Sermon – Beatitude #5 – Mercy

  • We’ve made to week 5 of our look at the Beatitudes.  This week, our verse will be Matthew 5:7 (NLT), which reads, “God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”

  • On one hand, many there would not have wanted to hear this – showing mercy, that’s crazy talk – they were raised to get revenge and that it was legal and expected.

  • This refers to the OT law of “an eye for an eye,” which Jesus mentions further in His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:38).  However, Jesus didn’t re-establish this or say that is what people should seek to do.

  • In Matthew 5:42, He says to give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow. 

  • In the next section (Matthew 5:43-48), Jesus says to love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you … and that we are be perfect, even as our Father in Heaven is perfect.

  • On the other, many would have understood this as doing to others what God had done for them. 

  • It was God’s mercy that saved Noah (and his family).

  • It was God’s mercy that led the Israelites out of Egypt. 

  • It was God’s mercy that forgave and took back the Israelites after they rebelled – several times. 

  • It was God’s mercy that brought His people back from Babylon. 

  • It was God’s mercy that provided means for sins to be rolled back; and for the people to be ceremonially clean.

  • It was God’s mercy that provided the Sabbath – Sabbath Year – Year of Jubilee. 

  • It was God’s mercy that provided less expensive options for the poorer believers to offer sacrifices.

  • It was God’s mercy that provided fields to glean, so people that needed food could work for it.

  • It was God’s mercy that provided Jesus as the ultimate sacrifice.

  • Before we go any further in this message, I want to point out the meaning of the Greek words used here for merciful (“eleemon”) and mercy (“eleeo”). 

  • They mean pitiful – compassionate – merciful, including feelings of pity, with a focus of showing compassion to those in serious need – an act of kindness that will meet a need – to receive pity or experience compassion – to be gracious – to obtain pardon and forgiveness
  • Understanding and viewing this verse with compassion or meeting needs or being forgiven as the lens, it is hard not to think of the following passages – at least they jumped to my mind.

  • Matthew 6:14-15 (NLT) … If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.  But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

  • Jesus gives a startling warning about forgiveness: If we refuse to forgive others, God will also refuse to forgive us.  Why?  Because when we don’t forgive others, we are denying our common ground as sinners in need of God’s forgiveness.  God’s forgiveness of sin is not the direct result of our forgiving others, but it is based on our realizing what forgiveness means.  It is easy to ask God for forgiveness but difficult to grant it to others.  Whenever we ask God to forgive us for sin, we should ask, ‘Have I forgiven the people who have wronged me?’
  • Matthew 18:21-35 (NLT) … Then Peter came to Him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me?  Seven times?”  “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!”  Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him.  In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars.  He couldn’t pay, s his master ordered that he be sold – along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned – to pay the debt.  But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’  Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.  But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars.  He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.  His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded.  But his creditor wouldn’t wait.  He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.  When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset.  They went to the king and told him everything that had happened.  Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant!  I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me.  Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’  Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.  That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heat.

  • Rabbis taught that people should forgive those who offend them – but only three times.  Peter, trying to be especially generous, asked Jesus if seven (the “perfect” number) was enough times to forgive someone.  But Jesus answered, “seventy times seven,” meaning that we shouldn’t even keep track of how many times we forgive.  We should always forgive those who are truly repentant, no matter how many times they ask.

  • In those days, serious consequences awaited those who could not pay their debts.  A person lending money could seize the borrower who couldn’t pay and force him or his family to work until the debt was paid.  The debtor could also be thrown into prison, or his family could be sold into slavery to help pay off the debt.  It was hoped that the debtor, while in prison, would sell off his landholdings or that relatives would pay the debt.  If not, the debtor could remain in prison for life.

  • Because God has forgiven all our sins, we should not withhold forgiveness from others.  As we realize how completely Christ has forgiven us, it should produce an attitude of forgiveness toward others.  When we don’t forgive others, we are setting ourselves about Christ’s law of love.
  • James 2 has many things that applies to showing mercy or compassion.
  • In this chapter, James argues against favoritism and for the necessity of good deeds.  He presents three principles of faith:
    • (1) Commitment is an essential part of faith.  You cannot be a Christian simply by affirming the right doctrines or agreeing with biblical facts.  You must commit your mind and heart to Christ.
    • (2) Right actions are the natural by-products of faith.  A Christian will have a changed life.
    • (3) Faith without good deeds doesn’t do anybody any good – it is useless.

  • James’ teachings are consistent with Paul’s teaching that we receive salvation by faith alone.   Paul emphasizes the purpose of faith – to bring salvation.  James emphasizes the results of faith – a changed life.

  • We shouldn’t side with the perceived ‘haves’ and ignore the ‘have nots’ in this world.  For the ‘haves” could have got that way at our expense, simply inherited their good fortune, or obtained it through sinful means. 

  • In only wanting to be with the “rich,” we are showing our greed … we don’t want to face responsibilities of helping others and/or we hope the “rich” will help us.

  • We should treat everyone as we would want to be treated – and – we shouldn’t ignore anyone or give special treatment to anyone, regardless of what we could get in return or be helped at all.

  • If we claim to have faith, but don’t show it – it is dead – it is useless; and we can debate, even, if a dead faith is or is not a saving faith … (I don’t think a dead faith saves).

  • Faith involves a commitment of your whole self to God – to all His commands – to all His teachings – to love – to forgive – to show mercy – to pursue righteousness – to meet needs – to be pure.

  • When Jesus’ announced that the Kingdom was near, people were naturally asking, “how do I qualify to be in God’s Kingdom?”  Jesus said that God’s Kingdom is organized differently from worldly kingdoms.  In the Kingdom of Heaven, wealth and power and authority are unimportant.  Kingdom people seek different blessings and benefits, and they have different attitudes.  Are you attitudes a copy of the world’s selfishness, pride, and lust for power, or do they reflect the humility and self-sacrifice of Jesus, your king?

  • Ephesians 4:32 (NLT) … Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

  • If we want to be forgiven, we must forgive … If we want to be shown mercy, we must show mercy … there are many out there that need to be shown and have needs met … go and do, just that!