"LORD, Have Mercy!"

    “Lord have mercy!” has always been a familiar and acceptable phrase used in ordinary conversation…at least in this part of the country. I say it myself much too often, and recently had a startling revelation that has grieved me and has placed in me a desire to break that habitual tendency to use the expression so loosely. I came to realize that the conversion of that Biblical cry into a common colloquialism hid many truths, blinding us to a depth of understanding and has withheld from us a blessing from God’s Word.

      Mercy is defined as the kind or compassionate treatment of an offender, opponent, the suffering, or condemned. As sinners, we are all condemned…at the mercy of God, only able to receive pardon at the realization of our condition, faith in God and the atoning blood of Jesus Christ.  Upon acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we obtain mercy.

     As a Christian, you are saved by grace through His suffering, His condemnation, and His blood at Calvary. His mercy has released you from your sin debt, and you owe nothing for your sin… you will not have to “pay” for anything you have done. You may reap consequences from your actions, but God will not judge the confessed sin of a repentant believer.

     Confession is the key. Confession requires self-examination, as well as the admission of fault, condition, and position or “status” in relationship to an Almighty God. We must understand what we have done, our unworthy condition, in order to humble ourselves and realize our lowly estate. Humility is a prerequisite of obtaining mercy, salvation and healing. Let’s look at Matthew 15:21-28...

 ^“Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.  And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.  But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.  But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.” (KJV)

     The woman in this passage was not of Jewish descent. She was from Canaan, a Gentile that was considered a “heathen” in the eyes of the Jews. She came to Jesus in faith, having heard of His healing power. She came to Jesus, acknowledging His authority by calling Him, “Lord”, His earthly kingship by calling Him, “Son of David”, and His power by saying, “Help me.” She came saying, “Have mercy on me”. 

     In humility, this woman understood her lowly estate, positioning herself to receive mercy and goodness (Psalm 23:6)…the blessing that followed her in belief. Note also that it was a request, not for herself, but for her daughter. The blessing flowed down generationally. It was a prayer of faith that redeemed both her and her daughter from the curse of sin in a fallen world. She did not ask for healing. She did not ask Jesus to cast out the demon. She asked for MERCY.

     Our self-examination is important in coming to the realization that we are sinners in need of a Savior. Our realization for need of God’s mercy will only come when we acknowledge that we are sin-sick in need of healing, and unworthy human beings in need of redemption. We first need His MERCY. Until we humble ourselves and realize that we are at the mercy of an Almighty God, and that we can do nothing for ourselves, we cannot receive our help that comes from the LORD. (Psalm 121:2)

     Now, each time I say, “Lord, have mercy!”, I am reminded that this is the cry of someone who humbled themselves, asking for healing and restoration. It is not a phrase to be loosely used or lightly taken. When I catch myself, I feel ashamed. As Christians, we need to examine our walk, watch our tongue, align our minds with our hearts and be humble in the eyes of an Almighty God.

     I feel that I must add that our nation is also at the mercy of God and is in danger of judgment. We need His mercy. However, II Chronicles 7:14 states that, “If My people, (God’s) which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” Let it be…Let us call on God’s MERCY.