5 Powerful Importance of Divine Mercy to Sinners
It might seem incredibly obvious to state that “mercy is for sinners,” yet we can sometimes forget this foundational truth.
Unless we actually spend time dwelling on this reality, we will utterly fail to understand—and live out—the message of Divine Mercy.
Here are five reasons why mercy is for sinners—and some guidance on what this concept really means.
1. Christ Came For Sinners
…as often as you hear the clock strike the third hour, immerse yourself completely in My mercy, adoring and glorifying it; invoke its omnipotence for the whole world, and particularly for poor sinners; for at that moment mercy was opened wide for every soul.
Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska
First and foremost, we need to remind ourselves why Christ came.
He did not come to award those who were already doing His will, but to save the sinner:
“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Luke 5:31-32
The Divine Mercy message reaffirms this call:
My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners. If only they could understand that I am the best of Fathers to them and that it is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. For them I dwell in the tabernacle as King of Mercy. I desire to bestow My graces upon souls, but they do not want to accept them.
2. The Greater the Sin, the Greater the Mercy
Jesus’ death was sufficient sacrifice for all sin. No matter how great a sin committed, no matter how hardened the sinner, Christ’s grace is sufficient for redemption, and He desires to bring even greater mercy to those who have committed great sins.
And your heart is My constant dwelling place, despite the misery that you are. I unite Myself with you, take away your misery and give you My mercy. I perform works of mercy in every soul. The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy. My mercy is confirmed in every work of My hands. He who trusts in My mercy will not perish, for all his affairs are Mine, and his enemies will be shattered at the base of My footstool.
3. Even the Most Hardened Sinner Has a “Right” to Christ’s Mercy
Jesus died for all sinners, without exception. Although not everyone accepts His mercy, He wants to give greater mercy to greater sinners. Because Christ died for us, and because it is right for us to accept that gift, it follows that the worse the sinner, the greater right he has to the mercy of Christ.
My daughter, My pleasure and delight, nothing will stop me from granting you graces. Your misery does not hinder my mercy. My daughter, write that the greater the misery of a soul, the greater its right to My mercy; [urge] all souls to trust in the unfathomable abyss of My mercy, because I want to save them all. On the cross, the fountain of My mercy was opened wide by the lance for all souls – no one have I excluded!
Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska §1182
Jesus wants the hardened evildoer to repent, and He will rejoice when they lay claim to the mercy that He offers them.
Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
Luke 15:7
4. We Too Must Be Merciful, Lest We Close Ourselves Off From Christ
Mercy is not meant to be received and then kept to oneself. Like Faustina, we must accept the mercy of Christ and then share it with the world. We must act with mercy towards others so that we ourselves can receive it most fully and so that we can participate as much as possible in God’s salvific work on earth.
As Christ taught us to pray: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
Our reception of mercy is contingent upon our being merciful; to act with mercy and charity towards others is a necessary part of living out the Divine Mercy message.
Nor can we let the genuine repentance of other sinners become a stumbling block for our own peace, as if God’s love is finite, and there is a limited amount to go around.
As Jesus taught us in the parable of the vineyard workers: even those who were called late in the evening received a full day’s wages from the master. Those who came to work in the morning were not cheated in receiving their due; they received a good wage in payment for their diligent work.
If we are envious of others or consider ourselves somehow “more” worthy of God’s love, then we set ourselves against Him, rather than with Him.
5. Only Despair Sets us at Odds with Christ’s Mercy
Lastly, we must never despair for our own salvation. Doing so is an act of distrust against God.
Though our sins be like scarlet, Jesus wants to wash us so that we are white as snow; if we do not believe Him, then that is an act against Christ.
We need not fear Jesus, no matter what we’ve done.
Let the sinner not be afraid to approach Me. The flames of mercy are burning Me—clamouring to be spent; I want to pour them out upon these souls…
Distrust on the part of souls is tearing at My insides. The distrust of a chosen soul causes me even greater pain; despite My inexhaustible love for them they do not trust Me. Even My death is not enough for them. Woe to the soul that abuses these [gifts]
