Blessed Are The Merciful, For They Will Be Shown Mercy Series

This sermon was prepared by prayer and illustration and ideas from some of my

colleagues.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy

Matthew 5:1-5:12

Introduction-

We continue our study of the sermon on the mount.

It is our fifth week here and today we will be looking at verse 7 of chapter five-

“Blessed are those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy”

Each of these beatitudes has showed us the character of God.

Each one can enhance our relationship with God and with others.

You have to ask the question-What does this passage mean and how can I apply it correctly to my life.

Mercy by definition is not giving to someone what they deserve.

A judge can go easy on someone and show mercy

A person though they have been wronged has the ability to forgive when justice says that they must be punished. They can exhibit mercy.

Illustration-

A mother approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded death. But I do not seek justice, the mother pleaded, I pray for mercy. But your son does not deserve mercy. “Sir, said the mother, I t would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is all I ask for, “ well then, I will have mercy, and spared the women’s son.

I f you are here this morning and you are trying to put justice and mercy together, they will not fit.

Justice is getting what you deserve.

Mercy is receiving something that you do not deserve.

Jesus is saying to us this morning, blessed are those who show mercy (give people what they don’t deserve) and promises those that do that, that he will show the same mercy to them.

It is easy for someone to say- I cannot forgive them. You don’t know what they did to me.

Your right about that, in yourself, you cannot forgive.

It is a God thing!

It is bigger than you.

Lord’s prayer Matt 6:4

“Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive those who sins against us.”

We forgive those who trespass against us.

The Greek word for trespass means to stumble, fall, slip, blunder, to deviate from righteousness and truth.

Mark 11:25

And when you stand praying, , if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive your sins.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Peter came to Jesus( Mt. 18) asking the question. Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times? Jesus answered I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

Seven times to Jews was an acceptable amount of time, but Jesus is saying it is more than the number of times, it is not allowing bitterness into your heart.

There is a theme here that runs through the New Testament….If you want to be forgiven, we must forgive.

Jesus says- “For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy.”

There is another aspect of this, that if you do not grasp, could be why many cannot forgive and move forward.

Mercy in the Greek is an untranslatable word.

Mercy in the Hebrew- chesedh, spelled almost like cheesehead, should not be confused with it’s correct meaning.

Chesedh means to not only sympathize with a person.

It is not simply feeling sorry for someone in trouble.

It means the ability to get right inside other people until we see things with their eyes.

Think things with their minds,

feel things with their feelings.

Anyone besides me this morning, realize that without God’s help, I could not do that.

It is deliberate action, to understand and an effort to reconcile from the inside instead of from the outside. We know this is what we should do, but without God’s help we cannot do it.

When it just from the outside, we make an attempt and out feelings get in the way. Because until God is involved, it’s about your feelings, your way, how you can feel better about it.

Illustration (example of forgiveness)

Perfect forgiveness is forgiving the man that by vehicle killed your son.

I cannot imagine the pain,

I cannot imagine the ability to forgive someone who killed my child. That is why it is a God thing!

Tom McGee killed a boy driving drunk. Jack Morris, the father of the killed son forgave this man. Went to see him in prison and later, years later, adopted this man into his family. That is a God thing! That is the power of God’s spirit to change people’s minds and life.

Perfect forgiveness.

Perfect mercy.

If we could just understand our trespasses better, it would make forgiveness and tolerance so much easier.