Beatitude #5- The Merciful, Part 1 (TMF:404)

Thursday, May 12, 2016
Peace to Live By: Beatitude #5- The Merciful, Part 1 (TMF:404) - Daniel Litton
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       So, the first Beatitude we are looking at today is: ““Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy” (ESV). As we saw last time, and will continue to see today, Jesus goes very counter-culture when it comes to the Beatitudes. But that’s the way God is, really. Our world has been affected by sin—and continues to be affected by Satan and his demons, and therefore, what the world thinks often doesn’t match what Scripture says. In our world today, the drive of our society is for people to be strong. There is nothing wrong with being strong—the only problem is, the world most often has an incorrect attitude about what ‘being strong’ actually means. Jesus called his followers—his disciples—to be merciful. A lot of people, though, see mercy as weak. Yet throughout the New Testament we see God’s call on our hearts, as Christians, to be merciful. Indeed, it is a command from God. Jesus said on one occasion, ““Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice. ’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:12-13, ESV).