Blessed Are The Merciful

 

 

 

 

Blessed Are The Merciful

Matthew 5:7

 

“Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy”, Jesus said. Mercy is described as refraining from inflicting harm or punishment under provocation, the disposition to exercise compassion or forgiveness, the compassionate treatment of the unfortunate or helpless, and showing compassion or kindness generally in dealing with others.

 

Those who practice these conditions of mercy toward others can expect to be recipients of the same blessings in their lives, as promised in the scripture quoted above.

 

When Jesus began preaching and teaching the disciples regarding the rules of living in His coming kingdom, He said “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,” Matthew 5:44. This would indicate that if you show mercy to those who had wronged you by not returning harm or inflicting punishment, nor seeking vengeance, you would be following the commands of Jesus as quoted above. This would apply whether or not they were considered enemies, friends, or a brother who had wronged you.

 

Jesus used a parable to show His disciples the need for a merciful attitude toward each other. In this parable, a king was moved with compassion toward a servant who owed him a great debt and forgave him. Then this servant who had been forgiven the debt went to a fellow servant who owed him a small debt and demanded payment. When this servant could not pay him, the other had him cast into prison. Word of his action was carried to the king who became angry and rescinded his forgiveness of the great debt owed to him and had the unmerciful servant cast into prison also (Matthew 18:23-24). This bears out the sayings of Jesus “… With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you;” (Mark 4:24) and again in Luke 6:38 “…For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

 

The teachings of Jesus, that it is wise to be merciful in our relationships with others, is reiterated by the apostle Paul who wrote:

“Repay no one evil for evil.” Romans 12:17,  ^“

Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.” Romans 12:19 and

“Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.” Colossians 3:12-13

 

Mark records explicitly the teaching of Jesus that we must have a merciful and forgiving spirit if we expect mercy and forgiveness from God.  “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.” Mark 11-25-26.  Therefore, to be forgiven (and find mercy) one must forgive (and be merciful).

 

James speaks bluntly about the necessity for showing mercy: “For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” James 2:13

 

That mercy and kindness in the heart is desired above sacrifice is shown in the reading of Hosea 6:6: “For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.” and that love and mercy and kindness are a requirement by God is shown in Micah 6:8: “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?”

 

Much has been written about the benefits of extending mercy and forgiveness. These accrue to the one who has mercy on another and who forgives another. There are also more obvious benefits to the recipients of such mercy and forgiveness. These benefits to the merciful show that there are detrimental effects of living with hate in the heart. Some articles and books extolling mercy are hailed by many as new and original thoughts and ideas, but a study of the teachings of the New Testament show that the Master Teacher taught basically these same thoughts and ideas.

 

There is also so much wisdom available from the scriptures for guidance in living with others, but a couple of statements seem to sum up the whole matter:

                “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them…” Matthew 7:12

“Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” Romans 13:8-10

 

Therefore, having love (caring, concern, compassion, consideration) in the heart for our fellow humans will make being merciful and forgiving “no big deal”. When compared to what Jesus did for us, having loved us and given himself for us while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:8), extending mercy and forgiveness is one small way in which we can follow Jesus as our example.

 

That being true, we should practice filling our hearts with love and caring and concern and understanding so that being merciful and forgiving comes so much easier. This accrues to our benefit too because we have the promise of forgiveness if we forgive others and the promise of mercy in the same measure as we are merciful (Mark 11:25, Matthew 5:12).  Striving to be understanding of the actions of others will help. There is a wise, old Indian saying that we should walk in the moccasins of another for a day before becoming critical and unmerciful and unforgiving of him. We will be happier people having these qualities in our lives. Holding grudges and plotting to “get even” are negative attitudes that poison our dispositions and make us hard to live with. Jesus, the Master Teacher, set out basic principles of living in His Sermon of the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and elsewhere in the New Testament. Each of us will stand before Jesus in judgment to give an answer regarding our actions on this earth. This sobering thought should give us incentive to seek the wisdom from above that James wrote about in James 3:17: “ But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” This wisdom will help us to live good lives here on earth and help us to give an account in judgment of our actions.

 

Therefore, all Christians should nurture any disposition to exercise compassion, forgiveness, and kindness in their daily living. To put it in modern terms, remember the moniker “what goes around comes around”.

 

This is the second installment from my aunt, Elizabeth Bennett Davis’ book.