July 15, 2025
Mercy - Part 2
Luke 6:37-38
07/15/2025
37 Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn
not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and
you will be forgiven;
38 give, and it will be given to you. Good measure,
pressed down, shaken together, running over, will
be put into your lap. For with the measure you use
it will be measured back to you. (ESV)
Each day as we pray the Lord's Prayer we ask, ``Forgive us
our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.'' In
so doing, we confess that we are sinful, that our only hope is in
the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ who bore the guilt of
our sin. We are forgiven for His sake and are free to respond to
the Father's mercy by showing mercy.
Jesus explained what Christian mercy is as He taught His
disciples.
Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and
you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be
forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. Good
measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over,
will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use
it will be measured back to you.
Because we are forgiven by God's grace through faith in
Christ Jesus alone, we dare not judge others as if we are
superior and more righteous than they. The wages of sin is
death, and we do not want to see anyone suffer eternal
condemnation. Thus we seek to help our neighbor avoid those
things which are harmful. We encourage them to repent and turn
in faith to Christ.
Before we speak of our neighbor's sin, we confess before God
and each other that we also have sinned in thought, word, and
deed. We approach our neighbor as their equal, and ask them to
help us in our own struggles with sin. By holding each other
accountable, we look first to God's mercy and grace, then we
encourage each other in our daily struggles.
When we forgive and help our neighbor, we do so with love,
respect, and mercy. For we also need the same forgiveness, love,
and respect. We forgive as we are forgiven, without conditions,
without condemnation.
May our Lord grant us strength to reflect His love to our
neighbor. Amen.