Be merciful as your Father is merciful.

"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." (Luke 6: 36).

Thursday 10th September 2020, 23rd Week in Ordinary Time.

Our word for the day is from the Gospel of Luke 6: 27 - 38. How can we be merciful as the Father is merciful? What is mercy? The dictionary defines mercy as: "compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm." In other words, mercy is a gratuitous forgiveness of an offense where the offender is rightly waiting the hammer to strike.

In my opinion, the greatest example of mercy is in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. This servant owes his master millions of dollars which he could never repay. His master would sell his entire family and all his possessions, put him into slave work for the rest of his life to recover a tiny portion of his debt. Then the miracle happened. He was forgiven everything. The servant did not forgive his fellow servant who owed him a tiny amount.

"You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.  Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’" (Matthew 18: 32 - 33).

"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." (Luke 6: 36). Jesus teaches us that the merciful Heart of God is unfathomable. Like a bottomless ocean. Anyone could see this in the Old Testament. Covenant after Covenant that was shredded by His ungrateful People. Yet when they suffer the consequences of their sins, one cry to God and He is at their side, forgiving them and ready to start all over again.

Divine Mercy Devotion is Jesus' gift to the Church. He desires that no man should be ignorant of the infinite mercy of God. The heart of the Devotion is as simple as ABC and is summarized by the ABC of Mercy:

A: Ask for Mercy.
B: Be Merciful.
C: Completely trust Jesus for Mercy.

This is how we can be merciful as our Father is merciful.

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com