1 Timothy 1:15-17 / Lk 6:43-49
If we come across a beggar, and when he asks for money, and if we do give him some money, we do it most probably out of pity.
But showing pity does not equate to showing mercy.
Because mercy comes from a compassionate heart; it shows a desire to be with the other on equal terms.
In the 1st reading, St. Paul saw himself as a living example of God's mercy.
He called himself the greatest of all sinners, and yet God showed him mercy, so that he may know the inexhaustible patience of God.
If we had known and experienced this great mercy of God, then there is no other way but to show mercy to others.
One concrete way to know whether we have experienced God's mercy and love is by our words.
As Jesus said in today's gospel, a good man draws what is good from the store of goodness in his heart.
And a man's words flow out of what fills his heart.
Our words cannot deceive us because they are our own words, and we know exactly what we mean when we say them.
So let us mean what we say, and not be mean in what we say.
Let us speak words of love and mercy, so that by our words, God will also fill others with His love and mercy.