Mercy and Judgment (Part 2)

God has long used Mercy with Judgment to compliment each other. The people of God experienced the bountiful mercy of God but that didn’t exempt them from the heavy hand of his judgment. Often, the blessings of God caused them to become overconfident in their own abilities and they would abandon the ways of God. Each time judgment came into their lives to lead them back to the mercy and grace of God.

Through the pages of the scripture the co-mingling of Mercy and Judgment was often present. The Ark of the Covenant contained within it the bowl of Manna that had been provided by the grace of God. That wonderful token of blessing was a consistent reminder that God had shown them his mercy. However, in the same ark, under the same mercy seat, right beside the manna lay Aaron’s budded rod, a consistent reminder of the authority and judgment of God.

David said it, in the ever-popular Shepherd’s Psalm, “Thy rod (judgment) and thy staff (mercy) comfort me…” The shepherd’s staff was to sustain and console the sheep. It was the symbol of loving kindness and mercy. But the rod was to discipline the sheep. It was the symbol of correction and judgment. And David said, together, they comfort me!

Even in the Old Testament Tabernacle, we find judgment and mercy mingled together. The Bronze Altar provided the only means of approach to God. It was there that the blood was shed, in judgment. And it was the blood, from the altar, that would be poured out upon the Mercy Seat, obtaining the grace and forgiveness of God. However, the neat thing is that on that brazen altar there was a bronze grate that rested on a recessed ledge inside the altar. The grate, where the sacrifice was placed, was the same height from the ground as the mercy seat. The place where judgment and wrath were poured out and the place where mercy and grace were granted, existed on the same level in the tabernacle of God.

In the New Testament, Jesus Christ fulfilled all the ordinances of the law. He became both our sacrifice and our saviour. Even in his life, mercy and judgment were intertwined. He was bruised for our iniquities and the chastisement of our peace was upon him. God poured out all the fury and wrath of judgment upon himself at the old rugged cross. However, the story doesn’t end there, by his stripes, Isaiah declares, we are healed. The blood that was shed has set us set free. He offered one sacrifice, one time, facing judgment for every man and loosing mercy for whosoever will.

The only place where there will be no judgment is heaven and the only place that there will be no mercy is Hell. Everything suspended in between contains a mixture of judgment and mercy. Some will be constrained by judgment and discover everlasting mercy. Others will reject God’s mercy and afflict themselves with unending judgment. But, in any case, judgment and mercy will always be comingled in this life. The one doesn’t exist without the other. It is the two working together that produces the song of the redeemed.

“I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing.” Psalm 101:1