WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.640 --> 00:00:04.799 The Bible says, every believer is a minister. Now we 2 00:00:04.839 --> 00:00:08.359 all minister in different ways. But anytime you help somebody 3 00:00:08.400 --> 00:00:12.560 else in Jesus' name, that is called ministry. And as 4 00:00:12.599 --> 00:00:15.240 they said, the Bible says, there are different kinds of service, 5 00:00:15.320 --> 00:00:19.760 different kinds of ministries, but there is one ministry that 6 00:00:19.839 --> 00:00:22.719 we all have in common. And that's what I want 7 00:00:22.800 --> 00:00:24.879 us to look at this weekend. I call it your 8 00:00:25.000 --> 00:00:30.519 ministry of mercy. God wants you to be an agent 9 00:00:31.000 --> 00:00:34.640 of mercy in the world. There's not enough mercy in 10 00:00:34.719 --> 00:00:38.119 this world. And God wants you to be a provider. 11 00:00:38.799 --> 00:00:41.039 He wants you to be an agent. He wants you 12 00:00:41.079 --> 00:00:45.320 to be a purveyor of mercy in the world. Now, 13 00:00:45.320 --> 00:00:49.119 in the fifth Key to a blessed life, Jesus says 14 00:00:49.159 --> 00:00:55.479 this Matthew five, verse seven. God blesses those who are merciful, 15 00:00:56.240 --> 00:00:59.920 for they will be shown mercy. In other words, what 16 00:01:00.159 --> 00:01:02.759 you give out you're going to get back. What you 17 00:01:02.880 --> 00:01:06.680 give you're going to get. God blesses those who are merciful, 18 00:01:06.680 --> 00:01:09.079 for they will be shown mercy. This is the fifth 19 00:01:09.159 --> 00:01:11.920 key to a blessed life. You got to learn to 20 00:01:11.959 --> 00:01:18.799 be a minister of mercy. Now, what is mercy. Well, 21 00:01:18.920 --> 00:01:22.359 usually we think of two things. Usually think of forgiving 22 00:01:22.439 --> 00:01:26.519 people who don't deserve it, or we think of helping 23 00:01:26.599 --> 00:01:31.000 people who can't help themselves. And those are two definitions 24 00:01:31.040 --> 00:01:36.480 of mercy that we typically think of. But mercy, which 25 00:01:36.480 --> 00:01:38.560 by the way, is a part of God's character, has 26 00:01:38.599 --> 00:01:41.840 so much more to say and to do in your 27 00:01:41.920 --> 00:01:45.079 life than simply those two things. Mercy is really like 28 00:01:45.120 --> 00:01:50.840 a it's like a diamond. It's multifaceted. And this weekend 29 00:01:51.120 --> 00:01:54.439 I want us to look at seven facets of mercy, 30 00:01:55.079 --> 00:02:00.200 seven ways that you can transform your relationships, because I 31 00:02:00.200 --> 00:02:02.719 guarantee you, if you'll learn how to be an agent 32 00:02:02.799 --> 00:02:07.799 of mercy, it's going to change your work relationships, your marriage, 33 00:02:07.920 --> 00:02:12.919 your friendships, family relationships, any other relationship you've got if 34 00:02:12.919 --> 00:02:15.800 you learn how to be an agent of mercy. But 35 00:02:15.879 --> 00:02:18.919 before we look at how to practice mercy in a relationship, 36 00:02:19.080 --> 00:02:22.319 I want to just ask the question why, Why in 37 00:02:22.360 --> 00:02:25.280 the world should I be merciful? So just write these 38 00:02:25.280 --> 00:02:27.280 four downs. This is kind of a little introduction here. 39 00:02:27.520 --> 00:02:29.639 And the first reason that we need to show mercy 40 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:33.319 is because God has shown me mercy. God has shown 41 00:02:33.680 --> 00:02:37.080 me mercy. The Bible says that God is merciful. It's 42 00:02:37.120 --> 00:02:40.240 emphasized all through the Bible. There are literally hundreds and 43 00:02:40.400 --> 00:02:44.199 hundreds of scripture to talk about God's mercy and his love, 44 00:02:44.479 --> 00:02:47.879 his compassion, and his grace. Let me show you a 45 00:02:47.919 --> 00:02:50.159 couple of verses. One is up here on the screen. Ephesians, 46 00:02:50.240 --> 00:02:53.800 chapter two, verse four or five says this, God's mercy 47 00:02:54.360 --> 00:02:58.639 is so abundant and his love for us is so 48 00:02:58.840 --> 00:03:04.199 great that why we were spiritually dead in our disobedience. 49 00:03:04.840 --> 00:03:08.520 He brought us to life with Christ. It is by 50 00:03:08.599 --> 00:03:12.360 God's grace you have been saved. God has shown mercy 51 00:03:12.400 --> 00:03:15.319 to us. Now the point is this, God wants me 52 00:03:15.360 --> 00:03:16.960 to act in the same way to our other people. 53 00:03:17.080 --> 00:03:19.280 He wants me to pass on the mercy that I 54 00:03:19.400 --> 00:03:21.680 received from God. He wants me to pass on. Look 55 00:03:21.719 --> 00:03:24.000 at the next verse. It's there on your outline, Matthew eighteen. 56 00:03:24.960 --> 00:03:27.800 Shouldn't you have mercy on others just as I had 57 00:03:27.879 --> 00:03:32.840 mercy on you. Jesus is telling a story here about 58 00:03:32.879 --> 00:03:38.439 an unmerciful employee and he owes his boss some money, 59 00:03:39.319 --> 00:03:41.639 and the boss says, well, I'm gonna show mercy on you. 60 00:03:41.800 --> 00:03:44.319 Let's just clear your debt and I'm we'll just wipe 61 00:03:44.319 --> 00:03:46.960 it off and just say we're even. And the guy 62 00:03:46.960 --> 00:03:49.560 can't believe it because he's been shown such great mercy. 63 00:03:49.680 --> 00:03:51.439 But then he goes out to some people who owe 64 00:03:51.479 --> 00:03:55.000 him some money far less money, and he starts grabbing 65 00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:56.520 him by the throat. He say, pay me here, I'm 66 00:03:56.520 --> 00:03:59.439 gonna have you thrown in prison. When the boss hears 67 00:03:59.479 --> 00:04:02.080 about it, he goes, what are you doing. I was 68 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:04.599 merciful to you, and you're not merciful to the people 69 00:04:04.639 --> 00:04:07.639 around you. You're a wicked guy, and he throws him 70 00:04:07.639 --> 00:04:11.840 in prison. God says, if I show mercy to you, 71 00:04:11.919 --> 00:04:14.520 I expect you to show it to others. God has 72 00:04:14.560 --> 00:04:18.160 shown me mercy. Second reason, God commands me to be merciful. 73 00:04:19.759 --> 00:04:26.360 God commands me to be merciful. There's a verse in 74 00:04:26.439 --> 00:04:28.480 the Bible in Micah. I'm going to show it to 75 00:04:28.519 --> 00:04:31.879 you up here on the screen. It's again one of 76 00:04:31.920 --> 00:04:37.000 many verses. God has told you what is good and 77 00:04:37.079 --> 00:04:40.360 what he requires from you. Okay, so whatever comes next 78 00:04:40.439 --> 00:04:43.519 is what God says is good and is required of you. 79 00:04:44.120 --> 00:04:46.480 And here's what's required of you. Three things to do 80 00:04:46.560 --> 00:04:50.000 what is right with others, to love, being merciful, to 81 00:04:50.040 --> 00:04:54.040 others and to live humbly in fellowship with God. Now 82 00:04:54.240 --> 00:04:56.360 leave that up there for a minute. That's if you 83 00:04:56.399 --> 00:04:59.079 want to summarize what life's all about. God says, this 84 00:04:59.160 --> 00:05:01.079 is what's required of you. If you're gonna be in 85 00:05:01.120 --> 00:05:02.920 my family, if you're going to be my child, you 86 00:05:03.000 --> 00:05:05.319 gotta do what's right with others. You got to love 87 00:05:05.399 --> 00:05:08.160 being merciful to others, and you got to live humbly 88 00:05:08.160 --> 00:05:11.480 in fellowship with God. Let me shock you with this 89 00:05:11.560 --> 00:05:16.279 next statement. God says that being merciful is more important 90 00:05:16.319 --> 00:05:20.720 than worship. Did you hear that? God says that you 91 00:05:20.839 --> 00:05:25.360 being merciful to other people is actually more important than worship. 92 00:05:25.879 --> 00:05:29.839 Hoseiah six, verse six. God says this, I don't want 93 00:05:29.879 --> 00:05:35.839 your sacrifices. I want you to be merciful. Now what 94 00:05:36.000 --> 00:05:38.759 is he saying here? He's saying, I don't want your 95 00:05:38.839 --> 00:05:43.000 acts of worship. I want you to be merciful. This 96 00:05:43.079 --> 00:05:48.040 is much more important. In fact, this verse Hoseiah chapter six, 97 00:05:48.199 --> 00:05:52.079 verse six is so important Jesus quotes it two times 98 00:05:52.240 --> 00:05:56.199 in his ministry in two totally unrelated situations. In debates 99 00:05:56.199 --> 00:05:58.800 with the Pharisees. This is one of the most important 100 00:05:58.879 --> 00:06:01.519 verses in the Bible. So look that again. I don't 101 00:06:01.560 --> 00:06:06.160 want your sacrifices. I want you to be merciful. God 102 00:06:06.199 --> 00:06:10.199 is saying, I prefer a flexible heart over an inflexible ritual. 103 00:06:11.879 --> 00:06:13.920 I don't care if you come and saying I praise you, 104 00:06:14.000 --> 00:06:15.879 I love you, You're great, and all of that. And 105 00:06:15.920 --> 00:06:17.720 then you go out and you treat people like dirt. 106 00:06:18.279 --> 00:06:20.920 You treat your your wife or your husband, or your children, 107 00:06:21.000 --> 00:06:22.800 or your friends, or the people you work with, or 108 00:06:23.279 --> 00:06:25.839 or people who are working at fast food joints, whatever. 109 00:06:26.720 --> 00:06:29.199 He says. If you don't treat people with mercy, you've 110 00:06:29.199 --> 00:06:32.800 missed the whole point. God's shown me mercy, and he 111 00:06:32.839 --> 00:06:35.240 commands me to be merciful. There's a third reason I 112 00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:37.079 need to learn what we're gonna look at this weekend, 113 00:06:37.360 --> 00:06:39.839 and it's because I'm gonna need more mercy in the future. 114 00:06:42.399 --> 00:06:44.720 I'm gonna need more mercy in the future. You're not 115 00:06:44.759 --> 00:06:47.079 gonna be perfect between now and when you get to heaven. 116 00:06:48.680 --> 00:06:51.680 And the Bible tells us that we cannot receive what 117 00:06:51.720 --> 00:06:56.959 we are unwilling to give. And so in James chapter 118 00:06:57.000 --> 00:07:02.040 two James two, verse thirteen, the Bible says this you 119 00:07:02.800 --> 00:07:08.079 must circle that word must. You must show mercy to others, 120 00:07:08.800 --> 00:07:14.399 or God won't show mercy to you. But here's the 121 00:07:14.439 --> 00:07:19.120 good news. The person who shows mercy can stand without 122 00:07:19.160 --> 00:07:22.600 fear at the judgment. Don't you want to be able 123 00:07:22.639 --> 00:07:24.160 to do that on judgment day? To be able to 124 00:07:24.199 --> 00:07:27.879 stand without fear on judgment day? It says, the person 125 00:07:28.279 --> 00:07:32.600 who shows mercy can stand without fear on the judgment day. 126 00:07:32.920 --> 00:07:36.319 Now there's the fourth reason, and that is showing mercy 127 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:43.040 brings or causes happiness. Showing mercy brings happiness, it's really 128 00:07:43.160 --> 00:07:48.360 the source of happiness. The Bible teaches over and over 129 00:07:48.399 --> 00:07:51.879 in scripture that the more merciful I am, the happier 130 00:07:52.120 --> 00:07:54.759 I'm going to be. Remember the beatitudes. The word blessed 131 00:07:54.839 --> 00:07:58.680 also means happy macarios. He's saying, happy are the merciful. 132 00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:01.040 If you want to be happy, you need to learn 133 00:08:01.439 --> 00:08:04.480 this quality. And the more you learn this quality, the 134 00:08:04.600 --> 00:08:07.639 happier you're gonna be. Look at this verse on the screen. 135 00:08:08.120 --> 00:08:10.319 The Bible says, if you want to be happy Proverbs 136 00:08:10.319 --> 00:08:13.879 fourteen twenty one, be kind to those in need. And 137 00:08:13.879 --> 00:08:17.920 then he says it is a sin to despise anyone, 138 00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:21.000 and let me show you another one. Proverbs eleven seventeen 139 00:08:21.120 --> 00:08:26.680 says this, a merciful person helps himself, but the cool 140 00:08:26.800 --> 00:08:31.720 person hurts himself. So you actually help yourself when you 141 00:08:31.800 --> 00:08:35.600 are merciful. I love this verse Proverbs eleven seventeen. In 142 00:08:35.639 --> 00:08:39.080 the Living Bible, it says, your own soul is nourished 143 00:08:40.399 --> 00:08:45.159 when you show mercy. Your own soul is nourished when 144 00:08:45.360 --> 00:08:49.480 you show mercy. So these four reasons God shown me mercy. 145 00:08:49.600 --> 00:08:52.320 He commands me to be merciful. I'll need mercy in 146 00:08:52.320 --> 00:08:56.440 the future, and it's the key to happiness. Tell me 147 00:08:56.639 --> 00:08:58.879 that this is an important quality that I need to 148 00:08:58.919 --> 00:09:10.480 build into my life. All right, today, I want to 149 00:09:10.480 --> 00:09:12.559 invite you to join me in something that's very close 150 00:09:12.600 --> 00:09:16.679 to my heart, fulfilling the great commission of Jesus Christ. 151 00:09:17.559 --> 00:09:19.519 Sharing the good news is the most important thing we 152 00:09:19.559 --> 00:09:24.320 do when we work together. There's nothing that God cannot 153 00:09:24.519 --> 00:09:29.559 do to us. When we're unified through daily hope. The 154 00:09:29.600 --> 00:09:34.159 message of Jesus Christ is now reaching nearly every country 155 00:09:34.240 --> 00:09:36.600 in the world. That's one hundred and ninety seven nations. 156 00:09:37.399 --> 00:09:41.320 We're going to even places where it's difficult or dangerous 157 00:09:41.840 --> 00:09:46.080 or illegal to talk about Christ. Openly. We're sharing the 158 00:09:46.159 --> 00:09:51.759 certain hope of Jesus and it's changing lives every single day. 159 00:09:52.279 --> 00:09:55.840 Right now, we have an incredible opportunity. That's why I'm 160 00:09:56.000 --> 00:10:00.200 saying this to you personally. There's some very generous friends 161 00:10:01.279 --> 00:10:05.360 that have offered to match every single gift given to 162 00:10:05.480 --> 00:10:11.360 Daily Hope dollar for dollar. That means whatever you give 163 00:10:11.679 --> 00:10:15.639 today is going to be doubled in impact. So I'm 164 00:10:15.679 --> 00:10:20.759 asking you. I want to encourage you to give as 165 00:10:20.799 --> 00:10:23.440 God leads you today, and I want you to pray 166 00:10:23.480 --> 00:10:27.120 this prayer, God, what do you want to give through me? 167 00:10:28.039 --> 00:10:30.240 Not say God, what should I give? Say God? What 168 00:10:30.320 --> 00:10:32.000 do you want to give through me? That's called giving 169 00:10:32.039 --> 00:10:36.399 by faith, giving by revelation, and your gift will go 170 00:10:36.519 --> 00:10:39.840 twice as far to share the certain hope of Jesus 171 00:10:39.960 --> 00:10:45.440 Christ and make disciples all around the world. God bless you. 172 00:10:45.440 --> 00:10:47.600 You know when you give a gift to Daily Hope, 173 00:10:47.720 --> 00:10:51.200 you're helping share the hope of Jesus with people everywhere, 174 00:10:51.399 --> 00:10:54.480 and right now your gift will be doubled by the 175 00:10:54.679 --> 00:10:59.120 fifty thousand dollars matching grant. Just scan the QR code 176 00:10:59.399 --> 00:11:06.799 or go to dailyhopetv dot com. 177 00:11:06.919 --> 00:11:10.080 All right, let's look at how can I learn this 178 00:11:10.200 --> 00:11:12.879 quality of mercy in a world that's not very merciful, 179 00:11:12.879 --> 00:11:16.559 it's pretty unmerciful. How do I fulfill what God calls 180 00:11:16.639 --> 00:11:21.000 my ministry of mercy? Some of these ways you're quite 181 00:11:21.039 --> 00:11:23.279 familiar with, but I guarantee you there's a few of 182 00:11:23.320 --> 00:11:25.559 them that you probably have never even thought of. Oh 183 00:11:25.600 --> 00:11:27.960 that's a part of mercy, and yes it is too. 184 00:11:28.240 --> 00:11:33.919 Let's look at them. Number one, be patient with people's quirks. 185 00:11:35.440 --> 00:11:39.879 Be patient with people's quirks. I'm talking about don't look 186 00:11:39.919 --> 00:11:47.639 at them right now. They're idiosyncrasies, their peculiarities, their mannerisms, 187 00:11:47.720 --> 00:11:55.320 their odd behavior, they're irritating habits. You know what I'm 188 00:11:55.320 --> 00:12:00.519 talking about, right, Okay, you show mercy. You you show 189 00:12:00.600 --> 00:12:05.519 mercy when you don't get irritated and you don't get angry, 190 00:12:05.519 --> 00:12:10.519 and you don't get uptight with people's personal quirks. And 191 00:12:10.559 --> 00:12:13.600 we've all got them. You've got them, I've got them, 192 00:12:13.879 --> 00:12:18.159 and we've all got these little mannerisms and irritating habits. 193 00:12:18.919 --> 00:12:22.120 A way of speaking and thinking and talking and acting 194 00:12:22.799 --> 00:12:26.960 when you control your anger and when you refuse to 195 00:12:27.000 --> 00:12:32.840 get upset by people's quirks, you are showing mercy. It's 196 00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:37.240 a very practical way. Now I've been married thirty eight years. 197 00:12:37.320 --> 00:12:39.639 I will have been married thirty nine years before this 198 00:12:39.720 --> 00:12:42.960 month is over. I want to give you maybe the 199 00:12:43.000 --> 00:12:45.759 most important marriage advice you'll ever get in your life. 200 00:12:46.960 --> 00:12:51.600 It's the next verse Ephesians four to two. Be patient 201 00:12:51.759 --> 00:12:58.200 with each other, making allowances for each other's faults. Why 202 00:12:58.480 --> 00:13:04.120 because of your love The phrase making allowance, making allowance 203 00:13:04.200 --> 00:13:12.639 for each other's faults. You see, you married a sinner guys, 204 00:13:13.519 --> 00:13:19.120 and she married a bigger one. Two imperfect people cannot 205 00:13:19.159 --> 00:13:23.960 make a perfect marriage. You have faults, your spouse has faults. 206 00:13:24.600 --> 00:13:29.000 And marriage is the great. Marriage is the union of 207 00:13:29.080 --> 00:13:33.840 two great forgivers. That's what makes a great marriage. It's 208 00:13:33.879 --> 00:13:37.919 the union of two great forgivers. Now it says, here, 209 00:13:38.360 --> 00:13:41.320 make allowance for each other's false because you're loved. The 210 00:13:41.480 --> 00:13:44.559 number one place you need to learn to show mercy 211 00:13:45.159 --> 00:13:49.279 is at home. It's at home. Why because you see 212 00:13:49.320 --> 00:13:54.159 each other's faults far more than anybody else does, and 213 00:13:54.200 --> 00:13:56.399 you're up close and personal with those faults, and you've 214 00:13:56.399 --> 00:13:59.799 got to live with them the rest of your life. 215 00:14:00.519 --> 00:14:04.480 So show mercy. Show mercy, you know, when I used 216 00:14:04.519 --> 00:14:07.120 to do marriage counseling, I discovered that marriages don't die 217 00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:12.039 usually because of one big catastrophe. Marriages are buried because 218 00:14:12.080 --> 00:14:16.960 of a lot of little digs, And they're just little 219 00:14:17.240 --> 00:14:20.879 nagging and digging and nagging and digging. It says, make 220 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:24.879 allowance for each other's faults because of your love. Look 221 00:14:24.879 --> 00:14:27.440 over this verse on the screen. James two thirteen says, 222 00:14:27.720 --> 00:14:31.120 the man who makes no allowances for others will find 223 00:14:31.200 --> 00:14:37.639 none made for him. None made show mercy. The Bible says, 224 00:14:37.639 --> 00:14:40.960 we show mercy by being patient with each other's quirks, 225 00:14:41.519 --> 00:14:44.480 our foibles, our weaknesses, are mistakes, all of the things 226 00:14:44.480 --> 00:14:47.720 that make us make us human. Say I really want 227 00:14:47.759 --> 00:14:50.039 to do that? How do I How do I get 228 00:14:50.080 --> 00:14:53.960 more patients with my kids, with my spouse, with my friends? 229 00:14:54.039 --> 00:14:58.840 How do I get more patient? One word wisdom. The 230 00:14:58.879 --> 00:15:02.240 wiser you get, the more patient you will be. The 231 00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:05.440 Bible says this in James chapter three. The wisdom that 232 00:15:05.519 --> 00:15:11.759 comes from Heaven is pure and peace loving, and gentle 233 00:15:11.919 --> 00:15:15.840 at all times. Circle all gentle at all times, and 234 00:15:15.960 --> 00:15:22.200 is willing to yield to others. Wisdom is full of mercy. 235 00:15:22.799 --> 00:15:25.440 So the wiser you get, the more merciful, you get 236 00:15:25.639 --> 00:15:32.519 a lot of people who think they're wise. Aren't there, pompous? Pompous? 237 00:15:34.759 --> 00:15:38.879 You thought I was going to say that worried wisdom 238 00:15:38.960 --> 00:15:42.600 is full of mercy. Now, notice says there wisdom from 239 00:15:42.600 --> 00:15:45.559 heaven is peace loving. If you're not peace loving, you're 240 00:15:45.600 --> 00:15:49.639 not wise. It says, it's gentle at all times. If 241 00:15:49.679 --> 00:15:54.759 you're easily irritated, you're not wise. It says, it's willing 242 00:15:54.799 --> 00:15:58.279 to yield. If you're unwilling to yield, you're not wise. 243 00:15:59.720 --> 00:16:04.919 The miser I become, the more patient and merciful I become, 244 00:16:06.000 --> 00:16:12.440 the more unbending, the more irritating, the more angry, the 245 00:16:12.440 --> 00:16:16.159 more I get upset, the more foolish. The Bible says, 246 00:16:16.519 --> 00:16:19.559 I am. If you're easily irritated, you're not wife. So 247 00:16:19.759 --> 00:16:23.000 be patient with people's quirks. Number two, the second way 248 00:16:23.039 --> 00:16:26.799 to practice mercy this week. Help anyone hurting around me, 249 00:16:28.320 --> 00:16:31.360 Help anyone hurting around me. They're hurting people all around you, 250 00:16:31.879 --> 00:16:35.039 but too often we're too busy to notice it. If 251 00:16:35.080 --> 00:16:38.320 you care, you'll be aware. Jesus told the story of 252 00:16:38.320 --> 00:16:41.399 the Good Samaritan to teach this very point about helping 253 00:16:41.440 --> 00:16:46.360 the hurting around us is the meaning of mercy. A 254 00:16:46.399 --> 00:16:48.600 guy came to Jesus one day and he said, Jesus, 255 00:16:48.759 --> 00:16:53.360 what's the most important command in the Bible? Okay, give 256 00:16:53.399 --> 00:16:55.440 me the bottom line here. I don't have time to 257 00:16:55.440 --> 00:16:58.960 read the whole Bible. So what is it that matters most? 258 00:16:58.960 --> 00:17:00.960 And Jesus said, oh, that's really easy. It's two things. 259 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:04.279 Love God with all your heart and love your neighbor 260 00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:06.680 as yourself. That's the whole Bible in a nutshell. Love 261 00:17:06.720 --> 00:17:09.480 God with all your heart and love your neighbors yourself. Now, 262 00:17:09.519 --> 00:17:11.200 the guy wants to get out of this, and he's 263 00:17:11.359 --> 00:17:13.599 kind of weaseling out of us. He says, so love 264 00:17:13.640 --> 00:17:18.079 your neighbors yourself. Yeah, who's my neighbor? And Jesus says, well, 265 00:17:18.119 --> 00:17:20.799 let me tell you a story, and he tells the story, 266 00:17:21.039 --> 00:17:23.599 the famous story of the Good Samaritan, of the man 267 00:17:23.640 --> 00:17:26.200 who was going down the road to Jericho and he 268 00:17:26.279 --> 00:17:30.359 is he's robbed, and he's beaten and he's abused, and 269 00:17:30.400 --> 00:17:31.960 he's left for dead at the side of the road 270 00:17:32.279 --> 00:17:35.200 and three guys pass by him, and two of them 271 00:17:35.240 --> 00:17:39.240 do nothing, and the third guy, of another race and 272 00:17:39.359 --> 00:17:43.880 culture stops and helps him nurses him back to health, 273 00:17:44.160 --> 00:17:48.160 puts him on his donkey, takes him to a hotel 274 00:17:48.240 --> 00:17:50.960 or motel, checks in, pays the bill for the guy 275 00:17:51.160 --> 00:17:54.359 and says that if he has any other bills, when 276 00:17:54.400 --> 00:17:56.920 I come back by, I'll pay for it. And Jesus 277 00:17:56.920 --> 00:17:58.799 looks at the guy. He says, who's my neighbors? Who 278 00:17:58.799 --> 00:18:01.839 do you think was the neighbor? And the man says, 279 00:18:02.319 --> 00:18:06.920 the guy who showed the most mercy, the guy who 280 00:18:07.000 --> 00:18:11.240 showed the most mercy. You cannot love your neighbor as 281 00:18:11.279 --> 00:18:16.000 yourself without being merciful. And we help those around us. 282 00:18:16.079 --> 00:18:19.920 Look at some verses here Privers three twenty seven. Whenever 283 00:18:19.960 --> 00:18:24.319 you possibly can do good to those who need it, 284 00:18:24.559 --> 00:18:27.079 you got to look for it now, by the way, 285 00:18:27.279 --> 00:18:29.920 when you are helping people in need. And there are 286 00:18:29.920 --> 00:18:32.880 going to be people in your area of life this 287 00:18:32.920 --> 00:18:35.880 week that God intentionally puts in your life to allow 288 00:18:35.920 --> 00:18:38.960 you to practice mercy. They're going to have an emotional need, 289 00:18:39.400 --> 00:18:42.000 They're going to have a physical need, a financial need. 290 00:18:43.039 --> 00:18:47.519 They may just need an assistance. They may need, you know, 291 00:18:48.440 --> 00:18:51.640 help you to care for him in some way. God, 292 00:18:51.920 --> 00:18:54.599 when he's watching you, is not simply watching what you do. 293 00:18:54.680 --> 00:18:58.440 He's watching your attitude. Look at this verse Romans twelve eight. 294 00:18:58.960 --> 00:19:06.519 When you do acts of mercy, show mercy with what cheerfulness? Yeah? 295 00:19:06.559 --> 00:19:09.599 Circle that with cheerfulness. He says, you don't do it 296 00:19:10.440 --> 00:19:12.559 grinning and bearing it. You don't do it with a 297 00:19:12.720 --> 00:19:16.319 grudging attitude. I love this verse Romans twelve eight and 298 00:19:16.359 --> 00:19:18.559 the message paraphrase. Look up here on the screen. It 299 00:19:18.599 --> 00:19:23.200 says this, if you work with the disadvantaged, don't let 300 00:19:23.240 --> 00:19:27.880 yourself get irritated with them or depressed by them. Keep 301 00:19:27.880 --> 00:19:31.440 a smile on your face. Mercy is being patient with 302 00:19:31.519 --> 00:19:36.680 people's quirks, and it's being helpful with people's hurts. Number 303 00:19:36.680 --> 00:19:40.720 three third way you can show mercy this week. Give 304 00:19:40.720 --> 00:19:46.319 people a second chance, and everybody needs that. Give people 305 00:19:46.920 --> 00:19:52.000 a second chance. We forgive the fallen, especially those who 306 00:19:52.000 --> 00:19:54.880 have hurt you. You need to forgive. Now. That's not normal, 307 00:19:55.000 --> 00:19:58.680 is it? Normally? When somebody hurts us, we want to 308 00:19:58.680 --> 00:20:01.680 do one or two things, either get even or be 309 00:20:02.039 --> 00:20:06.160 write them off. Somebody hurts you, you don't want to 310 00:20:06.200 --> 00:20:09.559 be giving them a second chance. Your natural inclination. That 311 00:20:09.599 --> 00:20:12.200 guy hurt me at work, you know, he messed me up. 312 00:20:12.240 --> 00:20:14.160 He you know, he put me down in front of 313 00:20:14.240 --> 00:20:16.759 somebody else, whatever, you either want to get back or 314 00:20:16.799 --> 00:20:19.599 you want to write them off. But here's what the 315 00:20:19.599 --> 00:20:27.279 Bible says Ephesians four. Don't get bitter or angry or 316 00:20:27.400 --> 00:20:31.279 use harsh words that hurt each other. Don't yell at 317 00:20:31.279 --> 00:20:38.000 one another or curse or ever be rude. Instead, be 318 00:20:38.200 --> 00:20:43.240 kind and merciful and forgive others just as God forgave you. 319 00:20:43.440 --> 00:20:47.119 Now notice in that verse, Jesus contrast or the Bible 320 00:20:47.160 --> 00:20:53.359 contrast mercy with six negative responses. You might circle those, okay, 321 00:20:53.720 --> 00:20:56.519 because he says if you want to help, if you 322 00:20:56.559 --> 00:20:59.039 want to be merciful, he says, don't get bitter. That's 323 00:20:59.119 --> 00:21:04.200 number one. Don't get angry, don't use harsh words, don't yell, 324 00:21:04.599 --> 00:21:08.240 don't curse, and don't be rude. Do you see why 325 00:21:08.839 --> 00:21:11.599 mercy is so important today? Because that's the way the 326 00:21:11.599 --> 00:21:16.279 world acts today. That's the world responds with bitterness, harsh words, hurt. 327 00:21:16.680 --> 00:21:19.599 If you don't believe it, just go on the internet 328 00:21:20.319 --> 00:21:23.279 and you'll see that there's very, very little mercy on 329 00:21:23.599 --> 00:21:28.200 the internet. How would you rate yourself on mercy? How 330 00:21:28.240 --> 00:21:32.079 would you rate yourself bitter, angry, harsh words, you yelled, 331 00:21:32.119 --> 00:21:34.559 your curse, you get rude, or you always kind and 332 00:21:34.599 --> 00:21:38.319 merciful forgiving others just as God forgave you. How would 333 00:21:38.359 --> 00:21:41.519 you rate yourself on this? It's number four. Another way 334 00:21:41.680 --> 00:21:45.960 to show mercy, do good to those who hurt me. 335 00:21:47.440 --> 00:21:52.359 I am to do good to those who hurt me. See, 336 00:21:52.599 --> 00:21:55.839 if you really boil it down, mercy is giving people 337 00:21:55.920 --> 00:22:02.319 what they need, not what they deserve. That's mercy, giving 338 00:22:02.359 --> 00:22:04.440 people what they need, not what they deserve. Why because 339 00:22:04.480 --> 00:22:07.039 that's what God does with you. God gives you what 340 00:22:07.079 --> 00:22:09.079 you need, not what you deserve. If I got what 341 00:22:09.160 --> 00:22:11.839 I deserve from God, I wouldn't be standing here. I 342 00:22:11.839 --> 00:22:15.519 wouldn't be alive. But the Bible says we give people 343 00:22:15.519 --> 00:22:17.759 what they need, not what they deserve, and we do 344 00:22:17.839 --> 00:22:20.000 good to those who are Why should I do good 345 00:22:20.079 --> 00:22:23.440 to those who hurt me? How many times have you 346 00:22:23.480 --> 00:22:29.359 heard me say hurt people? Hurt people? Yeah, hurt people 347 00:22:29.440 --> 00:22:34.960 hurt people. And the people who you want to love 348 00:22:35.000 --> 00:22:39.519 the least are those who need it the most. The 349 00:22:39.599 --> 00:22:43.799 most hurtful people are those who need massive doses of 350 00:22:43.920 --> 00:22:48.720 love and mercy. Let me ask you to just think 351 00:22:48.759 --> 00:22:50.799 in your mind, who's hurt you the most in life? 352 00:22:52.119 --> 00:22:54.359 Think about that who hurts you the most in life? 353 00:22:55.119 --> 00:22:58.200 They need your mercy. Let me ask you this, who's 354 00:22:58.240 --> 00:23:05.119 hurts you the most recently in life? They need your mercy. 355 00:23:05.880 --> 00:23:09.200 The Bible says this in Luke chapter six, Jesus says, 356 00:23:09.519 --> 00:23:14.160 love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to 357 00:23:14.200 --> 00:23:18.319 them without expecting anything back. Hea witmue, why would I 358 00:23:18.359 --> 00:23:20.240 want to do that? Well, remember those four reasons we 359 00:23:20.279 --> 00:23:23.759 went over. God's shown me mercy. He commands me to 360 00:23:23.759 --> 00:23:26.559 be merciful. I'm gonna need mercy in the future, and 361 00:23:26.559 --> 00:23:30.480 it's the key to happiness. Anytime you hold on to hurt, 362 00:23:30.519 --> 00:23:34.640 you're making yourself miserable. You're not hurting them. Love your enemies, 363 00:23:34.680 --> 00:23:37.640 do good to them, and lend to them without expecting 364 00:23:37.680 --> 00:23:40.440 get anything back. You see, if somebody hurts you, that 365 00:23:40.519 --> 00:23:45.640 puts you above them. If you forgive them, if you 366 00:23:45.680 --> 00:23:47.559 get even, you're just on the same level. You know 367 00:23:47.640 --> 00:23:49.599 better than they are. If you get even, If you 368 00:23:49.640 --> 00:23:51.359 do a hurt, you're beneath them. If you get even, 369 00:23:51.400 --> 00:23:53.640 you get your even. But if you forgive them, you're 370 00:23:53.680 --> 00:23:56.400 above them. Morally, Love your enemies, do good to them, 371 00:23:56.680 --> 00:24:01.319 and lend to them without expecting anything back. Your reward 372 00:24:01.440 --> 00:24:04.559 will be great. There's a motivation, and you will be 373 00:24:04.640 --> 00:24:07.480 the children of the most high. In other words, you 374 00:24:07.519 --> 00:24:11.160 get the identity because God is kind to the ungrateful 375 00:24:11.200 --> 00:24:13.640 and wicked. Is God kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 376 00:24:13.720 --> 00:24:16.400 Just look at the world. God is kind to the 377 00:24:16.480 --> 00:24:21.400 ungrateful and wicked, And so he says, so be merciful, 378 00:24:21.960 --> 00:24:26.200 just as your father is merciful. You know. There's a 379 00:24:26.200 --> 00:24:33.799 famous story about President Abraham Lincoln's mercy that after the 380 00:24:33.880 --> 00:24:37.720 Southern States were defeated by the Northern States in the 381 00:24:37.720 --> 00:24:40.119 Civil War in America one hundred and fifty years ago, 382 00:24:41.440 --> 00:24:45.759 President Lincoln spoke to a crowd in Washington, d c. 383 00:24:45.960 --> 00:24:48.759 From the balcony of the White House, and he was 384 00:24:48.839 --> 00:24:54.039 laying out how his plan for reconstruction. And at the 385 00:24:54.079 --> 00:24:57.200 end of his speech, a very famous senator from Iowa, 386 00:24:57.240 --> 00:25:01.799 whose name was James Harlan, shouted out, and what do 387 00:25:01.880 --> 00:25:05.759 we do with the rebels? What do we do with 388 00:25:05.799 --> 00:25:08.039 these confederates who had started this whole war in the 389 00:25:08.079 --> 00:25:13.960 first place. And the unmerciful crowd shouted back, hang them, 390 00:25:14.920 --> 00:25:20.599 hang them, hang them. And what was interesting, and this 391 00:25:20.640 --> 00:25:23.920 famous story is that Lincoln's youngest son, Tad, who was 392 00:25:23.960 --> 00:25:26.240 at eleven at the time, was standing next to him 393 00:25:26.559 --> 00:25:30.119 and he said, looked up at his daddy. He said, no, Daddy, no, Papa, no, 394 00:25:30.640 --> 00:25:35.319 not hang them, hang on to them, hang on to them. 395 00:25:35.599 --> 00:25:38.160 And Lincoln grinned his eleven year old son and he said, 396 00:25:38.200 --> 00:25:41.680 that's it to Tad's got the answer. We're not going 397 00:25:41.759 --> 00:25:45.519 to hang them. We're going to hang on to them. 398 00:25:45.599 --> 00:25:50.079 And that is mercy number five. A fifth way to 399 00:25:50.119 --> 00:25:53.359 show mercy is to be kind. The Bible says, to 400 00:25:53.440 --> 00:25:59.279 those who offend me, be kind to those who offend me. 401 00:26:01.200 --> 00:26:06.559