Be Merciful

“Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will bless you for it” 1Pet.3:9.

God wants us to share His mercy with others. And it is because He himself has showed us that that is the way. I have a friend that is saved today; he used to be a Muslim. He has been saved for over ten years and he is doing very well in God. My friend talked to his brother about Jesus and his brother said to him, ‘I have a problem with this your Jesus and this is why I struggle to accept your faith’. So my friend asked, ‘why do you struggle to accept my faith?’ And his brother said to him, ‘You mean if I were to kill someone and then come to Jesus, He will forgive me?’ And my friend said, ‘Jesus will forgive you’. And his brother said, ‘See! I have a problem with that! Why should Jesus forgive me after I have taken someone’s life? I deserve to die; an eye for an eye’. But Jesus said, “No! If they slap you on one cheek, turn the other cheek”. They asked a man of God on a television program I was watching a long time ago; I don’t think I was even saved at the time. So the interviewer said to him, Jesus said if they slap you on one cheek, you should turn the other cheek. And the preacher said, ‘yes, Jesus said so’. And the interviewer said, ‘You Sir, if I slap you on one cheek now, what will you do?’ And the man said, ‘I will not be here for you to slap the other cheek, I will run away’. That qualifies more as turning the other side and not the other cheek. I hope that made you laugh.

Our Gospel is the Gospel of mercy and it is a Gospel of grace. When you come to Jesus, no matter how far you have gone, Jesus welcomes you back home and with open arms at that. And He wants us to do the same thing. “Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will bless you for it” 1Pet.3:8-9 [emphasis added]. Jesus is addressing all of us and not some of us. Don’t say, ‘I forgive you but…’ Don’t retaliate with insults regardless of who insulted you first. Don’t pay anyone back in ‘their own coin’. When someone insults you, bless him or her and do it from your heart. For this is what God has called you to do and when you do it, He will bless you for it.

Thought: Has this been of value to you? Then find ways to show and share.

Prayer: Lord, help me love and love truly, to be tenderhearted, to be who God has called me to be. Lord, teach me to keep a humble attitude at all times, in Jesus Name.