Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Matt5:7

For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment. James2:13

And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Ephesians4:32

“The Christian congregation meets as a community that acknowledges that it lives by the amazing grace of a boundless kindness. Contemporary society speaks much about 'human rights.' It is uncomfortable with "charity" as something which falls short of "justice," and connects the giving of thanks with an unacceptable subservience. In Christian worship the language of rights is out of place except when it serves to remind us of the rights of others. For ourselves we confess that we cannot speak of rights, for we have been given everything and forgiven everything and promised everything, so that (as Luther said) we lack nothing except faith to believe it. In Christian worship we acknowledge that if we had received justice instead of charity we would be on our way to perdition. A Christian congregation is thus a body of people with gratitude to spare, a gratitude that can spill over into care for the neighbor. And it is of the essence of the matter that this concern for the neighbor is the overflow of a great gift of grace.”

The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, courtesy of A.K.

“How shalt thou hope for mercy, rendering none?” Shakespeare, Merchant of Venice.

“If I have no forgiveness, I have no message at all.” Sam Moffat, a missionary in China, of Communist persecutors.

Lately I have been asked to forgive. Achingly difficult, and it is never completely satisfying. Nagging injustice remains. Wounds still cause pain, and the memory still lives. Remnants of hurt, I found myself pulling away from human contact and unable to trust myself and others. I have to approach God again and again, to yield the residue of what I thought I have committed to Him long time ago. His grace begins and ends with forgiveness. His love alone makes it possible for me who loves poorly to practice love empty of self-seeking. Again and again, if I care to listen, I hear the loud whisper, that I did not get what I deserved. I deserved punishment and got forgiveness. I deserved wrath yet got love. It was unfair. Grace, however, is not about fairness.A cease-fire between human beings with own selves and others depends upon a cease fire with God.

posted by Graciana@Home at 8:18 am