Coming to know God’s mercy in a ‘real’ way is a big challenge because of original sin. After the fall, humanity now has a distorted image of God. We tend to see God as someone from whom we want to run and hide – see Genesis 3:8-10. We see God as a judge coming to punish us, to give us our due for what we’ve done. We see Him as someone who is anything but merciful. One of the biggest lies of Satan is to make God the judge not a Loving Savior.
Even the most faithful Christians sometimes are tempted to doubt God’s mercy and love.
The truth of God’s mercy is one of the most important lessons for a soul to learn – if not the most important. After all, it is connected to the great commandment, “love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength” – Mark 12:30
We’re commanded to love God, but we can’t love what we do not know. Specifically, mercy and not just love.
God is love. That’s true. But, when it comes to God’s love for us, it always takes the form of merciful love.
Why?
Because of who we are. Who are we? Sinners. We are weak, broken, suffering sinners. Every last one of us (Romans 3:10-12).
What is love when it meets sin, weakness and suffering? Mercy. This kind of love is mercy. So, this side of eternity, God’s love is always merciful love.
To know that He is infinite mercy is to know Divine Mercy. The more we come to know God’s mercy, experience it and make it real in our lives, the more we will love God in return.
Come Holy Spirit, help me to know God through His infinite, inexhaustible Divine Mercy.
“Survey your life and you will find it a mass of mercies” – St. John Henry Newman