Mercy, Mercy Series

Mercy, Mercy

lanny smith

Reboot / Mercy and Compassion / Matthew 5:7

• (one of) my wife's school assignments this week was to watch “The Blind Side.” I watched it with her and was struck by how forcefully the story brings home the point.

• fictionalized bio of Michael Oher, an african-american football player who overcame an impoverished upbringing to play in the NFL with the help of his adoptive parents, Sean and Leigh Anne Touhy.

• The Touhy’s see Big Mike on the street and take him home.

• Slowly he becomes a part of their family although many around them (both in the projects and in the fancy restaurant) question the motives and actions Big Mike and the Touhy’s.

• As we watched the movie, it occurred to me that this privileged upper class white family could have kept on with their lives and never shown any kindness or mercy (care) for this physically intimidating, culturally distant young man.

• But they did and, in Leigh Anne’s words, “he changed my life.”

• The word mercy is not commonly used in this day and age.

• Many of us are never taught how to be merciful.

• That’s why Jesus’ instruction to us in the Beatitudes is so important.

• He defines mercy by his life and death for us and shows God’s people how to put it into practice.

• There is so much pain in our world, it is easy to overlook it or to offer easy answers.

• Jesus calls his followers to act with mercy, for only then will they experience the mercy he offers.

Matthew 5:7 (NLT)

7 God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

• Beatitudes one through four deal with who we are in relation to God; what God brings to us.

• Beatitudes five through eight deal with who we are in relation to others; what God brings through us.

• The fifth Beatitude is about the loss of judgmentalism and the development of mercy.

• Mercy is the first order of business. We are to be disposed toward mercy, because that is how God is disposed toward us.

• If we operate on the principle of “strike hard, strike fast, and show no mercy,” we’ve drifted from the heart of God.

• Mercy proclaims whether or not you’re living the Beatitudes.

Owning Our Need For Mercy

Matthew 5:7 NLT

7 God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

• Mercy = acting with compassion, attention to misery or pain.

God is pleased when I demonstrate compassion to others who are miserable, in pain and afflicted. I do this because He has done the same for me.

• How do you think God sees you?

• He knows I’m a sinner, but not any worse than anyone else.

• Overall, he’d say I’m doing pretty well.

• He sees me as sinful as a mass murderer.

• Every one of those viewpoints stands in need of mercy from God.

Romans 3:10–18 NLT

10 As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one. 11 No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. 12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.” 13 “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with lies.” “Snake venom drips from their lips.” 14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” 15 “They rush to commit murder. 16 Destruction and misery always follow them. 17 They don’t know where to find peace.” 18 “They have no fear of God at all.”

• The Scriptures consistently communicate that our pain and misery is God’s highest priority:

Isaiah 1:18 NLT

18 “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.

Ephesians 2:4–5 NLT

4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)

• For us to appreciate the blessing inherent in being merciful, we need to understand the mercy that has been shown to us.

• That means:

Mercy Means Understanding and Empathy

Micah 6:8 NLT

8 No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

• It’s a beautiful saying and one we heartily approve of.

• But getting out of our own heads and hearts to show mercy is difficult.