Following the world’s way or the commandment of Jesus.
by Stephen R. Clark
When I was little, I had a shirt with a drawing of a skunk and the caption “I’m a little stinker!” Just now I’m realizing that my mother intentionally bought me that shirt. I guess she knew I was going to need a lot of mercy along the way!
I lived up to my shirt even after outgrowing it and was a bit of a stinker in my pre-teen years. More than once, after doing something I probably knew I shouldn’t have and Mom finding out (she always found out), she’d say those heart-stopping words “Just wait until your father gets home!”
When this happened, I began to hone my appeasement skills big time. I’d beg for a time-out right then or the assignment of some chore — anything that would yield mercy from the Dad-given correction. I would even gather small bouquets of wildflowers for her that were mostly dandelions. My goal was to atone right then with Mom rather than later with Dad.
It wasn’t that Dad was mean, just that he had different methods of setting me right. Mom was always a softer touch.
What a relief when Mom responded to my appeal for mercy! Dad would still hear of my indiscretion and lecture me on how to be a better man. But that part of the “punishment” was a little easier to take. Correction by ear as opposed to the rear was always my preference.
From His Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:7, Jesus offers the beatitude “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” In a sense, I offered my parents many opportunities for them to be blessed!
Some might say my parents extended grace to me or were just acting in love. Yes and no. Some definitions are in order. Grace gives us what we don’t deserve. Mercy deflects from us what we may or may not deserve. Love animates both actions.
Another word for mercy is compassion. Both are more than mere actions. They reflect an attitude, a way of looking at the world. Fortunately, my parents were merciful people and had mercy on me.
I didn’t deserve grace; I deserved to be punished for my misbehavior. Yet because they loved me, my parents extended grace. By it, I was mercifully delivered from harsher punishment.
Learning mercy
Jesus adds a twist to being merciful when, as reported in Matthew 9:13, He tells a gaggle of Pharisees, “Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Desiring mercy over sacrifice is a great line, but what does it mean?
Jesus is quoting Hosea 6. Like the people of Israel back then, the Pharisees were better at being religious than at being merciful (true righteousness). As meticulous law-keepers, they placed keeping the minutiae of the law above everything else, including compassion, mercy, and just being a nice human being. And they considered themselves righteous (more like self-righteous) for doing so. The Pharisees were especially good at picking the specks out of the eyes of others, while ignoring the logs in their own.
This was not God’s intention. The point of the sacrificial law was to highlight the holiness of God and foster kind and caring human interactions. Meanness and holiness cannot coexist.
The Pharisees missed the point. They were bent on identifying every little mistake people made regarding the law. They were what we now call legalists. They went around with legal lists of do’s and don’ts and measured everyone by their nitpicky interpretation of standards.
Instead of gently correcting people and discipling them to do better in living a godly life, they instead loved to inflict punishment and derision on any they believed fell short. In other words, they lacked mercy but loved sacrificing people’s dignity and well-being in the name of righteousness. Of course, when it came to applying the law to themselves, their standards eased significantly.
Jesus knew that much of the “righteousness” of the Pharisees was all for show. While they appeared holier-than-thou, their hearts were corrupt. He bluntly calls them on this: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence” (23:25).
Better way
James, the brother of Jesus, approaches the same topic from a different angle. He writes, “For judgment is without mercy to the one who has not shown mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment” (2:13). This statement, combined with the beatitude about mercy, essentially says that those who show mercy will receive mercy, but those who are merciless will be condemned.
Simply put, for believers, mercy is the better way. Jesus hit on this over and over in His parables and teachings.
In the story of the prodigal son, the father graciously extends mercy to his wayward yet returned son. The older brother is more inclined toward judgment (Luke 15).
From the parable of the good Samaritan, we learn who our neighbors are through the mercy shown by the Samaritan toward the man who was robbed and beaten. The legalistic religious people who passed by the man were following the letter of the law, since they judged him as technically unclean and untouchable (Luke 10).
In Matthew 25:35, 36, Jesus makes a startling claim that contradicts this:
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took me in; I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me; I was in prison and you visited me.”
Really? When did this happen? Jesus explains that each time we show mercy to others, we are ministering to Him and enriching His kingdom.
Today, our culture and politics — and, sadly, even the church — often fail to exhibit anything even resembling mercy. The adage “It’s a dog-eat-dog world” is apt. We are surrounded with admonishments to take what’s yours, to do whatever it takes to get ahead, to exact revenge on anyone you believe has held you back or opposed you in any way, and so on. “Get even!” is the phrase of the day. It brings to mind the story of the unforgiving servant who received mercy yet did not do to others as was done to him (18:21-35).
Seeking to get even flies in the face of Jesus’ teachings and of the explicit warning “Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, ‘Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay,’ says the Lord” (Romans 12:19).
First reflex
For the church, while revenge isn’t usually the issue, and shouldn’t be, judgment in the form of condemnation is.
Nancy Pearcey writes in her book Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from its Cultural Captivity, “When the only form of cultural commentary Christians offer is moral condemnation, no wonder we come across to non-believers as angry and scolding.”
The Greek word used for mercy in Matthew 5:7 is éleos. Its fuller definition embraces the idea of “kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them” (BlueLetterBible.org). In other words, compassion.
As believers who have pledged our allegiance to Christ, speaking and doing mercy must be our first reflex, an embedded character trait. When someone has sinned, we show mercy first and then apply loving correction. If someone is in need, we mercifully provide what we can to allay their need. When someone does us wrong, mercy is the response, not revenge.
Jesus expands the circle of those who are to receive mercy from us when He admonishes, “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). When you truly love someone and can see them as your neighbor, revenge fades and mercy bubbles up.
The reality is that, in our sinfulness, we are all “little stinkers.” Scripture affirms that we are all sinners in need of His mercy (Romans 3:23). In fact, Lamentations lays it out for us: “Because of the Lord’s faithful love we do not perish, for his mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness!” (3:22, 23). At the conclusion of the good Samaritan story, Jesus offers a simple directive, that when it comes to compassion and mercy, we are to “Go and do the same” (Luke 10:37). All are our neighbors. And when it comes to how we view and treat them, mercy is not an option.
