To all who fear HIM!

Luke 1:46-56

Mary responded, “Oh, how I praise the Lord. How I rejoice in God my Savior! For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and now generation after generation forever shall call me blest of God. For he, the mighty Holy One, has done great things to me. His mercy goes on from generation to generation, to all who fear him. How powerful is his mighty arm! How he scatters the proud and haughty ones! He has torn princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly. He has satisfied the hungry hearts and sent the rich away with empty hands. And how he has helped his servant Israel! He has not forgotten his promise to be merciful. For he promised our fathers—Abraham and his children—to be merciful to them forever.” Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.

Food thought!

As we get ready to celebrate Christmas, Mary reminds us that “God's mercy goes on from generation to generation, to all who fear him.” What does this mean? It means that God’s mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him. It means that God’s mercy is not limited to one race, sex, religion, time or space. God’s mercy extends to all and everybody WHO FEAR GOD. The only thing we need to have is the fear of God. The fear of the Lord is also the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 1:7).

In Christ and because of Christ, we are all equally dear before God. There is no man or woman, learned or illiterate; we are all loved by God. This is what Paul tells the Galatians that, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal 3:28).

The world may classify us according to our accent or according to the colour of our skin or according to the circumstances of our birth; but before God we are not, as long as we fear Him. God deals with all of us and each one of us that fear him, as equally beloved. This is why Jesus told us the parable of the lost sheep: God leaves the 99 sheep to go after one that is lost. Why? Because for God all the sheep are equally dear; loosing one is loosing one too many.

“So then, my friends, because of God’s great mercy to us…offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer.” (Romans 12:1)

We all need mercy, because we all stumble and fall and require help getting back on track. We need to offer unconditional mercy to each other and be willing to receive it from each other. God says, “When people sin, you should forgive and comfort them, so they won’t give up in despair.” (2Corinthians 2:7)

God’s mercy to us is the motivation for showing mercy to others. Remember, you will never be asked to forgive someone else more than God has already forgiven you. Whenever you are hurt by someone, you have a choice to make: Will I use my energy and emotions for retaliation or for resolution? You can’t do both.