Following God’s Example in Church Training
(1) Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints?
(2) Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye
unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
(3) Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things
that pertain to this life?
Matthew 5:7
(7) Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
In a broad sense, Paul is teaching that we are to learn to deal with situations as God would, and our
training ground is here in this life and in the church. We are undergoing extensive hands-on training
for the profession of judge, which, as Paul implies, will be among our duties as children of God in His
Kingdom. This is no minor matter!
Earlier in my conversion, I clearly left out one of the most important elements needed for making right
judgments. Jesus points out which one in His Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are the merciful, for they
shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7). Had I shown more mercy in those situations, their outcomes would have
been far different—and definitely better.
Generally, the merciful are those people who are affected by the suffering of others. They are affected
in a manner that causes them, not only to offer encouragement to one who is experiencing a rough spot in
his life, but also to work to lessen his suffering.
The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary defines mercy as “a form of love determined by the state or condition of
its objects. Their state is one of suffering and need, while they may be unworthy or ill-deserving. Mercy
is at once the disposition of love respecting such, and the kindly ministry of love for their relief.”
A secular dictionary, The Reader’s Digest Encyclopedic Dictionary, concurs: Mercy is the “kind, compassionate
treatment of an offender, adversary, prisoner in one’s power; compassion where severity is expected, or deserved.”
Among its synonyms are “leniency,” “compassion,” “forgiveness,” “pity,” “kindness,” “tolerance,” “charity,”
“benevolence,” “clemency,” and “forbearance.”
The primary idea behind mercy is rendering a kindness when harshness or condemnation is expected or even deserved.
A merciful person looks beyond the present state of affairs to the potential good that may result from his
compassionate handling of the matter. He is willing to forgo the other’s punishment, his “just deserts,” or his
own desire for revenge in an attempt to produce good fruit from a bad situation.
The nature of God is to be merciful to those He calls. We know that He calls the weak, foolish, and base
(I Corinthians 1:26-28), those who are undesirable in society’s eyes and guilty of sin in His eyes. He extends
great mercy to them, redeeming them from the death penalty and setting them on the path toward eternal life in
the Kingdom of God. In doing so, He sets us an example to follow!
