DRAWING NEAR
April 13
Being Filled with Mercy
"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy" (Matt.
5:7).
Like the other beatitudes, Matthew 5:7 contains a twofold message: to
enter the kingdom you must seek mercy. Once there, you must show
mercy to others.
The thought of showing mercy probably surprised Christ's audience
because both the Jews and the Romans tended to be merciless. The
Romans exalted justice, courage, discipline, and power. To them mercy
was a sign of weakness. For example, if a Roman father wanted his
newborn child to live, he simply held his thumb up; if he wanted it
to die, he held his thumb down.
Jesus repeatedly rebuked the Jewish religious leaders for their
egotistical, self-righteous, and condemning attitudes. They were
intolerant of anyone who failed to live by their traditions. They
even withheld financial support from their own needy parents (Matt.
15:3-9).
Like the people of Jesus' time, many people today also lack mercy.
Some are outright cruel and unkind, but most are so consumed with
their quest for self-gratification that they simply neglect others.
Christians, on the other hand, should be characterized by mercy. In
fact, James used mercy to illustrate true faith: "What use is it, my
brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that
faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in
need of daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be
warmed and be filled,' and yet you do not give them what is necessary
for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works,
is dead, being by itself" (James 2:14-17). He also said mercy is
characteristic of godly wisdom: "The wisdom from above is first pure,
then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits,
unwavering, without hypocrisy" (3:17).
As one who has received mercy from God, let mercy be the hallmark of
your life.
Suggestions for Prayer:
Thank God for His great mercy. Ask Him to give you
opportunities to show mercy to others today.
For Further Study:
Read Luke 10:25-37.
Who questioned Jesus and what was his motive? What
characteristics of mercy were demonstrated by the Samaritan
traveler? What challenge did Jesus give His hearer? Are you
willing to meet that challenge?
Drawing Near, Copyright c 1993 John F. MacArthur, Jr.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
http://www.gty.org
~~~
Matthew 15:3-9 (NKJV)
3 He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the
commandment of God because of your tradition?
4 "For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother';
and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'
5 "But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever
profit you might have received from me is a gift to God";
6 'then he need not honor his father or mother.' Thus you have made
the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.
7 "Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:
8 'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with
their lips, But their heart is far from Me.
9 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the
commandments of men.'"
Luke 10:25-37
25 And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying,
"Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
26 He said to him, "What is written in the law? What is your reading
of it?"
27 So he answered and said, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with
all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with
all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"
28 And He said to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you
will live."
29 But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my
neighbor?"
30 Then Jesus answered and said: "A certain man went down from
Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his
clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 "Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he
saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 "Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and
looked, and passed by on the other side.
33 "But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And
when he saw him, he had compassion.
34 "So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and
wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and
took care of him.
35 "On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave
them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and
whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.'
36 "So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who
fell among the thieves?"
37 And he said, "He who showed mercy on him." Then Jesus said to
him, "Go and do likewise."
~~~
These devotions are posted with permission from John MacArthur's
first (1993) devotional work, _Drawing Near_, and they are also sent
out daily for free to several folks via e-mail.
In addition, John's second (1997) devotional, _Strength for Today_,
is also available free via e-mail only. _Strength for Today_ follows
the same format as what you have seen here from _Drawing Near_, but
with different monthly themes.
If you would like to receive daily devotions via e-mail from either
of these series, just let me know (via e-mail), and I will gladly add
you to the list(s) of your choice.
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In Christ,
Peter
Peter G. Chase :: Columbus, Ohio, USA
pchase1@wideopenwest.com
STOP! Who do you think Jesus is?
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To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and to discover that the prisoner was you. -Alistair Begg
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