In our last post, we said that God’s dealings with us are all about mercy. Perhaps it left you wondering how to go about the task of obtaining mercy. That is what we shall be discussing in this post. Towards the end of the last post, we touched upon it, but only a little. Now, we have the opportunity to ensure that we continually flow in the mercy of God.
You may recall that the example we employed in that post was about praying with a scattered mind. If, when God gave mercy as the reason for answering my prayers, I argued, the result would have been different. You do not see how or why one could argue with God, but we do it all the time, in subtle ways. That is not true, you say, because you are essentially a good Christian.
A couple of examples from scripture might persuade you otherwise. You may see yourself in them. One we have already seen is where God asks His children to rest, and they would not, preferring to run. Then, there is the example in Jeremiah 22.21. “I spoke to you in your prosperity, but you said, ‘I will not hear.’ This has been your manner from your youth, that you did not obey My voice.”
Obtaining Mercy Requires Humility
Each time we fail to obey God, we are telling Him we are wiser than He. How arrogant can we get!? The God who made the heavens and the earth gives us an instruction, and we refuse to carry it out. Why? The only thought that comes to mind is that the instruction does not sound reasonable or logical. Who told you that God is logical? Which logical father would intentionally send his only child into harm’s way?
Obtaining mercy from God means you accept His word, whether it makes sense or not. A major portion of humility is to be able to say “Yes, Lord,” even as you scratch your head at the senselessness of the instruction. Unless we do that, there is no obtaining mercy from God. He says in 1 Peter 5.5 that He resists the proud; God elbows you out of the way. How often do you show kindness to someone who always argues with you? Did you answer “never”?
Well, how then do you expect to prosper in obtaining mercy from God if you always think you are wiser? He will resist you, and you certainly do not want that to be your portion, so learn to be humble so that you can obtain mercy. It is the way God resisted the Pharisee who prayed with himself in Luke 18.11. He boasted of his religious achievements; He went home condemned. The tax collector, who demonstrated humility, received mercy.
Showing Mercy Equals Obtaining Mercy
There is another aspect to obtaining mercy; do to others as you want them to do to you. No doubt, you are familiar with that rule in the Bible. Yet, it is surprising how many Christians think they can reap what they have not sown.
How is your life today, this year? It reveals the harvest of last year’s planting. Did you make peace for, and with, others? Your life is peaceful this year. Did you show mercy to people last year? You will not have any problem obtaining mercy this year. Jesus taught about in the Sermon on the Mount. Perhaps the people of his day desired mercy without showing mercy to others.
In the Beatitudes, He said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” In the process of obtaining mercy, nothing could be clearer. This is the only one of the Beatitudes where the action begets an equal result. Show mercy, receive mercy. Simple. Yet, you know several Christians who pray for mercy but are not kind to others.
They are like the Pastor in the account of the good Samaritan. Such Christians are on the way to a conference on mercy, and they do not have time to attend to the injured man. The Good Samaritan, who does not attend church or pretend to be a Christian, comes along. He shows the wounded man mercy. In the process of obtaining mercy, who will God first consider? Of course.
You Must Belong To The Family
We put this last because we already considered it in our previous post. However, because many of us miss it, we return to it. You must be a member of God’s family before you can expect mercy from Him. Imagine a storm is brewing, and people are running to take shelter. You open your door to call your children in. As they come, a stranger runs with them. What will you do? You let your children in and direct the stranger down the road.
God is like that. When trouble comes and you are thinking of obtaining mercy, you run toward your home. If God is your father, heaven is your home, and He will open the door for you. However, if God is not your dad, He will send you down the road, and that may be hell. If you are not sure God is your dad, do not even think of obtaining mercy. Settle that right now by inviting Jesus into your life.
Maranatha!
