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SCRIPTURE READINGS

JOEL 2:23-32

2 TIMOTHY 4:6-8

LUKE 18:9-14

SUNDAY REFLECTION

God is merciful is the theme for our reflection. Mercy is compassion or forgiveness shown towards someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm. To be merciful means to show or exercise compassion. God is merciful means God is a compassionate, gracious and forgiving. God is merciful is not an absolute statement, the mercy of God is premised on some factors which we shall discuss in our reflection. These factors are

1. God is merciful to those who call on His name and are repentant.
2. God is merciful to believers who have kept the faith.

Firstly, God is merciful to those who call on His name and are repentant. Although God is merciful, we must prove through repentance and humility that we desire His mercy. Prophet Joel gave this assurance to the Israelites while he warned them against the day of the Lord which will be a day of judgment and calamity to those who remain unrepentant or continue to sin. He also gave hope to those willing to repent and be saved on the day of the Lord, it was for this reason Joel assured the Israelites that “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls.” (Joel 2:30-32). Dear friends, the day of the Lord in our dispensation is the second coming of Jesus. Whether we are alive or dead it will come but what is important is that if you are alive and reading this reflection or hearing the voice of God through His Word then I humbly beseech you to repent and accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour to receive the mercy and salvation of God. Jesus proved to us that God is merciful to those who repent and call on Him when He said that “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:16-18). Let us engage in critical self-assessment or retrospection and like the tax collector in Luke 18:9-14 confess our sins before God by saying “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’” (Luke 18:13). Jesus assures us, “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 18:14). Sin and unrepentance render us prideful and spiritually blind to the mercy and salvation God desires for us. We are again assured in 2 Chronicles 7:14-15 that “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.” (2 Chronicles 7:14-15). Dear friend, God is merciful and for this reason, Jesus says that “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” (Revelation 3:20). What is it going to be, are we going to open the door for God to be merciful to us through His son Jesus or we are going to keep living our old and sinful life? God loves us but the choice is ours to make, remember, time is not on our side, the day of the Lord (Judgment) will surely come, why don’t you call on His name now and be saved!

Secondly, having talked about those who need to repent and become beneficiaries of God’s mercy, It is also important to state emphatically that God is merciful to believers who go through suffering like Paul and continue to keep the faith to the point of departure on this earth. Their salvation is guaranteed. Paul being confident about the grace or mercy of God to His servants, assured and encouraged young Timothy that “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day —and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:6-8) Dear friend, I want to assure you that all your toil and suffering on account of your faith in Jesus Christ shall not go unrewarded, the Lord will continue to be merciful to you in your struggles even as you serve Him. In keeping the faith, you will be insulted, reviled, unappreciated, physically and spiritually attacked but like Paul, the Lord assures us that “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) Surely, beloved in the Lord, don’t give up in your faith and service to the Lord for “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (Lamentation 3:22-23).

In summary, we have reflected on the theme “God is merciful” and we have identified two important facts about the mercy of God and they are: God is merciful to those who are repentant and call on His name and God is merciful to those who have kept the faith to the end. May the Holy Spirit help us to overcome our sinful desires and become beneficiaries of the mercy of God, we also pray for strength and God’s mercy to endure the challenges of being a disciple of Christ and to keep the faith until our departure from this earth. Amen.