THE BLISS OF THE MERCIFUL

Matthew 5:7

INTRODUCTION:

Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”

 

Do we understand that sentence?  Do we really grasp the implications of what Jesus was saying?  Do we understand what mercy is?

 

For example, if I had a chance to drive through a mud puddle and splash water on someone, but then chose not to do so, would that be mercy?  No, that would not be mercy.  That would merely be courtesy.  Mercy is clearly something different from courtesy.  It is obviously something more than mere politeness.

 

William Shakespeare said that mercy carries with it a double blessing: it blesses the one who shows mercy and it blesses the one to whom the mercy is shown.

 

But some will never know the double blessing of mercy.  They do not understand what mercy is and as a result, they do not know that they will be blessed in giving it and they may not believe that they need it so they may never know the blessing of receiving mercy.

I.    DEFINITION OF MERCY

So let’s begin by trying to clarify our understanding of what mercy is.  Mercy is defined as:

“Restraining from harming or punishing offenders, enemies, persons in one’s power, etc; kindness in excess of what may be demanded by fairness; forbearance, compassion.”

 

By that definition, I can know that mercy is a decision of the will.  It is not an emotion. 

 

Might I also add that mercy is not a natural response?  Revenge is natural but mercy is not.

 

The text says, “Blessed are the merciful” not “blessed are those who do acts of mercy”.  Jesus was not merely concerned about our outward acts, he was concerned about our inner state.  He was not just addressing our conduct; he was addressing our character.  He wants us to be merciful people.

 

The stoics were the ancient “macho men”.  They considered mercifulness to be a character flaw and a sign of weakness.  But Jesus said it is a virtue to be merciful and it is a sign of strength.

 

In his book, High Wind at Noon, Allan Knight Chalmers tells the true story of Peer Holm.  Holm was a world-famous civil engineer who had built great bridges, railroads and tunnels.  He gained wealth and fame but later came to failure, poverty and shame.  He returned to his home village with his wife and little daughter and eked out a meager living.  Holm had a neighbor who owned a vicious dog.  Peer Holm had warned his neighbor that the dog was dangerous but the neighbor scoffed, “Hold your tongue, you cursed pauper.”  One day, the dog killed Holm’s daughter.  Neighbors called the local sheriff and when he arrived, he shot the dog.  The community became very bitter toward the dog’s owner and would have nothing to do with him.  When planting time came around, no one would sell him any seed.  But one night, as the village slept, Peer Holm slipped out into his neighbor’s field and sowed it with some of his own seed.  When the seeds sprouted, his act of mercy was revealed.  One portion of Holm’s field was bare but plants had sprouted in his neighbor’s field.

 

It feels good to give mercy but there is a problem.  For one to give mercy, there must be one who will receive it.  And that brings me to consider:

II.    THE RECIPIENTS OF MERCY

Who are the ones who receive mercy?  They are the needy, the guilty, the helpless and the hopeless.  We cannot receive mercy if there is no need for mercy.  This was the controversy that surrounded the pardon of President Richard Nixon by his successor, Gerald Ford.  Nixon accepted Gerald Ford’s pardon but the question was asked, “How could Nixon accept a pardon while not admitting that he had done nothing wrong?”

 

Many of us are in that position.  We want to receive God’s mercy but we are unwilling to confess that we need it.  We want God’s forgiveness but we don’t want to admit we are sinners.

 

That is why most of us would rather give mercy than receive it – because receiving mercy is an admission of a need for mercy.

III.    THE SOURCE OF MERCY

Where does mercy come from?  Mercy flows from people who have received mercy.  Or at least it should. 

 

In Matthew 18:23-35, Jesus told the story about a man who owed millions of dollars and was told he had to repay it all right now or be thrown into prison.  He begged for more time so he could work on repaying what he owed.  In response, the man he owed the money forgave his debt.  He just wrote it all off.  Immediately, the guy who had owed the millions of dollars went right out and found a fellow who owed him pocket change and he had him and his family thrown into jail until he could repay it all.

 

In that parable, the man who owed millions of dollars said, “Give me some time and I’ll pay it all back.”  He didn’t really want mercy.  He wanted to fix his problem himself.  He didn’t think he needed mercy.  He just thought he needed more time. 

 

This teaches us that mercy extended is not always mercy received.

 

There is a surprising story that played out in April of 1990.  Anna Szenan had twice refused to leave prison, saying that it was her home.  She died in April of 1990 at the age of 100 after spending 57 years in state custody.  Ms Szenan, who was sentenced to life for murder in 1929, died at the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville, OH.  She had turned down offers of parole in 1942 and 1959.  “Leave me alone,” she told the parole board.  “This is my home.”

 

Mercy extended is not always mercy received. 

 

Self-righteous people do not receive mercy and self-abused people do not receive mercy.  Both believe it must be deserved. 

 

·         Self-righteous people do not receive mercy because they do not believe they need it.  They think they deserve good treatment because they are good people.  They’d rather rely on justice.

·         Self-abused people do not receive mercy because they also think it must be deserved and they believe they are unworthy of it. 

 

It is true, however, that self-righteous people extend a brand of mercy.  They do self-righteous things.  Their mercy is selective and extended to those whom they believe deserve their mercy.  Their mercy has strings attached so you’d better keep track of the merciful things they do for you because it is a safe-bet that they are keeping track.  And their mercy is manipulative.  It is designed to ingratiate you and get you to do what they want you to do.

IV.    THE COST OF MERCY

If you become a merciful person, it will cost you something.  It will cost you:

·        Some of your pride.  You cannot receive mercy without becoming humble enough to acknowledge you’ve messed up and you need mercy.

·        Some of your enemies.  Some of your enemies will no longer be enemies if you receive mercy because you will begin to extend mercy to them.

·        The right to revenge.  If you accept God’s mercy, you will release your right to exact revenge on people.

·        And some of your illnesses

Recent research at Harvard Medical School by Dr. Jared Kass and Dr. Herbert Benson indicates that forgiveness effectively calms the “hyper-arousal” state induced by the disease-producing stresses of modern life.  Mercy, they reported, is good for the body as well as the soul.  Forgiveness dramatically lowers blood pressure, oxygen consumption and respiration rate while improving blood circulation, they said.  Speaking at a United Methodist “Health, Wellness and Spirituality” conference in Des Moines, IA, Dr. Kass noted that bitterness has been implicated in heart disease and high blood pressure, headaches, asthma and a variety of digestive ailments.

 

“We have strong evidence now that hostility alone damages the heart.  It sends your blood-pressure skyrocketing.  It provokes your body to create unhealthy chemicals.  Anger is a poison.  Psychologists and psychiatrists have always told their patients to “let anger out’ because, they said, if you hold it in, you can become depressed or develop ulcers.  Avoid feeling angry in the first place and you won’t need to suppress your anger.”

-         Redford Williams, M.D., Researcher

Duke University Medical Center

 

This is really an extension of a Biblical principle found in Proverbs 11:17 – “A kind man benefits himself but a cruel man brings trouble on himself.”   And the Hebrew word for “kind” in this sentence “hesed” which is normally translated “mercy”.

 

·        There is one other thing that mercy will cost you.  It will cost you the penalty for your sin.  Matthew 6:12 and 6:14-15 states that the mercy we extend to others is the mercy we will receive from our Father in Heaven.  So if we are merciful to others, God will be merciful to us but if we are not merciful to others, He will not be merciful to us.

V.    THE REWARDS OF MERCY

May I just list them for you?  If you are merciful, you will receive freedom, forgiveness, friends and a Father in heaven.  And, oh yes, you will also receive mercy – because those who are merciful will receive mercy

CONCLUSION:

One of the laws of physics is that for every action there is an equal but opposite reaction.  In the physics of mercy, for every action there is an equal and comparable reaction.  If you would be shown mercy, show mercy to others.  And when you’ve received mercy, be merciful toward others.

 

The most expensive thing you can own is a wrong spirit toward another.

The heaviest load you carry is a grudge.

And your costliest possession is the bitterness you keep.  It will cost you peace of mind and heart.  It may cost you your health and even your life.  And it will cost you your eternal salvation.

INTRODUCTION:           

INVITATION:              #488 –"Just As I Am”