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Blessed
Are The Merciful
Matthew
5:7
Now, let’s
dive into the Beatitude from Matthew chapter 5, verse 7. We
should remember the first four Beatitudes we discussed:
being poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, and those
who hunger and thirst for righteousness. All of these
reflect the attitudes of individuals in the Kingdom of God.
The Beatitude we're focusing on today emphasizes action; it
highlights what those in the Kingdom should be doing. It
states, "Blessed are merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."
Mercy
differs from grace in several ways. According to various
Greek dictionaries and lexicons, grace is a kindness or
favor bestowed upon someone they don’t deserve. In other
words, it involves giving someone something they haven’t
earned or do not merit. That encapsulates the essence of
grace. In contrast, mercy relates to compassion, emphasizing
the importance of care and kindness. Particularly in the
context of God's mercy, it means having compassion for us
and not giving us what we rightfully deserve, which would be
condemnation.
Mercy is a
response; it addresses people's needs. It involves feeling
pity but extends beyond that to acting. If we are merciful,
we strive to alleviate someone’s suffering and offer help.
We encounter people in misery, see them struggling, and feel
compelled to act. This encapsulates the concept of
mercy—it's active and requires doing something. Hence, being
merciful entails various actions, which is what we mean when
we say, "Blessed are the merciful." We're not merciful to
God, but we are to be merciful to others.
There are
many ways to show mercy to others. We forgive people because
we have been forgiven. Would someone please read Matthew
chapter 6, specifically verses 14 and 15? "For if you
forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also
forgive you; but if you do not forgive men their trespasses,
neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." This
illustrates the concept of mercy: if we want God to show us
mercy, we must also extend mercy to others. Part of that
involves forgiveness, and we may revisit this idea later.
In the New
Testament, the scribes and Pharisees are portrayed as
individuals who were not merciful. They didn't show
compassion and seemed unconcerned about relieving suffering.
Now, let's turn to the Good Samaritan in Luke 10 and examine
the difference between pity and mercy. Check out verse 30:
"Now by chance, a certain priest came down that road, and
when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise, a
Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and
passed by on the other side."
Both the
priest and the Levite might have seen the man who had been
robbed, beaten, and left half dead. They might have felt
sorry for him and thought, "Oh man, that guy is in bad
shape. He needs help," but then they moved on.
Conversely,
mercy involves seeing, feeling pity, and then taking action
to help. As we see in verse 33 of Luke 10, a certain
Samaritan journeyed to where the injured man was. When he
saw him, he had compassion or mercy. The difference is that
while they all may have felt pity, only the Samaritan truly
acted with mercy.
He was the
only one who did something about it. So that's the essence
of mercy. The Samaritan cared for the man, gave the
innkeeper money, and did everything he could. Well, that's
mercy, all right; that's the concept of mercy. He states
that the reward for being merciful, going back to Matthew 5,
is that they shall obtain mercy. That's the reward. So it's
not about mercy shown by other people to us; it's about
mercy shown by God to us. This isn't about earning anything,
but it is about God looking upon people, and He will not be
merciful to anyone who doesn't show mercy to others. He's
very clear about that. So I want to look at my notes on
being merciful to receive mercy. I noted that it means we
will not receive what we deserve.
Romans 6,
verse 23? Romans 6:23 states that the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord. Okay, let’s notice a few things from this. We deserve
death; the wages of sin is death, and that's why we deserve
it. However, those who obey Christ won't receive death;
instead, they will receive eternal life as a gift—something
unearned.
Now, let's
turn to Matthew 18. This is the parable of the unforgiving
servant. I want us to notice something there. Verse 23 of
Matthew 18 says, "Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a
certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his
servants. And when he began to settle accounts, one who owed
him 10,000 talents was brought to him."
10,000
talents was an amount that no ordinary person at that time
could ever repay in an entire lifetime. So, regardless of
what kind of job this man had or how long he worked, he
could never possibly repay 10,000 talents. Verse 25 states
that, since he was unable to pay, his master commanded that
he be sold with his wife and children along with all he had,
so that payment could be made. The servant, therefore, fell
before him, saying, "Master, have patience with me, and I
will pay you back," which was not true, as he couldn't repay
it regardless of how much patience he received.
Then, the
master of that servant was moved with compassion—one might
even say mercy, as he could have put him in prison. The
master released him and forgave his debt. I mean, this would
be like someone forgiving a debt of $100 million, which I
could never repay in a lifetime. But that servant went out
and found one of his fellow servants who owed him 100
denarii, a tiny amount compared to 10,000 talents. He
grabbed him and took him by the throat, saying, "Pay me what
you owe." So, his fellow servant fell down at his feet and
begged him, saying, "Have patience with me, and I will pay
you all." Notice that those are the same words that the
other man used when he owed 10,000 talents—the same words.
Yet he would not comply; instead, he threw him into prison
until the debt was paid. When his fellow servants saw what
had happened, they were very grieved and came and told their
master all that had been done. Then his master, after
calling him, said to him, "You wicked servant! I forgave all
that debt because you begged me. Should you not also have
had compassion on your fellow servant just as I had pity on
you?" And his master was angry and delivered him to the
torturers until he should pay all that was owed, which, of
course, would never happen. So, my heavenly Father will also
do to you if each of you from his heart does not forgive his
brother his trespasses. In other words, if you don't show
mercy. In Luke chapter 6, we have another saying. Luke
6:36—let me make sure that's the right one. Would someone
read that? 6:36 says, "Be ye therefore merciful, as your
Father also is merciful." And there's the reason, our
motivation, whatever you want to call it: God is merciful;
therefore, we should be too. You know, just like in other
places, it talks about being holy, for I am holy. Well, be
merciful because I am merciful. He is called the Father of
Mercies in 2 Corinthians 1:3. What about James 5:11? Would
someone read that for us? There are several verses in James,
I’d like us to look at, so let's turn to the Book of James
for a moment. James 5:11 says, "Indeed, we count them
blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of
Job and seen the end intended by the Lord, that the Lord is
very compassionate and merciful." Of course, we remember
how, in the end, God rendered Job double what he had lost.
So, He is indeed very compassionate and merciful.
Well, now
if we go back to James 2, we'll notice something. There,
James 2 – let's see, yeah. Would someone read verse 13 for
us? James 2, verse 13: "For judgment is without mercy to the
one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment."
So this ties back to the idea of mercy being something God
doesn't grant us in light of something bad we genuinely
deserve, just like it says in Romans 6:23: "The wages of sin
is death." That’s what everyone deserves. But God put a plan
in place that allowed Him, if you will, to show mercy. So,
in that sense, mercy triumphs over judgment. However,
someone who doesn't show mercy in this life will not receive
any from God, and we might call that a warning. Those who
have no desire to be compassionate or merciful will not
receive any from God. Now, let's move to Luke 10 for a
moment. Many places in the Bible talk about mercy. This is
at the end of the Good Samaritan. Verses 36 and 37 say: "So
which of these three do you think was a neighbor to him who
fell among the thieves?" And he said: "He who showed mercy
on him." Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise." See,
there's again the idea that mercy is an action; it’s not
just an attitude. The attitude might be pity, but the action
– the doing part – is mercy. So, He says, "Go and do
likewise; show mercy." I wrote down that to do this means
you relieve those who are miserable, you try to alleviate
distress; it's active goodwill. All right, this is seen in 1
John, chapter 3. So, let's move over to 1 John 3 and see how
John describes it in verse 17. Someone read that: 1 John
3:17. "But whoever has this world's goods and sees his
brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does
the love of God abide in him?" We could say, how does the
mercy of God abide in him, or how does the compassion of God
abide in him? If you see a brother in need and you notice,
it says: Whoever has this world's goods – you may not have
what that person needs, but if you do, and you can alleviate
the need, and you don’t, you’re shutting up your heart. That
means you're not, again, actively showing goodwill; you're
not being merciful.
We
shouldn't claim that the love of God or the mercy of God
abides in us, and only those who show mercy will receive
mercy. Let's go to Luke 18. Let’s see, is that the one I've
already done? Maybe. Oh yeah, it's Luke 18 beginning in
verse 10. This is another one that shows mercy. Luke 18:10
says two men went up to the temple to pray: one a Pharisee
and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed
thus with himself, "God, I thank you that I'm not like other
men—thieves, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax
collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I
possess." And the tax collector, standing afar off, would
not so much as raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast,
saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." God, be
merciful. See, the tax collector is admitting that he
deserves punishment for being a sinner, so he's asking God
to be merciful and not give him what he deserves. Of course,
the Pharisee didn't think he deserved anything bad, and he
was just as much a sinner as the tax collector. So again,
the idea is that only those who show mercy will receive it;
nobody else will. I like this quote: Martin Luther, many
years ago, said, "Mercy is what righteousness looks like in
action." I really like that; it's what righteousness looks
like in action.
Once
again, mercy is an action word; it's a verb of doing. Mercy
involves action. Here's an example let's go back to Exodus
34. This is Moses on Mount Sinai. Exodus 34—let's see... oh
right, Janette, do you have that? Yes, verse 6. Exodus 34:6
says, "And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, 'The
Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering and
abounding in goodness and truth.'" Remember that this
occurred after the first two stone tablets were broken. Now
God is giving two new tablets of stone, and at that moment,
the Lord passes before Moses and makes that announcement: He
is merciful, gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in
goodness and truth. Then in the next verse, it states that
He keeps mercy for thousands. That was an example; we, as
His people, need to look for opportunities to show mercy.
Okay, let's
return to Matthew. This time, we’ll look at Matthew chapter
9. Would someone kindly read verses 35 and 36? Matthew
9:35-36 states that Jesus went about all the cities and
villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel
of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and disease among
the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved
with compassion for them because they were weary and
scattered like sheep having no shepherd. When He noticed the
multitudes, it emphasizes the importance of recognizing
people in need; that's what Jesus did. He saw all these
individuals who were struggling, facing all kinds of
challenges. He was moved with compassion, mercy, and pity
for them. Certainly, this whole concept of being merciful
has been true since the beginning of time. Let’s look back
at the minor prophet Micah. Someone find Micah chapter 6.
Well, since I'm here, I'll just go ahead and read it. Micah
6:8 presents a classic verse about the kind of person God
approves of.
Verse eight
of Micah 6 says, "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and
what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love
mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" To love mercy
means that all the bad things we deserve that we don't
receive are a display of God's mercy. The only way we will
ever truly receive mercy from God, especially at the end of
time, is if we are merciful to others, our fellow man. If we
never show mercy to others, it's because we don't understand
how God has shown mercy to us. I believe that is what He
wants us to grasp from this beatitude: "Blessed are the
merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." The merciful will be
blessed; they are the fortunate ones, the ones whom God
regards with favor because they show mercy. This is
demonstrated in many ways. Let’s conclude with a couple of
verses from Psalms. Psalms 103:8 says, "The Lord is merciful
and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy." Not
only is He merciful, but He also abounds in mercy. Lastly,
Psalms 145:8 states, "The Lord is gracious and full of
compassion, slow to anger, and great in mercy. The Lord is
good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works."
I think this beatitude should make all of us very grateful.
February 29,
2024
Prepared by
Bobby Stafford
The church
of Christ at Granby, MO
Located at
516 East Pine St.
P.O. Box 664
Granby, Mo. 64844
(417) 472-7109
For more
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