white cop. Sheer acts of injustice and wickedness! When we hear about such crimes and acts of extreme wickedness, we want and expect justice to take its course. We want the wicked criminal to be paid back in his or her own coins. Yes, as usual, we want the principle of "tooth-for-tooth and eye-for-an-eye" to be applied right away. 

At those times, it may be difficult for us to remember that God's heart is ALWAYS softened when a sinner approaches Him in humility, sorrowful and remorseful for what he or she has done. That's the nature of God, and our human propensity and tendency can't change that. There's nothing we can do about it. It is in His nature to forgive even the most grevious offense, to be merciful and slow to anger. That's why we shouldn't be angry that He doesn't punish sinners as we expect, just as He didn't bring the disaster He intended to unleash on Ahab during his days as the king of Israel (cf. 1 Kings 21:29). To this end, the Psalmist reminds us once again that "A HUMBLED AND CONTRITE HEART GOD DOES NOT SPURN OR REJECT" (cf. Psalm 51:17).

God's rain falls both for the good and for the bad. And His face of mercy seems to shine more brightly than that of justice if and only if the sinner repents of his or her wicked ways. God is always ready, willing and poised to temper justice with mercy if we do the needful. 

However, we must not take Him for granted because of His merciful nature, and then choose to swim in the ocean of wickedness and sin, thinking that His mercy will always speak for us. We shouldn't take Him for a ride by having such thoughts. Let us not forget that "EVEN THOUGH HE IS FULL OF MERCY, HE IS STILL A GOD OF JUSTICE". Instead of having a skewed understanding of the workings of His mercy, let us rather let His merciful love towards us soften our hearts and inspire us to become as merciful as He is.

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