GIFTED (part six)
We've looked at six of the spiritual gifts listed in Rom. 12:6-8. Today we'll focus on mercy.
1) The gift of mercy.
The ability to minister cheerfully and appropriately to those who are suffering or undeserving; to spare them from their deserved punishment or consequences. The dictionary describes it as providing relief or preventing something unpleasant from happening. It's easing the distress or pain for someone; it's alleviating their misery.
We are all supposed to show mercy but those with the gift of mercy are able to better perceive when people are hurting or dealing with some sort of affliction and help and console them. David prayed in Psalm 130:2, "O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy."
Someone with the gift of mercy is attentive to people's cries. And their cries might not be obvious; they might be more subtle. But the person who has the gift of mercy is able to pick up on these sensitive yet desperate cries. One who has the gift of mercy can more easily pick up on the pain others are going through. They may be able to read it in one's behavior or body language or their tone or indirect words.
They may step in to mediate and try to help the person who has been wronged see things on a more merciful level. They are not quick to judge; they're not vengeful. The more important thing to them is alleviating the hurt more so than seeking justice for the wrongs committed. A merciful person has a disposition to be compassionate or forgiving of others.
Prov. 19:11, "A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense." A wise response is not one of vengeance when wronged. It's not immediately being retaliatory. It's patience; it's 'let me think this through'. It's 'Lord, what would you have me do'.
And we see that it is to my glory when I am willing to be lenient. To overlook an offense isn't pretending it didn't happen, it's deciding to not hold it against a person. I'm choosing to not seek justice, I'm going to show mercy; I'm going to forgive and move on.
James 2:13 says that mercy triumphs over judgment. You may have the right to enact judgment and it might be fair to seek compensation for your offense but when you decide to show mercy and not treat someone as their actions deserve that is greater than the judgment that could have been enforced.
One of the reasons it is to our glory to overlook an offense is because when we show mercy we are being like God, thus bringing glory to his name. After David committed adultery he prayed in Psalm 51:1, "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions."
God showed mercy to David and did not give him the punishment he deserved. Through the power of the Spirit we have the same ability. Through love and compassion we are able to blot out the sins committed against us. And when we show mercy we are bringing glory to God because we are acting in accordance with him who is rich in mercy.
One of the dangers in having this gift is they find it harder to enact discipline when they need to. It's hard for them to administer tough love. And they can tend to see the disciplinarian in a negative light. They might also be more tempted to be in a co-dependent relationship.
You're the rescuer so you develop a desire to help the needy and people can cling to you. But then the relationship takes an unhealthy turn and you become an enabler. Having the gift of mercy is wonderful we just have to watch out for the dangers involved.
2) The way of mercy.
Some people are quicker to show mercy than others. Like if I helped someone and they took advantage of that and came back at some point later and asked for more help. Someone who isn't as merciful may be quick to say, "no, I helped you once, I'm not helping you again."
One with the gift of mercy would be more apt to help again but perhaps communicating some worthwhile advice and setting some boundaries so as not to create a dependent situation. But they are more willing to give the person another chance as opposed to the person who is more rigid and exhibiting a one-strike-and-you're-out way of doing things.
But that doesn't mean those with the gift of mercy are naive or a pushover. God is wonderfully merciful but there were times when he did not show mercy. When people were just sorry to try to avoid getting consequences for their actions God didn't hold back from following through with the warnings he gave. That's good. It was still an act of love; they needed to learn a lesson and they needed to see that God holds to his word.
In certain circumstances, depending on the offense, there may need to be a one strike and you're out policy. One with the gift of mercy can still have a zero-tolerance when it comes to serious offenses. They may take strong measures but not necessarily be quick to take the most extreme measures. One with the gift of mercy will exercise wisdom and discernment when using their gift.
Psalm 78 talks about the back and forth allegiance of the Israelites and God's dealings with them. They would disobey and God would punish and they would repent and God would show them mercy and then they would do it all over again. Kind of like how we can be! But in this we see what will help us in being able to be consistently merciful.
Psalm 78:38-39, "Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. Time after time he restrained his anger and did not stir up his full wrath. He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return."
"Time after time he restrained his anger". If we are going to be merciful we need to be able to restrain our anger; perhaps multiple times. Rom. 12:8 says if your gift is showing mercy, do it cheerfully.
I can show mercy but do it without a cheerful heart. I might do it because it's what God wants me to do but my heart's not really in it. I have to force myself to be merciful. I have to talk myself into it or the other person wears me down to where I show mercy just to get him off my back and get it over with.
But if I have the gift of mercy my desire will be to show mercy and it will bother me not to show mercy when I know I need to be more firm.
"He remembered they were but flesh". We need to remember that people are human; imperfect and prone to failure; just like us. We need to be forgiving and although we don't have the power to destroy people like God does-if we're not willing to be merciful it may destroy someone's spirit. In their distress they become depressed and despondent and turn to coping mechanisms that would eventually destroy them.
However, there may be times we have to stick to our guns and not be lenient towards people when that's God's will. And in that case if they become angry or react the wrong way and do something harmful to themselves or others it's not our fault.
God gave consequences for Israel's rebellion but time after time he showed mercy on them when they repented. He was patient with them and took pity on them, knowing they were fallible. The main thing in determining our actions of mercy is to always be directed in the will of God and not be driven by our emotions. Our anger should never fuel our lack of mercy.
"But so-and-so doesn't deserve mercy!" That's the point. Mercy is about receiving undeserved favor. You may feel you deserve mercy more than some other people do. On what grounds? Because you're not as bad as they are? God is no respecter of persons; he does not show favoritism. We have all sinned and have fallen short and therefore we all need God's mercy. No one who gets mercy deserves mercy.
Titus 3:5 says that we were saved, not because of righteous things we had done but because of God's mercy. If salvation could be achieved through works then we would deserve it. But the fact is we don't deserve it; that's why it's called mercy.
Consider Paul's words in 1st Tim. 1:13-16, "Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life."
Perhaps we weren't exactly like Paul, but we were, and can still potentially be, pretty messed-up. Yet God continues to show us mercy. "Ok, let God show them mercy then; I'm not going to." Paul's words in 1st Tim. are meant to show us two things-that no matter how bad of a person we are, God desires to show us mercy and grace.
And two, Jesus' mercy, grace, forgiveness and patience toward Paul was an example for believers to follow. Not only are we encouraged to believe God's mercy is available for us, but we are also encouraged to follow Christ's example and extend mercy toward others. As Jesus said in Luke 6:36, "Be merciful, just as your father is merciful." We need to be merciful towards others because God is merciful towards us.
3) The agent of mercy.
In Luke 10, an expert in the law came to test Jesus about what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus answered by quoting the two greatest commandments-love God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind and love your neighbor as yourself.
Wanting to justify himself, probably because he wanted to consider a neighbor a fellow Jew only and not any foreigner-especially a Samaritan-asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?". Jesus responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan.
Luke 10:30-37, "In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him.
The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
So we have a priest, a Levite and a Samaritan. Although this sounds like the introduction to a joke, there's nothing funny going on here. The victim was probably a Jew since he was traveling from Jerusalem. Jesus used a priest and a Rabbi in his story because these would have been the most obligated persons to assist a wounded traveler.
But instead of helping their half-dead brother, they make their way to the other side of the road and keep it moving. Why? Perhaps they didn't want to be bothered, maybe they wanted to avoid the risk of becoming the next victim or because if they came in contact with his blood they would become unclean.
Regardless the reason, instead of showing mercy and helping the poor fellow, they chose to keep their religiosity intact. They must have forgotten about the 'love your neighbor as yourself' rule. Consider the command given in Deut. 22:4, "If you see your brother's donkey or his ox fallen on the road, do not ignore it. Help him get it to its feet."
Surely if this was the command regarding an animal it would apply all the more to helping your fellow man. And this rule applied not only to a fellow Jew but also an enemy. Exodus 23:5, "If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help him with it."
So the behavior of the Priest and Levite wouldn't have been acceptable even if it was the Samaritan who was laying in the road, let alone their fellow Jew. Robertson's bible commentary: "they crossed the road to avoid ceremonial contamination with a stranger. A vivid and powerful picture of the vice of Jewish ceremonial cleanliness at the cost of moral principle and duty".
Then we see the contrasting behavior of the Samaritan. He took pity on him. It didn't matter that he was a Jew. It didn't matter that he had somewhere to be. He stopped and helped. He showed mercy to his enemy. He took the time to clean and bandage his wounds. He put him on his donkey while he walked alongside.
He didn't just take him into town and leave him there; he took further care of him. He even paid the tab (the victim had been robbed and had no means to pay). So the Samaritan went above and beyond in making sure this person was taken care of until he could be on the mend.
So Jesus asks the expert in the law who was the neighbor to the man. And the lawyer's answer was correct (even though he couldn't bring himself to say, 'the Samaritan'). Jesus affirms the lawyer had answered correctly by saying, 'go and do likewise'. Now that I've showed you that even your enemy is your neighbor and since I've shown you how to be a good neighbor, go and fulfill the command to love your neighbor as yourself. Go and show mercy to others.
To show mercy to someone you're at odds with would be quite a challenge. Our first thought when something happens to them might be, "well, serves you right. You'll get no help or mercy from me." But if we take the 'go and do likewise' command to heart we'll be willing to overlook a person's issues, race, religion, etc. and be merciful to them.
Micah 6:8, "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." We need to act according to what God deems as just actions; not our own brand of justice. We need to not just be merciful, but to love mercy. We love mercy when it's extended to us, we need to love being merciful too.
And walking in humility will allow us to always do things according to his will and not our own. The Good Samaritan's humility in helping his enemy, compassion in taking pity on him and his sacrifice in going the extra mile to help him showed that he had the gift of mercy. So mercy isn't just being merciful when someone wrongs us, it's also taking pity on someone and helping them like in the case of the Good Samaritan.
So we've looked at the seven motivational gifts from Rom. 12:6-8: Prophecy, Service, Teaching, Encouraging, Giving, Leading, Mercy. Did you identify with any of them? Are you gifted in any of these areas?
