For Mercy sake
Earlier this month the denomination to which my church belongs held an evangelism conference in Green Lake, Wisconsin. I was invited to attend and chose to drive instead of fly, so that after the conference, Patricia and I could take some time off and travel (we went to Niagara Falls).
During the trip, as we approached the booming metropolis of York, Nebraska (population 8000), we decided to stop to eat at a local restaurant, not at some fast food place along the freeway. So, we drove into town, found a delightful place and devoured a delicious meal. The food really was fabulous, the ambiance quaint, and the service excellent. The cut glass and wood walls, the tiffany style lamps, and the decorations reminded us of a small, country town Marie Callendar’s.
On the way out of town, we began chattering away about our delightful dining experience, totally oblivious to everything else—including the speed limit sign and the highway patrol man. He said I was going 75 miles per hour in a 55 miles per hour zone.
I was crushed. Until this point in the trip, the speed limit on the freeways had been a generous 75 mph. I had consistently set the speed control at about 78 and meticulously slowed when the speed was less.
After what seemed like spending two hours writing a ticket, the officer explained that the penalty for my crime of breaking the speed limit was $225.00. He went to say, however, that he was only going to issue me a warning ticket.
What an illustration of mercy. Justice was $225.00. Mercy was $0.
As a result of that act of mercy, I decided that I would go back to dependence on cruise control. I pulled onto the freeway, set the cruise control, and Patricia and I picked up our conversation. Only now we were not talking about the meal we had just had. We were overwhelmed at the mercy I had just experienced.
Because of the mercy I experienced, I obeyed the speed laws for the rest of the trip, which was well over 5000 miles. That is the kind of response my Heavenly Father wants out of me.
Paul put it like this, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice” (Rom. 12:1). That famous verse is actually the conclusion (cf. “therefore”) of the discussion on mercy at the end of chapter 11. The meaning of the expression “present your body” is, use your body to obey (Rom. 6:12-13). Paul’s point is that the proper response to mercy is obedience.
As my experience with the mercy of the patrolman prompted me to obey the speed limit, so the Lord wants my encounter with His mercy to provoke me to obey Him.
© G. Michael Cocoris, 8/30/2001
During the trip, as we approached the booming metropolis of York, Nebraska (population 8000), we decided to stop to eat at a local restaurant, not at some fast food place along the freeway. So, we drove into town, found a delightful place and devoured a delicious meal. The food really was fabulous, the ambiance quaint, and the service excellent. The cut glass and wood walls, the tiffany style lamps, and the decorations reminded us of a small, country town Marie Callendar’s.
On the way out of town, we began chattering away about our delightful dining experience, totally oblivious to everything else—including the speed limit sign and the highway patrol man. He said I was going 75 miles per hour in a 55 miles per hour zone.
I was crushed. Until this point in the trip, the speed limit on the freeways had been a generous 75 mph. I had consistently set the speed control at about 78 and meticulously slowed when the speed was less.
After what seemed like spending two hours writing a ticket, the officer explained that the penalty for my crime of breaking the speed limit was $225.00. He went to say, however, that he was only going to issue me a warning ticket.
What an illustration of mercy. Justice was $225.00. Mercy was $0.
As a result of that act of mercy, I decided that I would go back to dependence on cruise control. I pulled onto the freeway, set the cruise control, and Patricia and I picked up our conversation. Only now we were not talking about the meal we had just had. We were overwhelmed at the mercy I had just experienced.
Because of the mercy I experienced, I obeyed the speed laws for the rest of the trip, which was well over 5000 miles. That is the kind of response my Heavenly Father wants out of me.
Paul put it like this, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice” (Rom. 12:1). That famous verse is actually the conclusion (cf. “therefore”) of the discussion on mercy at the end of chapter 11. The meaning of the expression “present your body” is, use your body to obey (Rom. 6:12-13). Paul’s point is that the proper response to mercy is obedience.
As my experience with the mercy of the patrolman prompted me to obey the speed limit, so the Lord wants my encounter with His mercy to provoke me to obey Him.
© G. Michael Cocoris, 8/30/2001