Embodying Mercy: A Journey of Righteousness

Devotional

Day 1: Encountering God and Self-Reflection

A true encounter with God leads to an honest self-evaluation, revealing our spiritual poverty and prompting us to mourn over our sins. This mourning leads to repentance and a desire for righteousness, which God fulfills by filling us with His presence. When we see ourselves in the light of God's righteousness, we become aware of our shortcomings, much like Job, Peter, and Paul did. This awareness is not meant to condemn us but to bring us to a place of repentance and transformation. As we mourn over our sins, we open ourselves to the transformative power of God's presence, which fills us with a hunger and thirst for righteousness. This process is a journey of becoming more like Christ, as we allow His presence to fill and guide us. [01:38]

Isaiah 6:5-7 (ESV): "And I said: 'Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!' Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: 'Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.'"

Reflection: In what areas of your life do you need to invite God's presence to reveal and transform your spiritual poverty into a desire for righteousness?

Day 2: Overcoming the Self-Life

The self-life, with its demands and grudges, is our greatest enemy. Jesus challenges us to go beyond the law and show mercy, even when it is difficult, revealing how much self is still alive within us. Our self-life often demands its own way, holding onto rights and grudges that hinder our spiritual growth. Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, calls us to a higher standard of living, one that goes beyond mere adherence to the law. He challenges us to show mercy and love, even when it is difficult, as a reflection of His character within us. This call to mercy is a call to die to self, allowing Christ to live through us and transform our relationships with others. [06:24]

Galatians 2:20 (ESV): "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

Reflection: What is one specific area in your life where your self-life is demanding its own way, and how can you surrender it to Christ today?

Day 3: Active Mercy

Mercy is more than feeling sorry for others; it involves actively alleviating their suffering. The parable of the Good Samaritan illustrates true mercy, which goes beyond words and feelings to actions. True mercy is not passive but active, requiring us to step out of our comfort zones to help those in need. The Good Samaritan is a powerful example of this, as he went out of his way to care for a stranger in need. This kind of mercy reflects the heart of God, who desires us to be His hands and feet in a hurting world. By actively showing mercy, we become conduits of God's love and grace, bringing hope and healing to those around us. [25:31]

James 2:15-17 (ESV): "If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be warmed and filled,' without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead."

Reflection: Who is someone in your life that you can show active mercy to today, and what specific action can you take to alleviate their suffering?

Day 4: Believing in the Son

God desires mercy over sacrifice, as emphasized by the prophets. While we may struggle to meet God's ideal requirements, the actual requirement is to believe in His Son, through whom we receive the power to fulfill these ideals. The prophets Hosea and Micah remind us that God values mercy over ritualistic sacrifice. However, the true fulfillment of God's requirements comes through faith in Jesus Christ. By believing in Him, we receive the power to live out the ideals of doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God. This faith empowers us to live lives that reflect God's character and bring glory to His name. [19:36]

Micah 6:8 (ESV): "He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?"

Reflection: How can you deepen your faith in Jesus today to empower you to live out God's ideals of justice, mercy, and humility?

Day 5: Reflecting Christ's Mercy and Grace

We set the standard by which we will be judged through our actions and attitudes towards others. By showing mercy and grace, we align ourselves with the character of Christ and prepare ourselves for God's judgment. Our actions and attitudes towards others reveal the state of our hearts and our alignment with Christ's character. Jesus' parable of the unforgiving servant serves as a reminder that we must forgive others as we have been forgiven. By showing mercy and grace, we reflect the beauty of Jesus and prepare ourselves for the day of judgment. This call to mercy is a call to embody the love and grace of Christ in our daily lives. [32:41]

Matthew 6:14-15 (ESV): "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

Reflection: Is there someone you need to forgive today, and how can you take a step towards extending mercy and grace to them in the way Christ has shown you?

Sermon Summary

In our journey through the Beatitudes, we begin with a profound encounter with God, which leads to an honest self-evaluation. This revelation of God's righteousness allows us to see ourselves in a new light, much like Job, Peter, and Paul, who recognized their own sinfulness and spiritual poverty. This awareness brings us to a place of mourning over our sins, leading to repentance and a desire for righteousness. As we hunger and thirst for righteousness, God fills us with His presence, and we begin to exhibit mercy towards others, having received mercy ourselves.

The greatest enemy we face is often our own self-life, which demands rights and harbors grudges. Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, challenges us to go beyond the law and show mercy, even when it is difficult. He illustrates this with examples like turning the other cheek and going the extra mile, revealing how much self is still alive within us. The call to mercy is not just about feeling sorry for others but actively alleviating their suffering, as demonstrated in the parable of the Good Samaritan.

God desires mercy over sacrifice, as emphasized by the prophets Hosea and Micah. While we may struggle to meet God's ideal requirements of doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly, the actual requirement is to believe in His Son. Through faith in Jesus, we receive the power to fulfill these ideals. Jesus' parable of the unforgiving servant reminds us that we must forgive others as we have been forgiven, setting the standard by which we will be judged.

Ultimately, we are called to let the beauty of Jesus be seen in us, reflecting His mercy and grace. As we reckon our old nature to be dead and live by the Spirit, we can embody the characteristics of Christ, showing mercy and love to those around us.

Key Takeaways

1. A true encounter with God leads to an honest self-evaluation, revealing our spiritual poverty and prompting us to mourn over our sins. This mourning leads to repentance and a desire for righteousness, which God fulfills by filling us with His presence. [01:38]
2. The self-life, with its demands and grudges, is our greatest enemy. Jesus challenges us to go beyond the law and show mercy, even when it is difficult, revealing how much self is still alive within us. [06:24]
3. Mercy is more than feeling sorry for others; it involves actively alleviating their suffering. The parable of the Good Samaritan illustrates true mercy, which goes beyond words and feelings to actions. [25:31]
4. God desires mercy over sacrifice, as emphasized by the prophets. While we may struggle to meet God's ideal requirements, the actual requirement is to believe in His Son, through whom we receive the power to fulfill these ideals. [19:36]
5. We set the standard by which we will be judged through our actions and attitudes towards others. By showing mercy and grace, we align ourselves with the character of Christ and prepare ourselves for God's judgment. [32:41]
** [32:41]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:58] - Encounter with God
[01:38] - Spiritual Poverty and Mourning
[03:17] - Hunger for Righteousness
[04:12] - Receiving and Showing Mercy
[05:44] - The Self-Life Challenge
[06:51] - Crucified with Christ
[09:34] - Reckoning the Old Nature
[10:38] - Radical Teachings of Jesus
[12:19] - Going the Extra Mile
[14:23] - True Fasting and Mercy
[17:23] - Mercy Over Sacrifice
[19:36] - Believing in the Son
[21:12] - Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
[23:57] - The Good Samaritan
[28:10] - Mercy in Action
[31:25] - Judging and Mercy Standards
[34:21] - The Call to Perfection
[37:07] - The Beauty of Jesus' Mercy

Sermon Clips

A true encounter with God leads to an honest evaluation of ourselves. We now see ourselves in the light of God's righteousness, and like Job, we abhor ourselves and repent in dust and ashes. Like Peter, we recognize that we are sinful men. Like Paul, we cry, "Oh Wretched Man that I am." [00:00:58]

This consciousness of the awfulness of my sin, my total spiritual poverty, brings me to a place of mourning as I repent over my sin. I weep because of my sin and my failures. I mourn how my life must have grieved the heart of God, and this mourning over sin repentance brings me to meekness. [00:02:19]

I've come to realize that the greatest enemy that I have outside of Satan is myself, the old self-life. This is the base and the problem or the base, I should say, of all my problems. The self-life, the demanding of my rights, that old "I have been hurt, I have been offended, I have been wronged." [00:05:30]

Jesus will not only deal with it in principle, but he will give illustrations to us where self is still in control. Just when you think that you're getting some, Jesus makes some statement like, "If he smites you on your cheek, turn to him the other cheek," and I'm nailed. [00:10:01]

God wants us to show forth the righteousness in our actions and in our deeds towards others. The prophet Hosea speaks for the Lord, saying, "For I desired mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings." God is saying, "Look, I want you to be merciful." [00:17:32]

The actual requirement of God is that I believe on his son whom he hath sent. In the New Testament, when they asked Jesus, "What must we do to do the works of God?" or basically, "What does God require of us?" Jesus said, "This is the work of God, that you believe on him who he has sent." [00:19:36]

Jesus gave an interesting parable that deals with this subject of showing mercy. In Matthew 18, beginning with verse 23, Jesus said, "Therefore is the Kingdom of Heaven likened unto a certain King which would take account of his servants." [00:21:12]

Being merciful is more than just feeling sorry for someone because they are experiencing some tragic plight. Jesus was talking with a lawyer in Luke 10, and he asked Jesus what was the greatest commandment. Jesus said, "You should love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength." [00:23:57]

James talks about the emptiness of words or feelings that do not produce actions. James said, "If a brother or a sister is naked and destitute of food, and one of you should say unto them, 'Oh, depart in peace, be warm and filled,' notwithstanding if you do not give them those things which are needful for the body, what do your words profit?" [00:28:10]

As we get in The Sermon on the Mount to the seventh chapter, Jesus will there command us to judge not, lest ye be judged. For he said, "For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged, and with what measure you meet, it will be measured to you." [00:31:25]

It is as though Jesus is setting the same standards for our showing mercy. We're setting the standards by which we will be shown mercy. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. And for this reason, I seek to be extremely merciful. [00:32:41]

Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me, all his wonderful passion and purity. Oh, the thou Spirit divine, all my nature refine, till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me. One of the beautiful characteristics of Jesus is the way he showed mercy. [00:37:07]

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