- Show Mercy
Exodus 20: 6 And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
God loves every person and even every creature. He is quintessentially merciful. God is love; God is mercy. God loves all people, without a doubt, unconditionally. But the promise of mercy here is conditional: God shows mercy to those who love God and keep the commandments. If you love God, then He will show mercy. But the promise is not as conditional as it sounds.
We can all admit to the convicting truth that no one loves God perfectly and no one can keep His commandments perfectly. Therefore, we cannot receive mercy. But mercy, by definition, is not earned; it is given for free. It is freely given because Jesus earned it for us. Jesus loved God the Father, accomplished God’s will, lived an innocent life, and perfectly kept God’s commandments; He is holy and righteous. And He lived, died, and rose for us and for our forgiveness and salvation. Jesus kept the “if” condition for us. By faith in Christ we are accounted as having earned salvation.
God is merciful to all since He is Mercy. He shows mercy in this way: “He gave His only-begotten Son…” This is how God shows mercy. The truth is that God has mercy and He is always ready to give mercy, but He will not “show” it until the Son pays the price that satisfies the holiness of God. In Christ God is satisfied with us and the Lord can now show us mercy to those who love God and keep His Law. “Love and keep” means “believe.” “Whoever believes in Him has eternal life.”
God gives mercy to all: He gave His Son to all. And to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God. If one does not believe in Jesus he does not receive the mercy. Mercy is not forced; it is received. If we believe we see and receive what God is showing. So faith is necessary to receive the promise, but it is not a condition. God does not “reward” faith; He gives faith to receive. Thus God shows mercy.