TODAY’S VERSE:  

Romans 9:15 “For he says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.’”

Do you know what the word mercy means? Mercy is defined as compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm. In other words, mercy is when you do not get what you deserve. Here is an example- your parents tell you to clean your room before you go out to play. Your friends come to the door before you have a chance, so you go out anyway. Your parents confront you when you return home about your disobedience. You are truly sorry for disobeying them, apologize, immediately clean your room, and promise them that the next time you will tell your friends to come back later. They see that you are repentant so they do not punish you. They have decided to show you mercy.

As we continue our study on Jonah in prep school, we read about two beautiful examples of God’s mercy. First, God showed mercy towards Jonah when he disobeyed God’s command to go warn the Ninevites. Because of this he almost drowned, but God saved his life by sending a big fish to swallow him. He used his time in the fish’s belly to repent of his sin, ask the Lord for forgiveness, and then vow to obey God’s command to go to Nineveh. God could have let Jonah die, but He showed Jonah mercy.

Jonah 2:10 “And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land”

Then, God showed mercy towards the Ninevites. Jonah tells them about God’s warning, that they will be severely punished if they do not change their evil ways. After they heard this, they repented.

Jonah 3:10 “When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.”

In both examples, God showed mercy to those who repented from their sin. Repentance is when you realize you are wrong, admit your sin to God, and sincerely desire not to repeat that sin. So, God forgave both Jonah and the Ninevites. If God forgives and shows mercy- how do you think He expects His children to treat others who have wronged them?

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

The Apostle Peter asked Jesus a great question-

Matthew 18:21-22 “Then Peter came to him and asked, ’Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times? ‘No, not seven times,’ Jesus replied, ‘but seventy times seven!’”

As you can see, there is to be no limit to our forgiveness. We are to keep forgiving others as God keeps forgiving us. One more thing, did you notice that God does not ask us to be kind, compassionate, forgiving, and merciful? He COMMANDS us to! God expects the members of His family to represent Him well. So, let us make our Heavenly Father proud by sharing His forgiveness and mercy with the people in our lives.