Then he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has He done? I have found no reason for death in Him. I will, therefore, chastise Him and let Him go.” But they were insistent, demanding with loud voices that He be crucified. And the voices of these men and of the chief priests prevailed. (Luk 23:22-23 NKJ)

William R. Newell, a Chicago area pastor, and also Assistant Superintendent at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago was sitting down at his desk one day, when he penned the lyrics to that well-known hymn, ‘At Calvary.’ The chorus says:

Mercy there was great, and grace was free;

Pardon, there was multiplied to me;

There my burdened soul found liberty

At Calvary.

I am thankful at times that God is God and not man.  Sometimes you’ll meet a Christian, and they live by the letter of the law, rules, and regulations.  They show no compassion, give no grace and offer no mercy—and yet; I’m sure they expect to receive it. The text from Luke gives us an account of the trial of Jesus.  Falsely accused by the religious hierarchy, and yet under Roman law, Pilate could find no wrong, and yet even he was swayed by the court of public opinion to pass a false judgment.  God came in the flesh to visit us, and the hospitality we offered was a place on the cross. If that had been me, I might have brought down judgment on those people, and yet all he offered was grace and mercy, love and forgiveness.  How many times do we pass a false judgment upon somebody based on the color of a person’s skin, the clothes they wear, their political persuasion, sexual orientation or their religion, instead of getting to know the person, showing grace and mercy?

So in my daily walk, as I encounter others who may not match up to what I want or demand, I need to remind myself of the mercy and the grace that I received at Calvary.