"Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face."
Psalms 89:14
I find it interesting that God is the symbol and epitome of both justice and mercy. We have big fights over those things in our society. We take sides, thinking that we have to choose one or the other... enforce justice, or show mercy. Often political issues and even political parties become divided over these ideals, *both* of which are important and eternal.
God can embody both of these virtues because of the Atonement. Christ fulfills every demand of justice, so that he can offer us another chance, and give us the gift of repentance: the opportunity to overcome our sins and change our lives rather than having to face justice for what we've done. We can choose whether or not to accept Christ as our new creditor and apply his atonement to our lives. His terms are generous and gentle. He only wants us to improve ourselves, and change from our sinful ways.
As in our spiritual lives, perhaps some of our individual and societal problems need approaches that blend justice and mercy. We desperately need both in our lives, and in our world. Today, let's take a step back and think about our decisions in terms of the application of both justice and mercy. Let's show kindness and teach responsibility. Let's be generous as well as encouraging self-reliance. Let's be just and merciful to others, and let's also be just and merciful to ourselves by repenting and taking the gift that Christ has offered us and use it to repent and become our best selves.
Psalms 89:14
I find it interesting that God is the symbol and epitome of both justice and mercy. We have big fights over those things in our society. We take sides, thinking that we have to choose one or the other... enforce justice, or show mercy. Often political issues and even political parties become divided over these ideals, *both* of which are important and eternal.
God can embody both of these virtues because of the Atonement. Christ fulfills every demand of justice, so that he can offer us another chance, and give us the gift of repentance: the opportunity to overcome our sins and change our lives rather than having to face justice for what we've done. We can choose whether or not to accept Christ as our new creditor and apply his atonement to our lives. His terms are generous and gentle. He only wants us to improve ourselves, and change from our sinful ways.
As in our spiritual lives, perhaps some of our individual and societal problems need approaches that blend justice and mercy. We desperately need both in our lives, and in our world. Today, let's take a step back and think about our decisions in terms of the application of both justice and mercy. Let's show kindness and teach responsibility. Let's be generous as well as encouraging self-reliance. Let's be just and merciful to others, and let's also be just and merciful to ourselves by repenting and taking the gift that Christ has offered us and use it to repent and become our best selves.
No comments:
Post a Comment