In the first century, the common response to being wronged was retaliation, “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth!” But for those who enter the Kingdom where Jesus is King, He expects the response of His followers to be quite different when they face injustice. And that response is not retaliation, but “MERCY.” In this beatitude, Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful, as they shall receive mercy” (Mt. 5:7).

The great biblical concepts of “mercy” and “grace” are often found together. In mercy, we do not receive what we deserve, while in grace, we receive what we don’t deserve. You might need to read that again, because it’s part of what God does on our behalf. In Christ, God doesn’t give us what we deserve because Jesus already took our punishment on the cross, and then He gives us what we don’t deserve, namely, forgiveness and a new life, a life that extends to everlasting life. 

We’ve probably all heard the story of the judge who, many years ago, sentenced a young man who was found guilty of stealing a few vegetables to pay the court $10. The “criminal” told the judge that the reason he stole was that he had no money to purchase food for his family, and because of that, he did not have the money to pay the fine. The judge, realizing his plight, reached into his wallet and pulled out a $10 bill, paid the bailiff, and then asked everyone in the courtroom to reach into their wallets and take out a dollar and put it in the hat being passed around so that the young man, after being released, could buy some food for his family. I love this story.

What a wonderful illustration of God’s work through Christ, extended to us. We are all guilty as we stand before God, confessing both our sin as well as our need for Him. And then He looks to His Son who paid the price to set us free. And in return, He gives us all the resources we need to live a life of godliness, a life that will honor Him and bless others. 

Consider all the people during Jesus’ ministry who asked Him for mercy: ten lepers (Lk. 17:13); two blind men (Mt. 9:27); blind Bartimaeus (Lk. 18:38); a Canaanite woman (Mt. 15:22); the father of a demon-possessed boy (Mt. 17:15); and the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10:37). In each of these cases, they were asking Jesus to have mercy on them because of their infirmity, and Jesus extended His healing touch toward them. 

But God’s extension of mercy goes deeper than any physical infirmity. It is our spiritual infirmity, being separated from God because of sin, that is the most significant in each of our lives. Jesus told a parable of a despised tax collector who came to the temple praying, “God be merciful to me, the sinner.” He used the definite article, indicating that he was not just any sinner, but “the sinner.” In other words, he felt that if you looked up the word “sinner” in the dictionary, you would find his picture there as the supreme illustration of “sinner.” Many of the religious leaders prayed quite differently, telling God how wonderful they were and letting Him know that He should be happy that they were on “His team.” But Jesus said that the tax collector went down to his house in a right relationship with God, while the religious leaders remained unchanged and separated from God (Lk. 18:9-14). 

Here is the consistent biblical pattern: “Those who have received mercy from God will show mercy to others,” and “those who show mercy to others will receive mercy from God and from others.” Jesus’ half-brother reinforces this beatitude by saying, “Judgment will be merciless to the one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment” (Js. 2:13). James goes on to say that the wisdom that comes from God is “…full of mercy and good fruits….” (Js. 3:17). It goes without saying that followers of Christ must extend mercy to others. 

At the same time, let’s not forget that during those times when we are troubled by the injustices of others, let’s not forget that, “…we have a merciful and faithful High Priest….one who can sympathize with our weaknesses and who was tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. For this reason, we can draw dear with confidence to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:15-16).

If any of you are in need of mercy and grace, then go straight to the “throne of grace” and ask your great High Priest, Jesus Christ, to grant it to you. He will.