Mercy!

I've been kind of lazy lately as my number of blog posts would indicate. But honestly, I either haven't been able to find the time to post, or I haven't had anything to say. I think I'm through posting just for the sake of posting. But I wanted to share a thought today:

"He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities."
~ Psalm 103:10

This single verse of Scripture changes everything, doesn't it?

God has not dealt with us according to our sins. That's mercy. I deserve punishment. Death should be my just reward. I am like the woman brought before Jesus in John 8 .... "caught in the act of adultery." I'm guilty. Caught in the act. Can't hide it. Can't talk my way out of it. He's got me dead to rights.

But like that woman in John 8, He didn't deal with me according to my sins. He didn't reward me according to my iniquities. He extended mercy to a woman caught in the very act of sin. Mercy!

This is not new, is it? We all know about mercy. It's all around us. It's throughout the pages of our Bibles. In fact, maybe we know a little too much of God's mercy. Maybe it's so familiar, we tend to take it for granted. That's an easy place to get to. But it's a dangerous place to be.

When you read the words of Psalm 103:10, what do you do? Do you wanna shout? Fall on your face in praise and thanksgiving? Or is it just another verse in the Bible to you? "Ho hum. That's nice. Now let's move on to something else. Let's get to the good stuff, okay chaplain?"

We need to be in awe of the mercy of God.