I desire mercy...

I love that my parents named me Matthew after one of the 12 disciples that followed Jesus. I love it because I am reminded daily of the mercy Christ shows me in my life. I was reminded of it today as I read Matthew 9:9-12. It is in this passage that he calls Matthew to follow Him and it is also in this passage that we read that Jesus went to Matthews home to have dinner. Now, this was not dinner at the 5 star hotel lounge with the Pharisees discussing law. It was in this humble home where he sat with tax collectors and sinners. This was something the Pharisees just could not get their minds around. Why would he sit with them? Why would he eat with them? You see, the Pharisees were about “sacrifice” and making sure everyone knew that, however Jesus says something in this passage that really touches my heart, and as I pondered it and studied it I began to see more and more why we need to be a church of second chances. Jesus says,

“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means. I desire MERCY (italics mine) not sacrifice. For I have not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

Those three words totally took the wind out of my chest…”I desire mercy”.

To totally grasp and sink our teeth into this we need to go back a couple of chapters to Matthew 7:1-6 where he talks about judging others. Often times we are so quick judge others in what is happening in their life and most times we “confront in love” to only make ourselves feel better. Yet Christ is teaching us not to judge, to take care of the sin in our own lives. Why do you think he began teaching first about not judging others? How many of you would like to have mercy shown to you in your life moments? How many of you would like a second chance? Here God was teaching us about second chances and that was must show mercy to others. Here we arrive in chapter 9 and He teaching about second chances.

I find that it is all to easy to say that I will give someone a second chance, but to actually act on that statement, especially if I have been hurt…it can be very difficult. It’s hard to let go. It’s hard to forgive. It’s hard to move on. However, then I look and see how much God has blessed my life and I can say I know it has come because He has shown mercy to me. Yes, I have failed, I have caused pain to others throughout my life and yet God has forgiven, picked me up, dusted me off and has given me a second chance.

My hope and prayer is that we show one another mercy as Christ has told us to. What a reflection of Him into this dark world. Our very actions of mercy to each other are something those who are seeking don’t understand, but thirst for. May we be the glass of MERCY water to them as we show it to one another!

~Pastor Matt Thompson