Mercy

Steven’s Scribbles
“Mercy”
Acts 22:22-29


    What is mercy? What does it look like? When do we show mercy? God showed mercy to humans. Although we continually stray like sheep, even though His own chosen nation would constantly fall away, God sent His Son to die for our sins (John 3:16). He showed mercy to the sinner. More than likely, someone whom you are not inclined to help will need you. They may have harmed you in the past or wronged you, and you will have a choice: show mercy or not. This is precisely what happened with Paul and Claudius Lysias. After Paul gave his defense to the Jews, the Roman soldiers took Paul back into the barracks to “be examined by scourging.” The Romans did not know what Paul had said in his defense since he was speaking in Hebrew (Acts 22:1-2). They thought the proper way to extract this information was to torture Paul as they would torture slaves. When the commander, Claudius Lysias, heard that Paul was a Roman, he became “afraid.” Roman citizens had similar rights to those of modern Americans, including the right to a trial before punishment. However, Paul did not act on this. It would have been within his legal right and even morally justifiable. When faced with the choice, Paul chose mercy. Make it your effort this week to show mercy. I love you all!


In His Service,
Steven Hugley