Welcome to the main event . . . let’s get ready to rumble! Ladies and gentlemen may I present to you the combatants . . . waging war throughout the ages . . . opposed to one another at the core . . . battling over the souls of men. In this corner, weighing in as greatly over-rated and over-valued and over-used . . . judgment. And in the far corner, not looking necessarily very impressive . . . not loud . . . not flashy . . . not the stuff of macho men . . . but oh, so effective . . . having won every prior meeting between these two . . . weighing in through the power of God and the sacrifice of Christ . . . may I introduce to you . . . mercy! . . . the undisputed champion!

In judgment’s corner . . . supporting him in a losing battle . . . is his manager, the law . . . supported by his corner men, pride and partiality. Doing battle based on the works of men, his tactics are simple . . . set a standard that sounds holy but is really based on what he can attain and then challenge others to live up to it. Set before them a checklist to be completed in order to measure up . . . whether it be the 10 commandments . . . or 1st century “principles and practices” . . . or just a self-formed view of righteousness . . . and require those who would seek to measure up to check off the right number of “to do’s” and “to don’ts” in order to get a passing grade and then measure on a bell curve . . . and, through arrogance and favoritism, start judging them in their failure. The essence of his strength? His secret weapon? The fact that, for those who try to attain righteousness through the law, or any other measure of works, stumbling in one point renders them guilty of all . . . thus giving judgment the upper hand.

The upper hand? . . . at times, perhaps. Victory? . . . absolutely not! Enter into the ring . . . mercy!

Mercy . . . “kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them” . . . the determination to withhold the punishment deserved for sin . . . the set of eyes that look upon those who fail and identify with their stumbling and, rather than take judgment’s destructive approach, seek to lift up . . . and restore. Yes, the wages of sin is death . . . so what allows mercy to do battle in such a way? Backing him in his corner is the grace of God and the blood of Christ. The heart of the Father that not only longs to forgive but to rebuild . . . that seeks not only to withhold punishment but to lavish upon the sinner the spiritual riches of heaven itself . . . that seeks not only to save a man or woman from hell, but to transform them into the image of His blessed Son . . . receiving them as children . . . accepting them as His own Beloved. And grace is fueled by the blood of Christ . . . the atoning flow for men’s sins . . . the knock out blow for judgment’s attacks . . . the submission hold on the accuser of the brethren . . . the basis for eternal victory . . . the ultimate triumph.

Judgment vs. mercy . . . a battle as old as time. And I read in James this morning that “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” (James 1:13b)

And the warning from James is to be careful whose corner I migrate to. Certainly I have been a benefactor of mercy . . . I have known grace . . . my sins . . . past, present, and future . . . forgiven in full, tossed as far away as east is from west . . . but pride and partiality have a way of taking recipients of mercy . . . trophies of grace . . . and having them participate in judgment’s losing fight. Instead, as one who has known mercy and experienced grace, I should be a dispenser of the same . . . “So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty” (James 1:12). Putting down pride and seeking the mind of Christ, through the Spirit of Christ, mine is to view others without partiality . . . to not judge based on some set of rules I think others need to step up to . . . but to show mercy . . . to exhibit grace . . . to align myself with the all-time, undisputed champion in the fight for men’s souls.

Oh, that I would be marked by mercy and grace . . . for His glory . . . amen.

Do you have another 3 1/2 minutes?  Click here to check out Gordon Mote’s take on “the fight”.