Many Christians will be singing “Were You There” on Good Friday this week. Each line concludes, “It causes me to tremble.” I love that description of our reaction to Christ. Indeed, even the coldest human being should tremble when she contemplates Christ’s suffering and crucifixion.

However, what causes me to tremble at the core of my very being is not Christ’s suffering as much as it is the words He gives us while He hangs on the cross! “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!”

Jesus halts God’s righteous vengeance and intercedes for all his accusers and enemies. That’s His response to them?! Mercy?!

What would we do? In this day and age of righteous rage, we hastily react to any minor insult. We are quick to accuse everyone but ourselves of being wrong. We angrily destroy people we disagree with on our social media feeds. We are all full of our own self-righteousness; we are so quick to judge and cold to show mercy. We, of all people, know we are all poor, miserable sinners sustained exclusively out of God’s divine love and grace. The response of the Church to persecution has always been the same as Jesus’ – Forgiveness – not a holy war.

In a day and age when everyone is up in arms, let us be the calm and merciful disciples of Jesus. We have been given a new outlook on life in Christ, and we have been given peace, hope, and love. Why are we always trembling like the rest of the world?

To an angry world, let us live like people who have been shown incredible mercy by the God we killed! Christ has filled us with more forgiveness than we need. Let it flow through your words and actions in this merciless world so that others are drawn to the God who loves sinners!