Matthew 5:1-13 The Beatitudes (those who are merciful)

In the continuing saga of the Beatitudes, I present the next in our list of...the merciful (dum dum dum...my dramatic presentation tune!)

Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.

So, here we are at mercy. Yeah, this is like that moment in Karate Kid, where before Ralph Macchio owns that dude he's fighting at the end of the movie, the kid begs for mercy or something, right? Or it's towards the end of Count of Monte Cristo where Guy Pearce goes to James Cavaziel..."what happened to your mercy?" and he replies, "I'm a count, not a saint!" Great line, wrong attitude? Well, perhaps...nonetheless...this is in fact about actually offering mercy.

So, what does this beatitude mean? Of all Beatitudes I've written of thus far, I found this one to be very self-explanatory, but I'll break it down anyway, because it should be as clear as possible.

First, let's give the great example of who is the epitome of merciful. Clearly, it's Christ. He prayed, even on the cross while being crucified, to give mercy to these people who have persecuted him. If we have anyone to look at to admire and love for this it is Him. Even through all the pain that was caused to Him, he still asked for mercy.

That is just SO amazing. To ask God to forgive those who have wronged you.

And here's the best reason to give mercy...ready? Because God grants it to you. He gives it to you when you're a jerk, yelling at Him because things are not going the way you expected, or when you don't believe in His existence. He offers it to you because God is loving and forgiving. But He gives it because He expects you to give it to your fellow man. As Matthew 6:14-15 states, If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. He also gives it when you repent for your sins.

This should just put you in awe. Why? Because we are in NO WAY that good. I find it hard to even comprehend that level of goodness, that level of forgiveness and mercy. It's hard to comprehend because I can't recall a time in life where I have ever been like that.

God's just simply amazing.