All short of this is mercy!

(Thomas Reade, "Christian Meditations") LISTEN to audio!  Download Audio

In order to awaken self-abasement and gratitude—I should consider both what I deserve, and what blessings I have in Christ.

If the righteous Lord were to deal with me according to my deservings, I would at this moment be under the rack of excruciating pain; or under the pressure of most abject poverty—thus experiencing the foretaste of eternal woe.

If thus dealt with in strictest justice, Death would receive his commission to hurl my affrighted soul into the gulf of endless misery, there to remain an everlasting monument of the vengeance of a holy God!
All short of this is mercy!

Do I enjoy a portion of health?
It is all mercy!

Am I undergoing a sanctified affliction?
It is all mercy!

Do I partake of the bounties of Providence?
It is all mercy!

Do I possess affectionate friends?
It is all mercy!

Do I experience the love of God in Christ, pardoning my sins, and purifying my heart?
Oh! this is mercy beyond the power of language to praise or to express!

Rejoice in such a Savior, who mercifully snatched you as a brand out of the burning!

"Because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions." Ephesians 2:4-5

"He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy." Titus 3:5

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope!" 1 Peter 1:3