“Let not mercy and truth forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, and so find favor and esteem in the sight of God and man.” (Prov. 3:3,4)
What value do you place on mercy and truth? Have you written them on the tablet of your heart? Do you love and appreciate them as gifts from God? Not only should we highly value them, but we should constantly remind ourselves of their importance. This is what it means to bind them around our neck. If we love these gifts and meditate upon their nature, we will be blessed by them (Josh. 1:8).
These two qualities are often quoted together in Scripture (see Ps. 57:3,10; 85:10,11; 86:15; 89:14; 98:3; 100:5; 108:4; etc.). Maybe that is because they work to balance each other. If we love truth but lack mercy, we will be judgemental and find ourselves walking in a religious spirit instead of the Spirit of Truth. If we love mercy but neglect truth, we could easily find ourselves walking in a spirit of error. To extend mercy to someone is to provide an opportunity for repentance before judgment comes. “Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?” (Rom. 2:4). Truth understands accountability. “So then each of us shall give an account of himself to God” (Rom. 14:12). When God judges us, He is correcting our behaviour before we appear in front of the judgment seat of Christ (Rom. 14:14). Speaking the truth in love is how we help people grow in Christ (Eph. 4:15).
If we walk in the Spirit of Truth, we will demonstrate the nature of God. Like the rebuke Jesus gave the Sons of Thunder, it all comes down to the type of spirit we are operating from (Lu. 9:55). God is merciful and to walk in His nature is to extend mercy. Spiritual power is released when we forgive in the name of Jesus. This power can be released to people, even when they do not know you forgive them. The first time I witnessed this was when a young man from Toronto told me that my “country” accent was offensive to him. I was shocked but understood that he was a new convert. As he left the room, I silently said, “I forgive you in the name of Jesus”. Immediately, he returned to the room asking for forgiveness. If I had not released forgiveness in the Spirit, he still could have obtained forgiveness from God, but the process may have taken longer, and it could have included some suffering. And what about my own spiritual condition? If I want God’s forgiveness, I must also forgive others. We cannot assume that forgiveness is ours, regardless of our behaviour. Jesus was very clear in the parable of the unforgiving servant. “And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” (Matt. 18:34,35).
One very important reason for walking in mercy and truth is to escape the deception that is increasing in these last days. We should always be alert to false teachings, but we should never walk in fear of being deceived. Fear is faith for the negative to happen. To be alert is to be on guard, fully dressed in our spiritual armour. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (1Pe. 5:8). I do not believe in looking for the devil or his works. Rather, I believe we should keep our eyes on the Lord and resist the enemy when he tries to distract us from serving our Lord (Jas. 4:7).
We guard our heart against deception by walking in fellowship with the Holy Spirit. “These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.” (1Jn. 2:26,27). Spiritual discernment comes with a revelation of truth. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth (Jn. 14:17). He teaches us the truth and reminds us of what we have been taught (Jn. 14:26). If we love the truth and hide it in our hearts, we will discern with understanding when false teachings come. The way it works for me is that when I sense a check in my spirit, I turn inward to listen. I do not immediately reject the teaching, but neither do I give myself to it. If the teaching is false, the Holy Spirit will bring to my remembrance a biblical principle that disproves it. I cannot rely on my own understanding for this. Discernment does not come from much study; it comes from the Spirit of Truth.
If we value truth, we will be willing to pay a price for it. “Buy the truth, and do not sell it, also wisdom and instruction and understanding.” (Prov. 23:23). The price we pay is not religious works, it is death to self. The biblical principle is that if you speak lies, you will believe lies. If you want to receive truth, you must speak the truth. “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that He will also reap.” (Gal. 6:7). If you are like me, you will have spoken lies to protect yourself, or to make yourself look good. I have come to understand by the loving discipline of the Lord that it is better to speak the truth the first time, then to have to go back and correct a lie. If suffering comes because I must admit to a wrong which I have committed, I accept it as discipline so that I do not repeat it. I want to be like God; I want to walk in mercy and truth.
“But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.” (Ps. 86:15).
Highway in the Wilderness 