Reverend Michael Mwangi
Senior Pastor, Fedha Church, Kenya Assemblies of God
The Beatitudes do not describe what we should DO rather they describe what we should BE. We must first BE then we can DO.
We must first be Christians then we can act like Christians.
We are Christians by God's grace, which is a gift. Having become Christians or sons of God, we receive power through the Holy Spirit to live Christian lives and obey God. Without the Holy Spirit, it is impossible to follow these teachings.
In the same way, through the working of the Holy Spirit in us, we must first be merciful in our hearts; then we shall be able to show mercy in our actions... mercy or kindness is a fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Galatians 5:22.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Without the Holy Spirit, we can never be truly merciful.
The merciful are full of sympathy and compassion towards those suffering from sin or sorrow. The merciful wants to help ease or eliminate such suffering by influencing people to depend on God and to entrust their lives to Jesus Christ.
Merciful people also get actively involved in meeting people's needs. By showing mercy to others, we shall receive mercy.
Luke 10:30-37
30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii[a] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
To the degree we allow God's Spirit to lead and guide us, it is to the same degree that we feel compassion for people when they are going through painful circumstances
True mercy always manifests itself in acts of mercy. Without showing mercy there is no way we can claim to be merciful. Those who do not act as Christians outwardly cannot be inwardly. What we do and what we are cannot be separated.
To show mercy does not mean we ignore someone's sin, that is worldly mercy. God never ignores sin. God cannot ignore or tolerate even the smallest sin that we call a mistake. He punishes every sin and the punishment is the death sentence.
This is why Christ, when He took our sins upon Himself, had to die. This is how great God's mercy is towards us; if we do not show mercy to others, God will not show mercy to us.
Matthew 6:14-15
14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
First, God shows mercy to man. None of us could have been saved without God's mercy.
Romans 5:8 while we were still sinners, God forgave us and saved us.
While we were unmerciful and not deserving of mercy, God showed us mercy. However, after we become Christians we must begin showing mercy to others. We received forgiveness from God even if we did not deserve forgiveness. In the same way, we must forgive others even if they do not deserve forgiveness. It is not up to you to decide whether to forgive or not. You are obligated. If we do not show mercy to others, God will take away his mercies from us.
Matthew 18: 23-35
23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins.He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’
30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
God often puts us into a trial or test of faith to see how we will react to someone who has hurt us in the past. Is there still a desire within us to see them get the punishment they deserve for the way they have hurt us? Can we give grace and mercy to those who don't deserve it? Having received God's mercy in the test, God grades us according to how we behave toward others.
If God stops forgiving us how shall we be saved? Jesus Himself is the greatest example of mercy. To show mercy to us, He died for us. He even forgave men who crucified him.
Luke 23: 34.
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
Stephen forgave his killers.
Acts 7:60
Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
When someone sins against us let us remember these two examples.
If we do not forgive others, God's Holy Spirit is not in us and thus we do not belong to Christ.
Romans 8:9
You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.
This is why unforgiveness yields anger, and bitterness and takes away our joy which is in us when the Holy Spirit is present.
If we want to remain in God's mercy, we must continue to be merciful to others; that is to forgive them.
The merciful person remembers the guilt and unhappiness he was once in and has the power within to extend God's mercy to others.
People who feel thankful for being forgiven of their sin debt, let others off the hook when they sin against them. To let someone off the hook means to pardon, release, or allow one to escape from blame, responsibility, obligation, or difficulty. When believers live out this attitude before the world, it is unnatural to the world system in which we live. This is the way Jesus lived, and even as He was crucified, He extended mercy to those who nailed the spikes into His hands, praying, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do”.
Luke 23:34
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
Remember, on the day of judgment when we must all stand before God, we shall surely need mercy. And on that day, if we have shown mercy to others, God will show us mercy.
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