Adam’s Angle: A Gentle Hand

Do you squish? When you feel a tickle on your leg and see a bug, are you quick to unleash the wrath of your thumb?

If so, you may have a thing or two to learn about mercy.

What is mercy? It is simply holding back from hurting someone — or something — when it’s in our power to do so. Fortunately for us, mercy is also something God is famous for. In fact, God’s not going to kick you when you’re down, he’s going to lend you a hand to lift you up.

When God comforted the Jews through the prophet Isaiah, He told them about Jesus, their coming Messiah, saying: “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smouldering wick he will not snuff out” (Isaiah 42:3). We’ve all seen bent-over blades of grass or sputtering candle flames fighting for life. Sometimes we’ve even felt like them when life hits us hard.

We may feel like that when we go through a series of misfortunes or struggle to fight off that sin that just won’t seem to go away. If we’re young in our faith, we might even be deceived, thinking God is out to squish us. But that’s not who He is. He is merciful.

Is God a Pushover?

But if God is merciful, does that mean he’s like a plush teddy bear in the sky that turns a blind eye to sin? Not at all. Jesus, who showed mercy to the woman at the well in John chapter four, is the same Jesus who called the Pharisees “sons of serpents” and who overturned the tables of the moneychangers. Jesus was tough on the prideful and self-sufficient, but merciful to the people who were broken enough to repent.

But doesn’t God discipline His children? Yes, we know from Hebrews chapter twelve that God allows us to undergo hardship as discipline. But what we need to hold on to is that the heart behind all of His dealings with us is love. God is treating us as His sons and daughters.

I’ve been guilty from time to time of wrongly thinking that God wanted to be tough on me just because He could be. And I’m sure many a two-year-old thinks that about his or her parents every once in a while. But the truth of the matter is that God wants to help us.

Earlier in the Isaiah passage, God bares His heart to His people: “For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you Do not fear; I will help you. Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Israel, for I myself will help you” (Isaiah 41:13-14). Even when the Jews felt like a helpless, insignificant worm, God wanted them to know that He was in their corner, not facing them as an opponent.

Mercy Me

As wonderful as it is to be on the receiving end of God’s mercy, the lesson doesn’t end there for Christians. We also need to be the ones showing mercy. And I don’t mean mercy to bugs, I mean showing mercy to people.

Each one of us knows someone who may be going through a “smouldering wick” time where they need a little TLC. They might be out of work. They might be a little socially awkward. They might ask you to drop them off at the bus stop because they don’t have access to a car to pick up their weekly groceries. We need to show mercy because great mercy has been shown to us.

And one last thing: I’m not saying don’t swat that mosquito. If you do, just tell yourself that it’s a metaphor for God’s judgment on the wicked. But make sure you show mercy in the important areas of your life.