To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. –
Proverbs 21:3

Many Christians have a problem reconciling the Bible’s guidance on righteousness and justice with its teachings on mercy and forgiveness. However, when we remember, as it says in Romans 3:20, that the Law was given to us as a mirror to show our own sins, not as a magnifying glass to examine the lives of others, most of our confusion melts away.

God’s Word is a love letter to His children, a personal love letter to each individual, with guidance on how we should live our own lives and how to treat others.

We are to apply the standards of holiness and righteousness to our own thoughts and actions while extending mercy and grace to others, just as God extends them to us. Holding oneself to a higher standard of obedience while at the same time forgiving others should be the goal of every believer.

If you really keep the royal law stated in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.

James 2:8