Blessed Are The Merciful
Matthew 5:7 - Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
An unmerciful heart is born out of the delusion of self-righteousness. The plain and simple truth is we cannot save ourselves and we have no hope without God’s mercy. We have to accept that before we can practice what Jesus preached. Mercy is an essential part of God’s grand scheme of redemption. It was by God’s infinite mercy that He raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:6)
Jesus teaches that the merciful will obtain mercy. God isn’t asking us to show Him mercy, since He can do nothing requiring our mercy. Jesus is speaking of our dealings with mankind. We have to show mercy to our fellow man as God has shown mercy to us if we hope to be blessed. Wow! It’s second nature for us humans to refuse help or withhold forgiveness from people who have wronged us or hurt us. The pain of betrayal or the emotional devastation of deception is hard to look beyond.
How do you think God feels when the crown of His creation, to whom he gives life, breath, and hope, stands defiantly against Him in the atrocities of their sin? What if God couldn’t see beyond that? What if God couldn’t forget what you’ve done when you call upon Him to repent in your darkest hour? God be praised that even when we were dead in trespasses, [He] made us alive together with Christ. (Ephesians 2:5)
Jesus’ teaching is hard to apply, but simple to understand. It just makes sense! People who have been forgiven of their sins should be thrilled to extend the same gift of mercy to those who have wronged them. We can only put this teaching into practice by remembering God’s mercy every day, thanking Him for it, and readying ourselves to extend mercy to others!
As I consider God’s mercy, the words of a beloved hymn flood my heart.
At Calvary by William R. Newell
Years I spent in vanity and pride,
Caring not my Lord was crucified,
Knowing not it was for me He died
On Calvary.
By God’s Word at last my sin I learned;
Then I trembled at the law I’d spurned,
Till my guilty soul imploring turned
To Calvary.
Oh, the love that drew salvation’s plan!
Oh, the grace that brought it down to man!
Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span
At Calvary!
Mercy there was great, and grace was free;
Pardon there was multiplied to me;
There my burdened soul found liberty,
At Calvary.
When we deal with our friends, family, neighbors, and our brethren in Christ, we must understand that they’re all at different stages of understanding God’s mercy. Some folks we encounter are still in the chains of vanity and pride without a care. Perhaps some are opening their hearts to the truth for the first time and trembling as they realize the condition of their soul. And there are those we rejoice with, united in thanksgiving for the love that drew salvation’s plan, the grace that brought it down to man, and the gulf between Heaven and Earth that God spanned in the form of Man to die for our sins at Calvary.
If that doesn’t encourage you to try harder to practice what Jesus preached and show mercy to others, nothing will!
Eric Bullock, Evangelist
