"Notice that the publican did something more than bewail his sinfulness; he asked for mercy.
Q: What is mercy?
A: It is unmerited favor.
It is the disposition to treat a man better than he deserves.
Now the Word of Inspiration says of God, "as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him." Ps. 103:11.
That is, the measure by which God treats us better than we deserve when we humbly come to Him, is the distance between earth and the highest heaven.
Q: And in what respect does He treat us better than we deserve?
A: In taking our sins away from us, for the next verse says, "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us."
With this agree the words of the beloved disciple, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9. "
E.J.Waggoner
Q: What is mercy?
A: It is unmerited favor.
It is the disposition to treat a man better than he deserves.
Now the Word of Inspiration says of God, "as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him." Ps. 103:11.
That is, the measure by which God treats us better than we deserve when we humbly come to Him, is the distance between earth and the highest heaven.
Q: And in what respect does He treat us better than we deserve?
A: In taking our sins away from us, for the next verse says, "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us."
With this agree the words of the beloved disciple, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9. "
E.J.Waggoner