03-26-24-ENG.

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”

Matthew 5:7
“Lord, have mercy!” It’s a phrase many, if not most of us have uttered at some time or another. Sometimes we’ve said it jokingly. Other times we’ve said it with full meaning. It is a cry to God for His mercy, help, and intervention in what seems like a deep pit and a dark hole. But did you know that mercy comes tied to your actions? The mercy God extends to you is often tied to your own actions toward others. You can actually increase the level of mercy God shows to you by increasing the level of mercy you show to others. That’s why it’s such an important part of living the successful kingdom life. Mercy is all about non-judgment. It involves compassion, kindness, hope, and help. Mercy is so important that Jesus included it in His Sermon on the Mount. He called it out as a foundational kingdom value. Jesus turned to those who extend care and compassion to others when He pointed out how important mercy truly is.

He said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy” (Matthew 5:7). To understand what it means to live with this value of being merciful, we need to first understand mercy. Mercy assumes that there is a miserable situation needing relief. Mercy can only show up when there have been circumstances to warrant it. Mercy can be defined as compassion for someone in need. It involves reducing, removing, or relieving someone’s distress. Scripture tells us that our salvation is a result of mercy. We read in Titus 3:5, “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit.” We also see in Ephesians 2:4: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us. . . .” In other words, God is rich in relieving people’s pain as well as removing or reducing the weight of distress, discouragement, brokenness, and problems that come our way.

In fact, mercy summarizes God’s reaction to our individual misery (Psalm 130:1–8). It involves more than feeling sorry for someone. Anyone can feel sorry for someone but then do nothing about it. Mercy means the sorrow you feel for someone else shows up in your actions. Mercy always involves an action that seeks to reduce or remove the misery that has come about in someone else’s life. Far too often we confuse pity or sympathy with mercy. Just feeling bad for someone is not showing them mercy. Mercy requires an action you take to show someone you care. Had God only felt sorry for us in our sin, that would not have helped us out one bit. It is because He acted on the sorrow He felt for the state we were in that we were given the opportunity to live full lives, free from the trappings and consequences of our sins, when we come to Him for His mercy. Adopting this kingdom value reflects God’s heart of love and kindness to those around us in a tangible, demonstrable manner. 

Reaction:
What is one way you have shown someone else mercy? How have you experienced God’s mercy in your own life? Define in your own terms what it means to “show mercy.” 

Prayer:
Jesus, I want to be a person who not only experiences God’s mercy readily in my life, but who shows others mercy, too. Open my eyes to the needs of those around me, while revealing to me the needs that I can meet with what You have blessed me with. In Your name I pray, amen.