“LORD have mercy.”
It’s a phase that many may utter in times of distress—whether pleading aloud or under their breath. Whether religious or irreligious. The desire for mercy pervades us all. Who hasn’t been in the hot seat under the glare of impending, rightful judgement and wished to somehow be shown mercy?
While the longing for mercy in times of trouble is a virtually universal feeling, our capacity to show this same quality to others . . . isn’t. We hate our enemies and wish judgment upon them. We love our friends . . . until they wrong us.
But Jesus shows us something different. In Luke 10, we witness a pivotal discussion. When Jesus instructs a lawyer that he is to love his neighbor, the lawyer responds (like most of us might) with a desire to justify himself—he tries to draw the boundary on whom he has to show mercy to and whom he doesn’t. He asks, “Who is my neighbor?”
Jesus responds with a parable. He tells the story of a Jewish man who, while traveling on the road, was attacked by bandits, beaten, robbed, and left for dead. After some time, a religious leader comes by on the same road. He sees the man, clinging to life, and passes by on the other side. Later in the day a second religious man walks down the same road and, sadly, does the exact same thing. He sees the man, creates some distance, and keeps on walking. What hope has the dying man?
Suddenly, a third man, a Samaritan (an ethnic group who shared a mutual hatred with the Jews) walks down this road. Seeing the Jewish man, whom society has set up as his enemy, he chooses to show compassion rather than scorn. He takes the Jewish man with him on his mount and carries him to the nearest inn, tending to his wounds and paying whatever is required for his recovery.
The lawyer is forced to conclude that the one who loved his neighbor was not the leaders he expected to be righteous, but the man, who, having nothing remarkable about him, chose to show mercy to his fellow man.
Jesus instructs us in Luke 6:27-36 to love our enemies, not just our friends. To show mercy to the unmerciful, just as the LORD does. To be compassionate, not just to those who are friendly to us, but to those whose hearts are hard. The Lord, “is kind to the evil and the ungrateful. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.”
Many people speak of world peace and ponder how to achieve it. What would happen, I wonder, if all of us practiced mercy toward others? Perhaps such a peace would come just a little bit closer into focus.
Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall receive mercy.
(Matthew 5:7)