THE MISSION OF MERCY
Introduction
Back in March I sent an email to our elders that has remained on my mind ever since. In part, it read:
"I've been contemplating what Forsythe has become over the past couple of years. Our church has really embraced a mission of mercy to the hurting around us - a very Jesus-like mission. A verse caught my attention recently ... a verse we all know ... but it just was like a lighthouse in my mind as I read it.
'He has shown you, O mortal, 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.' - Micah 6:8
To love mercy ... such a meaningful phrase. This is beyond programming, isn't it? To be known as a place that loves mercy. I'm just captivated by that thought at this time … I'm so grateful to be on a mission of mercy. Healing and hope are being given out at our place every day of the week. It's starting to visibly merge into our church family. Our challenge is not to just allow the mission of mercy to be available in our place, but to find avenues to be conduits of mercy in our own lives … to fully embrace the mission of mercy as we become more and more like Christ. -John"
To be on the mission of mercy is to love being merciful. Some key ideas that come to mind when I think about this:
1. To Love Mercy is To See the Hurting
Zechariah 7:9 “This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and
compassion to one another.
Identical message to the Micah 6:8 passage - is really an indictment in both passages. This was not the viewpoint of the people being addressed. Instead, God is having to instruct them to move away from rote religious practices and toward having a heart for the hurting people around them.
Mercy is mentioned 126 times in Scripture (NIV); Justice - 130 times; Compassion 82 times.
Many of these mentions are the way that God views us … with mercy, justice, compassion.
To Love mercy means that we see the hurting and we act to bring relief. How we do that individually is a choice we make …
- Work with organizations like The Renewal Center or Meals on Wheels or any of the many helping organizations in our city.
- Contribute to disaster relief organizations
- Participate in mission trips like the one to Torch Missions.
- Adopt a child through Compassion International, as Becky shared with us last year.
The truth is we will all encounter various opportunities to see the hurting and love mercy. One reason why it is important is…
2. To Love Mercy is to Realize that Without Mercy We Cannot Please God
Hosea 6:6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
Matthew 9:13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Loving mercy isn’t really based on emotion - but it’s a choice that God asks us to make
He really is calling us to a certain perspective and action in life, not just making sure we do all the outwardly religious stuff. Not that those things do not matter, but church attendance and taking communion, prayer, Bible study - they should all lead us to love mercy … not take the place of loving mercy.
3. To Love Mercy is to Shine the Light of the Gospel in a Dark World
Proverbs 18:23 The poor plead for mercy, but the rich answer harshly. The world is a dark place - and although there are places where mercy flows freely, often times it is in short supply.
Have you seen some of the videos where someone asks for help - and gets a lot of negative responses, but when someone does help, they are rewarded with a lot of money. It is interesting - many of them try to turn the money away. Although it is probably done for clicks and popularity, it does show that people are not always merciful / those who are do not seek a reward for it. I loved this reel on Facebook because of the gratitude expressed for a merciful act: https://www.facebook.com/reel/168963782660512.
Christianity should mean that mercy is more common in the dark world around us.
4. To Love Mercy is Something We Seek From God
We might have questions about how merciful we ought to be - but when the tables are turned and we are the ones who need God’s mercy, we find it flowing freely.
Psalm 51:1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
Titus 3:4-6 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior,
The word that comes to mind so often when I think about God’s mercy toward me is UNDESERVED. But I’m the one thinking about that. The mercy of God is “according to [his] unfailing love…great compassion”.
It is also UNEARNED … nothing I have done buys the mercy He offers.
Ephesians 2:4-5 But because of his great love for us,God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
So, God’s mercy is central in our understanding of our relationship to Him. It naturally falls into the realm of our prayer life.
5. To Love Mercy is a Matter of Prayer
Daniel 9:18 Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.
-The request is based upon the mercy of God, not what is deserved.
-Mercy has been defined as the withholding of what is deserved. I don’t think that can serve as the total definition, but it goes a long way.
Luke 18:13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
- This familiar story of Jesus has an antagonist - a self-righteous Pharisee who only thanks God that he is not like the tax collector / sinner nearby. Then he expresses his good works.
- The sinful tax collector only says, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
- A rendition of this is a favorite prayer of many is called The Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."
Hebrews 4:16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
6. To Love Mercy is to Receive Mercy
Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Doesn’t this demonstrate how important being merciful is to our Lord? I look forward to Jim McConnell’s classes on the beatitudes and exploring this in greater ways. Giving and receiving mercy are interlinked and inseparable.
Jesus taught that it was one of the more important matters of our faith:
Matthew 23:23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
James, the Lord’s brother, wrote: “ … Mercy triumphs over judgment.” (James 2:13
Conclusion
1. Opportunities to show mercy are found in our neighborhoods, city, and around the world.
2. I am grateful that today we have examples of showing mercy locally and internationally.
3. Each of us should examine our attitudes and lives to make room for mercy - either as an increase
or a new beginning.
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