Everything Short of Hell is Mercy

Everything short of hell is mercy. This one truth should change the way we view our hardships and frustrations, no matter how terrible they may be. If we, as sinners, are not facing the wrath of the infinitely Holy God at this moment, our life is better than we deserve. That is true for every Christian and non-Christian alive right now.

We tend to look at the pleasures we experience in this life and assume that is how it should be. We look at the life of an averagely happy person and think we deserve the same. That misleading assumption is spewed forth by the father of lies and exists for the sole purpose of causing our hard hearts to shake our fists at the God of grace when life does not meet our expectations.

Our ingratitude, alone, is sin enough to condemn us for all eternity. Yet here we sit, surrounded by so many pleasures of life and taking them for granted, as if God owes it to us. To help us keep things in perspective, here are a few things we may experience that are better than what we deserve.

• Cancer
• Poverty
• Betrayal
• Depression
• Prison
• Loss of Loved Ones
• Blindness
• Persecution
• Ridicule
• Conflict at work
• Catching a cold
• Loss of a Presidential election
• Traffic
• Fuel Prices
• A long line at the grocery store
• Spotty wifi
• Being on hold with the internet company for 20 minutes
• A delayed online delivery
• Going to work tired
• Someone saying something upsetting to us on social media
• A sermon being a little dry
• The worship leader singing a song we do not like

It is incredible how much time we can spend complaining about the items at the bottom of the list, especially in light of the items at the top. Yet, the entire list is mercy compared to hell.

For those who reject Christ, everything on this list will soon come to an end. When the mercy ends, the list above will seem like heaven compared to what they will face for eternity. They will go from mercy to justice.

For those who come to Jesus in faith, everything on that list will soon end for them as well. Christian, your pain and frustrations are only temporary. You will soon enter into the King’s presence, where there will be no more tears or sorrow. You will go from mercy to mercy. Hold on for just a little longer. This mercy and grace are possible because Jesus bore our wrath on the cross, and his righteousness is counted as ours.

No matter what we face as believers, we have every reason to rejoice in the Lord. Not only are our hardships better than we deserve, but he has promised to strengthen and comfort us when we face them. Meditate on this truth, and let it flood your heart with gratitude. We serve a Good and Gracious King.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice. – Philippians 4:4

-D. Eaton

Update: I had the opportunity to join the Kurt and Kate morning show on Moody Radio to discuss this article. I even had the opportunity to tell the story of how a sermon on hell once lifted my spirit. You can listen to the segment here.