Mercy received

My dear friend and brother,
A couple of months ago I had the painful experience of being pulled over by a local police officer. As I was talking on the phone and not paying attention to my speed, he explained that I was doing forty miles an hour in a thirty mile an hour zone. The fine was to be two hundred and ten dollars and points on my license. This was bad enough but I realized too that it would end my twenty-one year record of not being cited. Resigned to the facts that I was indeed guilty and the law was simply being enforced I sat quietly waiting for my ticket. The officer returned to my vehicle and told me he would not cite me and after telling me the amount the ticket would have cost instructed me to be more careful and obey the speed limit.
I am sure you can imagine my surprise and delight to pull away without a ticket. The burden was gone and I felt renewed and encouraged.
A few weeks later I was thinking about this incident and reflected on the officer showing mercy towards me. I know it was mercy because it was un-expected, un-earned and completed unmerited. I know this because I was guilty. I had no excuse, no extenuating circumstance and no information to plead that might give him reason to pardon me. Yet he did.
Knowing me as you do, it is no surprise that I began to ponder the wonder of mercy itself. I thought about how mercy is the very cornerstone of our Christian faith. I realized that all of Judaism and Christianity depends on mercy. Without mercy there is no grace, for grace is given only after judgement is replaced by mercy. Without mercy there is no hope because one can not hope when all we have before us is judgement and wrath. I know and believe all this because the scriptures tell us that mercy triumphs over judgement. They also tell us that God’s mercy endures forever, is new every morning and a crown for His children.
I love mercy my friend, more than life itself. I love mercy because I can not breath without it. I think that hell’s most dire state is caused by the absence of mercy. I know the darkest time in my life is when guilt has strangled me and mercy was not shown. But I need to also say the most joyous and blessed day of my life is when The High King of Heaven looked on me and all my guilt and instead of pouring out His judgement and wrath, lavished His great mercy upon me, cleansed me, covered me with Christ’s righteousness and made me His own.
Brother, I would be of no value to you in writing all this if I did not also warn you of the horror of mercy. I am speaking honestly to you when I say this because there is a greater horror that comes when we who have received mercy refuse to give it to others. The judgement to those who withhold mercy will be far greater than if they had never known mercy themselves. How foolish it is for those of us who have no plea but mercy, to even think of withholding it for others.
I recall a sign that was on the door of my apartment which read “Mercy received must become mercy given!” I rejoice my friend because I am confident that this is the case with you. I pray that you will be known to all as one who both loved and gave mercy. May the God of all mercy make it so for us all.

Taking each breath because of mercy,
Charles