Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy (Matthew 5:7).
“Our Lord Himself expressly teaches us that God’s method is to awaken in us compassion towards our fellow men by His own exercise of it, in so stupendous a way and measure, towards ourselves.” 1 We learn mercy by receiving it. Mercy is the compassion or forgiveness given to an offender by someone who has the power, authority, or right to punish them. It’s completely unearned by the receiver, with no strings attached from the giver. When we aren’t honest with ourselves, we might presume we deserve God’s blessing. If that is the case, we have a misunderstanding of mercy and won’t share it freely with others. The appropriate response to mercy is compassion and forgiveness toward others out of the overflow of the mercy we’ve been given.
- How often do we consider the hardships of others as “getting what they deserve”?
- Why is it so easy to forget that we don’t deserve the mercy we’ve received?
One of my favorite parables is from the gospel of Luke. Jesus is addressing “some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt”. He compares two very different men in how they approach God in prayer and makes perfectly clear which one is justified:
Luke 18:9–14: He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Merciful Lord, reveal any attitudes of entitlement we might have. Thank you for your unfailing mercy and faithfulness that aren’t contingent on ours. Help us respond to others not by what we think they deserve, but by how merciful you have been to us.
Footnotes
- Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, Vol. 2 (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), 17.
