Devotions

I picture the zealous Pharisee Saul at the beginning of the special day when mercy shone on him. He had asked for an audience with the high priest:

“The young man who persecutes the Jesus crowd wants permission to take his crusade to Damascus. He vows to jail them all. He actually thinks he will be able to put out this ‘Jesus fire.’”

Imagine the scene as Saul and his band of men rode out of Jerusalem toward their next mission. They were cheered on their way by the high priest and all the scribes and Pharisees. But then, just outside the township of Damascus, the radiant gleam of mercy fell on Saul (see Acts 9).

THIS IS JESUS!

How did mercy present itself to this lost, misguided man? It did not try to confound him. It did not accuse him. It did not try to destroy him. Instead, the fully paid, free mercy of the Lord laid Saul facedown on the ground. And a voice spoke to him, saying, “Saul, Saul, this is Jesus. Why are you persecuting Me?”

Christ’s message to this zealot was clear: “It is Me you are touching, Saul. With every Christian you have jailed, you have done it to Me.”

REVELATION AND REDEMPTION

Saul was overwhelmed by this revelation. Temporarily stricken blind, he was led to the home of a praying, Spirit-filled man in Damascus named Ananias. In a small room there, Saul called on the name of Jesus. Ananias boldly explained to him the high cost of the mercy he had received and told him, “Now, Saul, you are going to suffer for His name’s sake.”

With a stricken conscience, Saul surely thought back to the stoning of Stephen, the many believers he had thrown into jail, and the multitudes he had abused. But this man received mercy that day!

The first cost of mercy to Jesus was His heavenly position. Mercy moved Him to come to earth to take on human flesh and, ultimately, the mercy He offered to the world cost Him His life. Yet Jesus’ example of mercy is a model to all who would follow Him. He tells us, in essence, “Let My life show you the cost of mercy — total rejection by this world.”

The apostle Paul paid the same high cost of living out God’s mercy that Jesus paid on earth and that He warned us about:

“Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20).

Paul testified to this truth:

“[We] labor, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: being defamed, we entreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring [scum] of all things unto this day” (1 Corinthians 4:12–13).

A DIFFICULT TRUTH

What are we to make of this rejection? Jesus answers us: “Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for behold, your reward is great in heaven” (Luke 6:23).

This is a difficult truth to swallow. How can we rejoice and be glad when we endure harsh persecution? Beloved, it is all part of the high cost of mercy. As it was with Paul, who was seen as filth, so it is for Christ’s Body, the Church. There is a price we all must pay when we preach Jesus and His 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.

“Love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:35-36, my italics).

Throughout the Bible, a powerful theme rings out: “The Lord thy God is a merciful God” (Deuteronomy 4:31). This theme of mercy (leniency, compassion, forgiveness) is at the very core of the Old Testament. We read it again and again in Deuteronomy, Chronicles, Nehemiah and Psalms: “The Lord your God is gracious and merciful.” Likewise, we see the same theme of mercy in each of the Gospels and throughout the New Testament.

A SACRIFICE OF GREAT WORTH

When God looked down at the outbreak of debauchery on the earth, He did not turn away from His creation. He did not give up on this sinful, godless, lust-consumed world — and the Scriptures tell us something of what His mercy to a sinful world cost Him. He sent His own Son down into our midst and then in His tender mercy, the Father offered up His Son as a sacrifice, laying on Christ the iniquities of us all.

Think of the high cost of mercy that Jesus paid. The weight of such a price simply cannot be calculated. No one can measure Christ’s pain at taking upon Himself the sins of the world.

Scripture says the angels look down on us and marvel at the gift we’ve been given. Think about it: It is one thing to offer physical healing to someone and it is quite another to offer abundant life for this world and salvation for all eternity. Jesus gives us all the resources of heaven to deliver this Good News in truth and power:

“Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:13-14).

When we read this verse, we think of the amazing scale of Jesus’ miracles. But Jesus is speaking of kingdom activity — salvation, transformation, abundant life. When He says, “Whatever you ask in My name,” our request will be revealing. Do we ask for miracles because we think they will bring visible glory to God? Or do we ask for kingdom results no matter how small the scale?

GREATER WORKS

According to Jesus, there is only one qualification to do the greater works He speaks of: “Whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works” (John 14:12, my emphasis). Every Christian believes, so that means we all are capable of doing the greater works Jesus has ordained for us.

A CLEAN HEART

But to do these works, we must have a clean heart. The very next thing Jesus says is, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (14:15). If our hearts are cleansed, our obedience will not be grudging but an act of love.

Do you have trouble keeping God’s Word? Jesus’ promise to you is:

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth” (14:16-17).

Note the word “Helper” here. Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus gives us the help we need to obey Him.