Welcome to part four of our series on seeing pictures of Jesus in the Beatitudes. So far we are about half way through, and we have already seen some fascinating and very awesome portraits of Jesus.
And so we will continue today, along the same path, because seeing Jesus is it the very core of our relationship and union with Him, and it benefits us – which is why the pictures are there to begin with. Think about it… Jesus doesn’t share pictures of Himself for His own benefit. God is not a megalomaniac – but rather He shares pictures of Himself with us for our benefit; because as we see more of Him, we can further appreciate and understand what He has accomplished for us, and in doing so, we can further so our new identity in Christ, and our standing in Him.
Today we have a really interesting one here, so let’s get right into it with Matthew 5:7:
“Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.”
Mercy in scripture, is defined as not giving to someone what they deserve (as in consequences or punishment). It does not mean to tolerate everything or to be a pushover or a doormat with no backbone or moral fiber – and of-course right away, all we would need to do is look at the life of Jesus Himself to see a perfect example of mercy without weakness being displayed.
Jesus displayed perfectly the divine mercy of God. He forgave those who came to Him, healed every disease and sickness (based on His forgiveness of sins, and the divine love of God). Yet He wasn’t a weak, spineless pushover either. He was equally willing to call-out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, and drive out the money-changers in the temple. He also walked-out and moved-on when people in certain places wouldn’t accept Him. And none of that is “unmerciful”. Jesus could still be merciful, without turning a blind-eye to sin, or failing to stand-up for what is right.
Now as we begin looking at our verse here in Matthew 5:7, I know that some of you will immediately say “Woah! Wait a minute! Does that mean mercy is conditional?!” – well, it is conditional, upon us accepting the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. That is the only real condition that exists according to Jesus in John 3:16-17. And while it may look on the surface as if Jesus is telling us to earn our own mercy here by working for it, that’s really not what He is saying at all.
In order for us to understand this better, we need to answer one single question: Where does Mercy actually come from?
This question may cause you to stop and think for a moment… it’s a question that most people haven’t truly thought about, but it is vital to our understanding of what Jesus was saying here. Can we actually be truly merciful in and of ourselves? Is mercy something that we can conjure up?
For the answer, let’s have a look at Romans 12:6-8:
“Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;
Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teaches, on teaching;
Or he that exhorts, on exhortation: he that gives, let him do it with simplicity; he that rules, with diligence; he that shows mercy, with cheerfulness.”
As we examine these verses, we can very plainly see that showing mercy is also a gift from God, an empowering from His Spirit to us. I also it is also a gift because elsewhere in scripture it is said that even having mercy on us is a gift as well, in Titus 3:5-7:
“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior;
That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
So by seeing both of these scriptures together, we can conclude that Mercy (both having it on us, and showing it to others) is a gift from God. It is not something that we work-up within ourselves, nor is it a goal that we strive to work towards, but it is an empowering by His Spirit, and the only reason we have it, is because He generously gave it to us.
So this leads us back to the first scripture we read in Matthew 5:7, where Jesus says that Blessed are the Merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Why did Jesus say this if He knew that the only way for us to have mercy was through Him?
Ah! That’s the very point, my friend! This is the picture of Jesus and His finished work for us to see! And it’s the very reason why He said it to begin with!
You see, during His ministry, Jesus would often say things that magnify the need for Him, such as when He said be perfect, as your Father in Heaven is perfect which is found later on in this same chapter, in verse 48.
Just as it is not possible to “be perfect” without receiving His sacrifice for us, nor is it possible to do any of the things which we have seen in this series so far apart from Him; it is likewise not possible to “be merciful” without receiving His gift of mercy.
I invite you to honestly meditate on this truth until it really sinks into your soul, because this truth will expand your perception of the vastness of the glory of God, and our complete destitute state apart from Him.
And it will also show you how amazing His Grace is toward you.
It’s an amazing thing when we truly realize what Paul wrote about in Romans 7:18, that in our flesh dwells nothing good. We have no capacity at all to serve God or give anything to Him at all. Yet He gives everything to us, freely as a gift! That is the amazing picture of Jesus that is on display here today.
Much like the way Jesus asks the woman at the well for a drink, and then tells her that if she knew who He was, she would’ve asked Him for living water in John 4:4-10, we also must come to the realization that we have nothing to offer God, but to drink from Him. Let Him be God, let Him be the generous giver that He is – and let us have the true honest humility to simply receive from Him, without trying to “help God out”.
This is the lesson here, and indeed with all of the Beatitudes. They are not goals to try and reach for, but rather, they are showing us aspects of Jesus and His finished work for us, and our identity today in Him.
So as we close today, I encourage you to receive all of what Jesus has paid for you to have. To see Him with an ever-increasing perspective and an enlarged vision of His grace and love for you.
Join us next week as we continue seeing Jesus in the Beatitudes.
Be blessed.