Have you ever heard a little boy say to his dad, “When I grow up I want to be just like you?” What joy those words bring to a father’s heart. In the same way, it is hard for me to imagine any word’s that bring more joy to our Lord and Master, Jesus, than, “I want to be just like you.” Jesus gave us a summary of his heart attitudes in The Sermon on the Mount, which are called the beatitudes. Today we come to the fifth, from Matt 5:7, Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. This episode examines Jesus’ mercy and how we can exhibit mercy in our everyday lives, as he did
In the Roman culture of Jesus’ day, mercy was considered the supreme sign of weakness, and they despised weakness. One particular philosopher called mercy, “the disease of the soul.” Mercy was a sign that you did not have what it takes to be a real man and a real Roman. Mercy was the opposite of what the mighty, conquering Roman legions portrayed as they intimidated and conquered all who tried to stop them. Such hard-heartedness also shaped Roman homes. During much of Roman history, a father had the right of patria opitestas. As the newborn infant was held up for him to see, the father would turn his thumb up if the father wanted the child to live or down if he wanted the child to die. If his thumb turned down, the child would immediately be drowned. Citizens had the same life or death power over slaves and husbands could have their wives put to death on the slightest provocation. Showing any pity for weakness was scorned.
Mercy was equally scorned by the self-righteous scribes and pharisees of Jesus day. Like Inspector Javert in Les Miserables, they saw their role was as upholding a strict interpretations of God’s moral law, while completely missing the deeper issues of mercy and justice. Jesus described them, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness.” In Jesus day, the fifth beatitude’s call to mercy may have been the most radically countercultural of all the beatitudes.
The word, merciful is from the Greek word ELEOS. It is similar to grace. Both describe one’s attitude towards a sinner, a lawbreaker, a wrongdoer. But, whereas grace extends pardon from the law’s penalty for sin, mercy extends relief from the pain of sin’s misery. Here is a good working definition of the mercy that Christ-followers are to show the world: Mercy is the compassionate response to one who is in pain because of his sin. In the beatitudes, Jesus wants us to change the way we view the moral failures of others. The Christ-follower is not to be intolerant, judgmental, condescending, angry and impatient with other’s shortcomings, resentful over past wounds, hard-hearted towards those whose sins have caused their own pain, or apathetic towards those enslaved by sin. We are not allowed to close our heart towards one who hurt us or turn our back on someone whose misery is his own fault. Let’s look at a well-known story that puts Jesus’ mercy on display.
Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and sin no more” (John 8:1-11).
The scribes and Pharisees present the sharpest of contrasts to the mercy of Jesus. Remember, they thought they were on God’s mission—to stop this imposter who somehow had demonic powers from deceiving the masses into rejecting Yahweh and the Law of Moses. They did not care one bit about what might happen to this women, (who appears to have been set up). It looks like a set up because the Law required two eyewitnesses who saw this act take place with their own eyes (not just coming out of the same bedroom), which is one reason why execution for adultery was so rare. The second indication that this was a planned set up is that the man caught in the act somehow go away. So, let’s make some observations from this story to help us in our exercise of mercy:
1). Consider the religious leaders. The “rightness” of their cause led them to jettison any concern for the adulteress whatsoever. They could reason “We didn’t make her commit adultery. She did what God, himself says is worthy of death.” They were about to throw away her life like a piece of trash in the name of Yahweh! Horrible things have been done to human beings for a religious reason—and this is one of them. In fighting for biblical truth in our culture, we can never override our call to treat every human as a precious image bearer of God. The end never justifies suppressing mercy for the lost.
2). In failing to condemn her, Jesus’ mercy does not minimize her sin. He sternly commands her, “Go and sin no more.” Being merciful does not mean a compromise of our standards, nor lessening our hatred of sin. We direct hatred, anger, and grief at the sin. We direct compassion to the victim of his own sin. Both are part of mercy.
3). Contrary to the thinking of the ancient Romans, Jesus’ demonstration of mercy was as masculine as you can get. Adam is created to be a protector. Jesus stopped this ancient equivalent of a twentieth century lynching in some ways at the cost of his own life. The scribes and Pharisees would never forget this humiliation. They would get their revenge by insisting that Pilate crucify Jesus.
4) The reason Christ-followers are merciful is that everyone of us has stood in his own way where that woman stood, exposed, ashamed of our sins, and desperate for God’s mercy. Every one of us knows that we have deserved death. Moreover, Jesus’ biting words to the scribes and Pharisees cut to our hearts as well, Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.
Mercy is the compassionate response to one who is in pain because of his sin. Let’s consider what it looks like to show mercy in three specific situations.
A. When others wound us or make our lives more difficult. As we have seen, when others hurt us, our natural response is anger, impatience, verbal retaliation, withdrawal of love, or a hardened unforgiving heart—not mercy. The Apostle, Peter, seems to have been having a tough time with Jesus requirement for his disciples to show mercy. In Matthew 18 we read:
Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything. And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
QUIZ TO TEST YOUR MERCY QUOTIENT
- What is your attitude towards the imperfections of the incompetent store clerk, the coworker who doesn’t carry his load, the driver who is talking on his cell phone instead of driving or anyone else who inconveniences you?
- Is your family a place where grace is in place—where you set high standards but repeatedly stress that it is okay to fail? When was the last time you confessed one of your sins to your family?
- How do you feel about your mate’s deficiencies—especially the ones that hurt you or you have to make up for?
- How quick are you to forgive? Is there any lingering resentment harming a relationship?
Very imperfect people have NO right to demand perfection from anyone else!
B. The second situation that calls for mercy is the discipline of our kids. Mercy requires disciplining our children with both FIRMNESS and EMPATHY. Let’s think carefully about parenting and mercy. Mercy is the compassionate response to one who is in pain because of his sin. That is the position our child is in who is facing discipline. There are two loving, merciful parts to the discipline of our children:
1) The first is painful consequences for wrong behavior. God tells us, Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him (Prov 13:24) It is cruel to enable a child to grow up having never learned self-control, thinking he is the center of the universe, and expecting others to change to please him. Love requires teaching him that he needs to conform to the reality of the way God has designed life. That is the definition of mature character. So, the first requirement of merciful parenting is firm boundaries. Without them we will raise a child who suffers horribly because he is so self-centered.
2) But the second part to merciful discipline is equally important. That is empathy for the pain he experiences because of his sinful nature (just as you do). If we don’t empathize with his pain, our discipline of him will drive him away because it feels harsh and uncaring. We need Jesus to spank us; but we also need him to be our high priest who empathizes with our pain. Healthy discipline requires filling both roles. This balance is tough because by temperament we tend to either lean toward too much empathy, over identifying with the child and hurting her through our lack of firmness, or being firm in the boundaries, but failing to empathizing with her. Here is an example from Boundaries With Kids of both:
“No Kathy, you can’t go to the movies today. You have to do your chores first.”
“That’s not fair! Macia’s going. I hate your stupid rules.”
“I know. It’s frustrating when you don’t get to go to the movies again.”
“But I want to go today. You don’t even care!”
“I know you’re frustrated and angry. It’s tough to have to work before you have fun. I feel that way too.”
“I hate living here. I don’t ever get to do anything.”
“I know. It’s hard to miss the movies when you really want to go.”
“Well if you know so much, then let me go.”
“I know you want to. It’s tough. But no.”
“But if I miss this one, there won’t be another sneak preview this summer.”
“That’s sad. It’s a long time until next summer. I can see why you hate missing it so much.”
Effective discipline requires empathy, but not so much that you give in. Boundaries need to be firm.
C. The third situation that requires a response of mercy is ENCOUNTERING THOSE WHO ARE SUFFERING the painful consequences of their own or other’s sin. One with Jesus’ heart of mercy cannot walk by hurting people and ignore their suffering. In the midst of Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, we read,
And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” (Luke 19:40-44).
Think of it. This is the city that in less than a week would inflict upon Jesus the most barbaric, excruciating torture ever invented—crucifixion. This crime against God the Son would be so ugly, so vile, so repugnant that the citizens of the city and their children would be justly destroyed. Yet, Jesus’ compassion for them as he foresaw the horrible pain that would one day befall them in judgement wrenched open his heart, causing tears. He could not keep walking and ignore that suffering.
If we are to exhibit Jesus’ mercy, we need to recover mercy ministry as a regular part of our lives. Tim Keller’s book, Ministries of Mercy: The Call of the Jericho Road is transforming the Bible-believing church in America. Keller challenges believers to look around them and find ways to display mercy to the poor, the homeless, the hungry, those whose lives are destroyed by addictions. He challenges all Christians to follow the model of The Good Samaritan, asking
Why would someone risk his safety, upend his schedule, deplete his bank balance, and become dirty and bloody to help a person of another race and social class? And why would Jesus tell us, "Go and do likewise"? The Good Samaritan didn't ignore the battered man on the Jericho road. Like him, we're aware of people in need around us--the widow next door, the family strapped with medical bills, the homeless man outside our church. God calls us to help them, whether they need shelter, assistance, medical care, or just friendship. Caring for these people is the job of every believer, as fundamental to Christian living as evangelism, discipleship, and worship.
I want to close with a challenge to all of us to open our hearts to those who are spiritually mangled, disfigured, repugnant, and don't fit in with our social status because of what sin has done to them.The challenge comes from this true story:
In a Boston high society home, the phone rang, and the wife picked up. On the other end of the call was her son returning from the Vietnam war. Instant joy coursed through the mom’s veins. The son said, “I’d like very much to bring an army buddy home with me.”
His mom said, “Fine—invite him to stay with us for several days we’d love to get to know him.”
The son said, “He doesn’t have a right leg. He doesn’t have a right arm. He is missing his right eye and his face is disfigured.”
His mom answered, “Well that’s okay. He’s still very welcome to visit.”
The son said, “You still don’t understand. I want him to live with us—to be a part of our family. I want it to be permanent.”
His mom said, “Well, I’m not sure. What about….and she heard CLICK and a DAIL TONE.
A couple of hours later, that same Boston phone rang. The mom picked up and heard the voice of a police sergeant from California. “We have a man here who has one arm and one leg, and his ID shows he’s your son. He’s just taken his own life.”
It was too painful to ask directly, so he had to ask indirectly “Am I too mangled and marred for you to still love me?” How many of those who are spiritually deformed, marred, torn up by their sin (just as you and I have been) will God bring across our paths in the coming months and years. Will we be drawn to them because the mercy of Jesus is reigning in our hearts?
For Further Prayerful Thought:
- In your own words, what is Jesus describing when he says blessed are the merciful?
- How can Christians avoid becoming hard-hearted religious people like the scribes and Pharisees?
- Who are some of the hurting people who surround your life. Which ones get your attention as those you could do a little better job of showing mercy to?
