Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

By Nick Bibile

What is the meaning of to be merciful? The general English meaning is of a person is kind of easy going, a person who is against justice and the law, a person who is against punishment. No, this is not the biblical meaning of mercy. Apostle Paul in his epistles sometimes used grace, mercy and peace. (1 Tim 1:2)

Sometimes we think grace and mercy are the same, no; there is a difference between grace and mercy. Grace is associated men in their sins. And mercy is associated men in their misery of sin. Here are two good examples of David where he saw the misery of his sins.

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! (Ps 51:1-2)

Remember the tax collector who went to pray, said, “God be merciful I am a sinner”

Second example of David.

7 But God was displeased with this thing, and he struck Israel. 8 And David said to God, “I have sinned greatly in that I have done this thing. But now, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.” 9 And the Lord spoke to Gad, David's seer, saying, 10 “Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the Lord, Three things I offer you; choose one of them, that I may do it to you.’” 11 So Gad came to David and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Choose what you will: 12 either three years of famine, or three months of devastation by your foes while the sword of your enemies overtakes you, or else three days of the sword of the Lord, pestilence on the land, with the angel of the Lord destroying throughout all the territory of Israel.’ Now decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me.” 13 Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let me fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is very great, but do not let me fall into the hand of man.” (1 Chronicles 21:7-13)

Grace looks down upon sin and mercy looks in the miserable condition of sin. Mercy is to have a spirit of compassion and what can you do about it. Mercy and action goes together.

When Nehemiah heard the condition of Jerusalem, he prayed and mourned for the sins of the people asking God for mercy and then he went into action.

4 As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father's house have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. 8 Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, 9 but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.’ 10 They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. 11 O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” (Nehemiah 1:4)

Mercy is the opposite of judgment. Let’s say a person who has terribly sinned against you and you got really upset. Now you got a new position where you can execute judgment on that person. Now you have the power to execute judgment on that person. You can either have mercy upon that person or judgment upon that person. Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” The other person deserves judgment but you will forgive him for his sins that is to have mercy. Then you shall obtain mercy from God.

What is the greatest example of being merciful? First in the Old Testament there is the mercy seat. The mercy seat is the cover of the Ark of the Covenant which is in the Holy of Holies. On the Day of Atonement it was sprinkled with the blood of the animals, so God in his holy anger instead of punishing the children of Israel for their sins but looks upon the mercy seat on the Day of Atonement and appease the sins of the people. Appeased means calming the anger, pacifying the anger of God. Mercy seat was their to show the mercy of God instead of punishment.

Now the example of God is shown in our Savior Jesus Christ.

1Jo 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

It means to appease, meaning to pacify, to make quiet, to make still, to calm a person’s anger instead of judgment, having mercy.

Mercy is greater than judgment. Remember when Lucifer and his angels sinned against God, God pronounced severe, everlasting judgment. However when man sinned against God, God in his sovereign grace, was merciful towards man by sending a Savior.

James 2:13 For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

Oh, remember God’s spiritual mercies! Pardoning, adopting, saving mercy! The picture of God’s mercy can never be drawn to the full. You cannot take the breadth of his mercy, for it is infinite, nor the height of it for it is 'from everlasting to everlasting’ (Psalm 103: 17).

The man who is merciful is concerned about souls. He sees sinners living in fun, excitement, in pleasure and living against God, but he sees the big picture, he has pity and compassion upon them as he see they are blinded by the enemy, they are slaves to sin and to Satan.

We need to have the same attitude of God. God could have punished us in his judgment but instead he had mercy upon us. God sent his beloved Son, Jesus came, and we saw mercy was in action as he healed the sick, comforted the broken hearted and eventually demonstrated his mercy towards us on the cross. We know there are many who are daily sinning against God, if we say, God punish them, they are evil, they deserve to be punished, and that is not mercy. But if we say, God have mercy upon them just the way you showed mercy upon me when I was a sinner, then the Lord will show mercy upon you on the Day of Judgment. Prayer and action goes together, we need to consult the ones we are praying and ask them to turn from their wicked ways and the Lord will forgive them. Show them their danger as they are living at the very edge of hell, anytime God can take their breath away and they will fall into the lake of fire, the soul winner has compassion for on their friends and relatives and will pray for them and encourage them to turn to God.

The word mercy gives the meaning of the Hebrew word godly. More godly you are the more merciful you would be. Now by works of mercy we resemble the God of mercy. 'Be ye merciful, as your Father also is merciful’ (Luke 6: 36).

Show mercy to those who are lower in position than you. If you see a poor person who is poorer than you, don’t shut your eye off and give a deaf ear. (Matthew 25:32-46) The poor man’s hand is Christ’s treasury, and there is nothing lost that is put there. 'Whatsoever you give by stretching forth your hand on earth is as it were given in heaven’. The text says, 'the merciful shall obtain mercy’ Remember the story of the good Samaritan? On his journey he sees this poor man on the road, a victim of the robbers, beaten, wounded lying on the road. Many passed this man, may be they had compassion and pity but didn’t do nothing to help him. But the Samaritan not only had pity and compassion, he took action. He bandaged his wounds, brought him to an Inn and took care of him. Also gave money to the Inn keeper to take care of him. This is mercy in action. Mercy is taking the extra step.

Remember faith is not visible as it is hidden in the heart, however faith in action brings good works, what is hidden in heart becomes visible and shine the light before men. 'Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction' (James 1: 27). We should not be selfish and stingy towards others. There is that excellent saying of Augustine, Give those things to the poor which you cannot keep that you may receive those things which you cannot lose. Martin Luther speaks of a monastery in Austria which was very rich while it gave annually to the poor, but when it stopped giving the monastery began to decay. We don’t lose anything by giving to the poor. God will show us mercy when we give, just like how God multiplied the loaves of bread, he will be merciful to us even giving more. Remember the widow's two mites cast into the treasury were accepted (Luke 21: 14). God looked not at the smallest of her gift, but at the largeness of her heart.

The sin of unmerciful ness. The unmerciful man is an unthankful man, he is an ungrateful man, and he has no mercy towards others as he thinks only on himself. They love their money more than Christ Jesus.

Lastly do all in Christ. Labor that your persons may be in Christ. Give glory to God not to yourself what you have done.