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Psalms
120:1-7 In my
distress I cried to the LORD, And He heard me. Deliver my soul, O LORD, from
lying lips And from a deceitful
tongue. What shall be given to you, Or what shall be done to you, You false
tongue? Sharp arrows of the warrior, With coals of the broom tree! Woe is me,
that I dwell in Meshech, That I
dwell among the tents of Kedar! My soul has dwelt too long With one who hates
peace. I am for peace; But when
I speak, they are for war.
Father God, bless us each day with
love in our hearts so that we can show mercy to those around us, just as you
are merciful to us. Help us to be bold and unafraid to be merciful to others. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
Matthew 5:7 NKJV
This
Beatitude of Mercy is a product of being a believer in Jesus Christ and what He
did for us at Calvary. It falls right in line with the change that happens in a
person’s life after they give their heart to the Lord. Without a change in a
person’s life (thoughts and actions), they aren’t saved based on Bible
scripture. 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is
a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become
new. Romans 7:6 But now we have been delivered
from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in
the newness of the Spirit and not in
the oldness of the letter. Ephesians 4:22-24
that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows
corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your
mind, 24
and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true
righteousness and holiness. Colossians 3:9-10
Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his
deeds, 10
and have put on the new man who
is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him. These are just a few verses that state
a change will occur within a person’s life when they accept Jesus with their
heart. This change within a person is part of the assurance that they are
saved.
Let’s define
“merciful” and “mercy” so we can get a good idea of what this Beatitude is all
about.
Mer’cy, n. [L. misericordia.] That
benevolence, mildness or tenderness of heart which disposes a person to
overlook injuries, or to treat an offender better than he deserves; the
disposition that tempers justice, and induces an injured person to forgive
trespasses and injuries, and to forbear punishment, or inflict less than law or
justice will warrant. In this sense, there is perhaps no word in our language
precisely synonymous with mercy. That which comes nearest to it is grace. It
implies benevolence, tenderness, mildness, pity or compassion, and clemency,
but exercised only towards offenders. Mercy is a distinguishing attribute of
the Supreme Being.
Mer’ciful, a. [from mercy.] Having or
exercising mercy; compassionate; tender; disposed to pity offenders and to
forgive their offenses; unwilling to punish for injuries; applied appropriately
to the Supreme being.
7 Blessed are
the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.
Meaning, those who are so
affected by the sufferings of others, that they be willing to lessen their
fellow human beings affliction some way. This is evidence of piety, and it is
said they who show mercy to others shall obtain it. This love is done out of
love from the heart of God’s children, because they wish to glorify God through
the love they have for Jesus in their heart, and with a desire that He should
be honored, and with a feeling that we are benefiting one of his creatures.
Then he will regard it as done to him, and will reward us.
Have
you ever heard of a play written by Lorraine Hansberry titled “A Raisin In The
Sun”? It is a lesson in mercy and it goes like this.
An
African-American family inherits ten thousand dollars from a life insurance
policy and the mother sees that money as a chance to help her family escape
from the ghetto and move into a real house in the country. Her daughter, a
brilliant student, wants to use the money to fulfill her dream of going to
medical school. But her son convinces everyone that he can take the money,
start a business with a friend, and accomplish all those things. He promises
the family that if they will give him the money, he’ll return all the blessings
their hard lives have denied them.
Against
her better judgment, the mother gives her son the money, believing that he
deserves a chance to succeed. But the son’s friend skips town with the money
leaving the son with the task of facing his mother and sister. His sister
lashes out with an onslaught of ugly expletives with no limits or end. The
mother interrupts and states, “I thought I taught you to love your brother?”
She responded, “Love him? There is nothing left to love!”
The
mother now responds with mercy. There is always something left to love. If you
ain’t learned that, you ain’t learned nothin’. Have you cried for that boy
today? I don’t mean for yourself and the family because we lost all that money,
I mean for him, for what he’s been through, and what it’s done to him. Child,
when do you think it’s the time to love somebody the most? When they done good
and made things easy for everybody? Well then, you ain’t through learnin’
because that ain’t the time at all, It’s when he’s at his lowest and can’t
believe in himself ‘cause the world done whipped him so. When you starts measurin’
somebody, measure him right, child. Measure him right. Make sure you done taken
into account what hills and valleys he come through before he got to wherever
he is. That’s mercy, and child, you need to learn mercy.
If there is anything we
can do to imitate Jesus, it is showing mercy. After all there is no greater
showing of mercy by God or Jesus that transpired on the Cross at Calvary. It is
through mercy that Jesus died on the cross for us when it should have been us,
because we are the sinners not Jesus. It is because of Jesus love for us and
Him willing to forgive us of our wretch lifestyle, that we are able to enter
into His Kingdom, if we so desire. 2
Peter 3:9 The Lord is
not slack concerning His
promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing
that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. 1 Timothy 2:4 who
desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Ezekiel 33:11 Say to them: 'As I live,' says the Lord GOD, 'I have no pleasure in the death
of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from
your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?'
Albert Barnes quotes this
pertaining to mercy and should raise questions in your life as to how you
practice mercy towards others. “To us,
guilty sinners; to us, wretched, dying, and exposed to eternal woe, he has
shown his mercy by giving his Son to die for us; by expressing his willingness
to pardon and save us; and by sending his Spirit to renew and sanctify our
hearts. Each day of our life, each hour, and each moment, we partake of his
undeserved mercy. All the blessings we enjoy are proofs of his mercy. If we,
then, show mercy to the poor, the wretched, the guilty, it shows that we are
like God. We have his spirit, and shall not lose our reward. And we have
abundant opportunity to do it. Our world is full of guilt and woe, which we may
help to relieve; and every day of our lives we have opportunity, by helping the
poor and wretched, and by forgiving those who injure us, to show that we are
like God.”
Being merciful goes beyond
the mere thought, and portrays action, not just a feeling of pity. The proposal
is, that if one does not show Mercy to others, and this means in action as well
as thought, God will not show Mercy. Realizing how dependent we are on the
Mercy of God, we should be quick to obey.
This action, action of
mercy and not of thought, is what I find to be the most difficult, meaning
knowing what to do in certain situations. We have all experienced situations of
not knowing what to do or how to help someone. Sometimes the answer is simple
and others more complex. Some situations can be resolved through prayer, but sometimes
more than prayer is required. In some situations to get involved it could be a
physical risk. Many times the root of the problem is the lifestyle being lived
and the starting place is accepting Jesus, but that is most difficult for
people to accept. This is why action can be difficult, because maybe the person
wants money, but in the back of your mind knowing the money won’t go for the
essentials of life. Probably, everyone has been in these situations and know
what I’m talking about, and have felt they are helpless and not living up to
Jesus expectations in showing mercy through actions.
The story Jesus tells us
about the Good Samaritan is a prime example of mercy; mind and action. Luke 10:30-35 Then Jesus answered and said: "A certain man
went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him
of his clothing, wounded him,
and departed, leaving him half
dead. 31
Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And
when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and
looked, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain
Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had
compassion. 34 So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring
on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and
took care of him. 35 On the next day, when he
departed, he took out two denarii, gave them
to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you
spend, when I come again, I will repay you.' Some of the passersby didn’t want to
get involved for one reason or the other, but the
Samaritan chose to show mercy. It is possible some of the passersby showed mercy in thought by thinking how sad, poor man, or even prayed for the victim, which is showing mercy with their mind, but the Samaritan showed mercy through actions. In today’s society, with a similar situation, would you be the Good Samaritan?
Samaritan chose to show mercy. It is possible some of the passersby showed mercy in thought by thinking how sad, poor man, or even prayed for the victim, which is showing mercy with their mind, but the Samaritan showed mercy through actions. In today’s society, with a similar situation, would you be the Good Samaritan?
For a Christian, mercy is
a Spirit driven ability to express practical, compassionate, and cheerful love
toward someone who is suffering. In the Bible and today’s society it pertains
to those easily ignored; the crippled, sick, deformed, aged, mentally ill,
etc., in other words, those less fortunate than ourselves. Mercy is the noblest
virtue of all that expresses tenderness in the midst of a fallen world. Our
society preaches to take care of self first, which goes completely against the
teachings of God’s Word. We are to love God first and then our neighbors as
ourselves. We are last! Luke
10:27 So he answered and said, “YOU
SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, WITH ALL
YOUR STRENGTH, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND,' and 'YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.”
If we are merciful, we
will receive mercy from God when we stand before Him. If we judge we will be
judged using the same reasoning that we use. Matthew 7:2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and
with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. James 2:13 For judgment is without mercy to the one
who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
If we forgive others we
will be forgiven, but if we are unforgiving we will one day find that God is
unforgiving toward us. Matthew
6:14-15 "For
if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you. 15
But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither
will your Father forgive your trespasses.
This is all an expression
of love and mercy. You can’t have love without mercy or mercy without love,
they go hand in hand. Mercy encompasses love for fellow mankind, compassion,
empathy, helpfulness actions, prayer, forgiveness, not being judgmental, etc. Mercy
is a characteristic of God and we are made in His image, if we proclaim to be a
Christian, we are and will display this characteristic if we are one of God’s
children. Anyone that practices mercy daily will become more like God with each
passing day, but if we make no attempts, we will distance ourselves from God.
How merciful are you? Do
you look for opportunities to show mercy? Being merciful for some people comes
natural. I know I fall short in this virtue and have work to do concerning
mercy, but with the help of the Holy Spirit, I will be watching more closely for
situations around me.
In closing we need to ask
God to give us sensitivity to those around us; to look for people with needs
and then reach out in mercy. The world wants us to believe we should only
provide for ourselves, but true happiness is when we are merciful and can
minister to others in need. The merciful will receive mercy and find true
happiness in being merciful to others.
visible and invisible, whether
thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All
things were created through Him and for Him.
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless one is
born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Bill
Wiesbrock https://www.facebook.com/bill.wiesbrock?ref=tn_tnmn
The
Lighthouse Full Gospel Church
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you believe
it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord Jesus
I know I am a sinner. I confess my sins
to you; I am sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a
sinful lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness of all
of my sins. I believe that only you can
forgive sin. I commit my life to you and
ask you to come into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my
Savior.” I believe this and have faith
you will make a new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my
heart and lead me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.” (John 3:16,17;
Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10; 1
John 5:11-14; 1:6-10) (Sin: Rom.
1:22-32; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-7)
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