“Thou rulest the raging of the sea: When the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them. Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; Thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm. The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: As for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them. The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name. Thou hast a mighty arm: Strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand. Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: Mercy and truth shall go before thy face.”
Psalm 89:9-14 KJV,https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.89.9-14.KJV
Undeserved Mercies
When someone hurts you or, worse, hurts somebody that you love, revenge can seem appealing. After all…
They were mean.
They were selfish.
They talked behind your back.
They broke a vital promise.
They lied about you.
They criticized you.
They ignored you.
They did the unthinkable.
They walked away.
They deserve to be punished, right? To feel some of that same pain? They deserve a consequence that will not only help them learn, but will be just as severe as the inflicted wounds.
And yet—because God sees things differently, both His standards and tactics can be surprising. And that’s why the apostle Paul, writing to the believers in Thessaloniki, said:
“See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people.”
1 Thessalonians 5:15 NLT
Paul’s words sound a lot like Jesus’ words—to love your neighbor as yourself; to do to others what you’d like them to do to you. (See: Matthew 22:38-40)
God’s ways ...