Thoughts on Mercy

[straitway]

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy”. (Matt 5:7)

When you consider forgiving the people who have hurt you, you must always consider how much Jesus has forgiven you! You don’t deserve His love and can never earn it. He forgave you because He is a merciful, gracious God.

Mercy is distinctly different from forgiveness because God is merciful to us even when you don’t sin, just as you can be merciful to those who have never done anything against you. God’s mercy doesn’t just forgive your failures and faults, but reaches deep into all your weakness and need. His attitude toward you is merciful.

“But God is so rich in mercy, ..."
Mercy is also related to grace. The work of Grace is what saves you - mercy is what sustains you. Mercy eliminates the pain, grace cures the disease. Mercy offers relief from punishment; grace offers pardon from the crime.

The Hebrew word for mercy is “Checed” which means to get inside someone’s skin, to look at where they view life and feel what they are experiencing; to move in and act on behalf of the one whose hurting. That is exactly what God did when He chose to leave the comfort and glory of Heaven to become one of us.

One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking Him this question: "Teacher, what must I do to receive eternal life?" Jesus replied with a question, "What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?"

The religious man replied with the correct answer "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, `Love your neighbor as yourself.’ " He then asked Jesus another question to justify his behavior; “And who is my neighbor”

Jesus answered him by telling the familiar story of the Good Samaritan found in Luke 10:25-37. The Samaritan handed out mercy by taking notice of the bruised and beaten man laying beside the road, relating to his need AND doing something to help him.

After telling the story Jesus asked, “which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?" The man replied, "The one who showed him mercy." Then, Jesus said, "Yes, now go and do the same."

The dispensing of mercy on your part identifies you not only with the hurting but with God Himself. You are never more like Jesus than when you are giving out mercy. Jesus desires acts of “mercy and not sacrifice.’ (Matthew 9:13) If you truly love God you prove it through the mercy you give.

Mercy Rewrote My Life!

[nytxn1971]

Strait...

That was simply awesome.

* applauds *
Great post! :)

[Sandy]

Strait,

Thanks for sharing that wonderful Post. I second Xerf's amen. it was truly awesome.

[nytxn1971]

Originally posted by Sandy
I second Xerf's amen. it was truly awesome.

Xerf?

:)

[Xerf]

NYTXN, it was a "prophetic post"

Awesome post Straitway!


(see?)

[nytxn1971]

:D

[Legacy]

A good way to understand the meaning of mercy is to see how it relates to grace:

Mercy--not getting what you do deserve / withheld punishment

Grace--getting what you don't deserve / unmerited favor

Mercy is like a judge finding you guilty, but then withholding any punishment. Grace is getting something you could never have imagined. An inexplicable gift. It's like the same judge awarding you $10,000,000.00, after finding you guilty!

[accurate]

. nothing i ever contributed mattered

[nytxn1971]

Legacy, I like what you said about Mercy, but let's put it in it's proper context...

In reality, God's Mercy is being found guility by the Judge and him NOT withholding the punishment, but, instead he takes your punishment himself.

[straitway]

Great thoughts people! Thanks for sharing!

HIS MERCY ENDURETH FOREVER

[nightwatchman]

Jesus said, "I am the way ,the truth and the life..."As the Truth Incarnate He was sent to the world for the purpose of mercy.Mercy is a part of the truth we hold so dear.In fact the two are inseparable.




Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. PROVERBS 3:3-4

[nytxn1971]

Yes, night! So true!

Showing mercy to others is God's will for us.

[Xerf]

Everyone thinks mercy and forgiveness are lovely ideas. That is until we have someone or something to forgive! Then, suddenly, justice and consequences sound like much better ideas. But the fact is: wrath and anger (even when we justify their presence) wreaks havoc in our health, relationships and spiritual walk.

Mercy: Forgiveness that is not deserved .

If it's deserved, it's not mercy

[nytxn1971]

You're right, Xerf.
Sometimes forgiving someone and showing them mercy is one of the hardest things you can do... Sometimes it feels like you're killing yourself by doing it.

[light]

Originally posted by nytxn1971
Yes, night! So true!

Showing mercy to others is God's will for us.

Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. PROVERBS 3:3-4

Mercy is explaining the truth to the lost. Mercy is proclaiming this Acts 2: 38 message to all who have not heard.

Mercy is not embracing those with false doctrine.
We do not show mercy when we tell someone God is so loving that he will go against his own word.
We do not show mercy by telling the man on his death bed he is alright because God is mercy.

Mercy is telling the truth.

[nytxn1971]

Who said anything about embracing false doctrine, light?

[tufluv]

NYTXN1971:
Uh-h, unless my ears and eyes deceive me, (and they don't) I believe LIGHT just DID!

BTW: GREAT picture of you and you new bride!:)
I just might post a pic of me and my hubby as well., someday.

[nytxn1971]

tufluv, thanks for the kind words! :)

In regards to my post, I meant... who said mercy WAS embracing false doctrine. I don't remember seeing that written anywhere...

Perhaps light was seeing something that may have been edited...
Maybe he can shed some 'light' on it... ;)

[light]

[i]Originally posted by nytxn1971
tufluv, thanks for the kind words!

In regards to my post, I meant... who said mercy WAS embracing false doctrine. I don't remember seeing that written anywhere...

Perhaps light was seeing something that may have been edited...
Maybe he can shed some 'light' on it... ;) [/B]

Ron I didn't say you said anything about false doctrine in your post today.
Maybe I didn't get my point across.
The subject of this thread is mercy.
Mercy is not forgiving someone when they do you wrong.
When a race horse breaks it's leg they put it down (death) that's mercy.
Mercy is telling the truth to some lost person. That person then has the opportunity to choose LIFE or DEATH, thats mercy.

Mercy is not always something that makes an individual feel good.
Sometimes mercy is showing tuff love.

Jesus showed mercy when he went to the cross even though he didn't want to die. He obeyed his father thus we have mercy.
Just as Jesus obeyed unto death we must be obediant to him and follow his word to the letter. When we have followed, we then must show mercy by telling the lost the whole truth.

Mercy is TRUTH

[nytxn1971]

Light, I completely agree about telling the lost the truth. However, I believe it must be done with compassion in our hearts and not with a club in our hand. Don't you agree?

*edit*
Please don't get me wrong, I don't mean to say that you DO use a club... I was only asking a question. :)

[tufluv]

DID you ask because of the refernce to : "tuff" love?
I know the question was directed to Light, but I couldn't help but notice and think of the possibility that this might be your inference.
My son used to say: "at least they (his pastor/mbrs) don't try to shove it down out throats" (i.e. the gospel, or our doctrine) evidently meaning I was trying to, although that was not, and is not, my intention, its that all I TALK about has to do with the LORD, the gospel, bible, bible, bible! and if thats "shoving" it down their throats, well, I won't apologize for those doses of "tuff?" love., if indeed, that is how it is interpreted.
Just My Thoughts on this. Thanks for indulging.:bow:

[nytxn1971]

Shoving it down someone's throat isn't cool...

No offence, but I don't think talking about it ALL the time is the answer either. All you do is push them farther away.

There's more that is CAUGHT than TAUGHT...

Using wisdom and being in tune with the Holy Ghost is very important in being a witness of the Lord.

[tufluv]

NYTXN71:

WELL, I did not mean non-stop, gibberish, as regards the Bible, ALTHOUGH, he is NOW the one wanting to talk about it a LOT more than he used to, by phone, I can feel his "excitement", he is beginning to see the "LIGHT", Halleluyah, as a matter of fact, last we spoke, he would not stop, I was so sleepy! Hated to tell him I had to git! AND....HE is coming TONIGHT!!! TO visit with me, from Dallas, he's on the road right now, all prayers appreciated-I'm so so happy!!! PRAISE GOD!! HE IS SO GOOD TO ME.
What I said, in the previous post, that he would say to me, was like about a year ago, and he has since come around more, HOW EXCELLENT, HUH?Maybe by next year, or sooner, he'll also be on this board? GOD knows!
:bow:

And:
Out of curiosity, does the Lord's mercy extend to those on their deathbed, as in- do they need to be baptized in the NAME OF JESUS, in order to be actually "saved" or not? Ive never quite gotten that straight.
Thanks for your input on that, Brother.
I know that HIS MERCY endures forever...but does it depend on 100% complete obedience? (no, I haven't lost my grip on the acts2:38 doctrine, either).

[tufluv]

AND, since NYTXN71 is quite busy being a happy "hubby" :D (lucky guy) at present to answer that Q, (not that he HAS to) I want to add this:

The "shoving it down their throat" method...while irritating at first to some unbelievers, is I think is not nearly as bad as what the EvilOne does. He shows NO MERCY. He constantly barrages folks with his "fiery darts", propoganda of the worldly lifestyles, materialism, you name it, he never lets up...so why should I/we? Counter attack, I say!!:D NO MERCY from me to that devil!

As it turns out, my son came into the Light, despite all that, and maybe in part, because of all that "chatter" from me...from the heart proceedeth all good words! Better that than how I was before, in the world...angry, mad, irritable, etc..."OH what a change in my life...Jesus on the INSIDE, working on the OUTSIDE...oh! what a change in my LIFE! HALLELUYAH!! Great song...illustrating real life application of the WORD of GOD, as that song also reiterates what I've been saying all along: the INSIDE is reflected on the OUTSIDE! in more ways than one! :bow: :bow: :bow:

[light]

Originally posted by tufluv
[B]AND, since NYTXN71 is quite busy being a happy "hubby" :D (lucky guy) at present to answer that Q, (not that he HAS to) I want to add this:

]

Tufluv nytxn 1971 will not answer you. He dosen't believe baptizm is nessary for salvation. He made the following statement on Godplace.com It dosen't matter what you believe on that board.

I still don't think God would shut someone out if there was just absolutely no way for them to get baptized (deathbed conversions, etc.) because I've seen some things that just cannot be explained by the typical apostolic doctrine.
_________________
Ron (nytxn)

[accurate]

oh wonderful, cross-turf battles have life once again.

[tufluv]

Oops! Didn't mean to start anything such as what Jason implied, my apologies to all..Smile, i:) :) its not that bad!

[witness4jesus]

Baptism is necessary for salvation. Paul says, we are buried with him in baptism, planted in the likeness of his death.

Peter says that baptism saves us. The earth was cleansed in the flood. Israel was saved by coming through the waters. We must be born again of the water. Jesus said that.

I am afraid that people bring up deathbeds, and such in order to question what the Bible says. I would just have to say, all I know is what the Bible says. And the Bible shows baptism to be necessary to salvation.

Gods hand is not shortened that it cannot save. Gods knows the intent of every man's heart. Ultimately, we just have to say that those people who die unbaptized are in God's hands, and it is His judgement. But I am not going to tell anyone that they dont need to be baptized.

It isn't that water, its the act, and the faith of what we are doing. We are not taking a bath when we are baptized; we are being planted into Christ's death. We are taking part in His burial. That we can take part in His resurrection.

sis pam

[light]

Originally posted by tufluv
Oops! Didn't mean to start anything such as what Jason implied, my apologies to all..Smile, i:) :) its not that bad!
tufluv you didn't start anything. When someone continualy advise people how they are to act. That we must be all kissy with everyone.
If we preach Acts 2:38 or hell we are hitting sinners over the head. It's time he should stand up like a man and say what he believes.
tufluv as I know you believe and as I do, it is Acts2:38 or hell. No exceptions.
I don't care if a person is on their death bed, paralyzed from the neck down they must go under the water in Jesus Name. They must speak with other tongues or Hell.

[tufluv]

WOW, hadn't really thought of it like that...(ALRIGHT, I have!) and you are right, LIGHT, you and WITNESS, for baptism in water IS synonymous to "burial"...so w/o that...how can we be risen? Hmmm...! Not too difficult.
That hits hard, what Light said, about paralysis, for that is what happened to my dear exsis-in-law...this I mentioned back in the archives, for those whom may remember, and for those who did not, as we have many new members..this family KEEPS growing, and with it, the inevitable "confrontations?"..oh well, TRUTH IS TRUTH...
LIGHT:
..stand up like a man..
I know thats phraseology, but don't gotta be a MAN to stand up for TRUTH, right, Bro.Light? and I hope that does not imply a spirit of masculinity either..! :D
And as for "all kissy" come on now! Yuck! but what I mean is, yes, we should be "loving" with and to each other, thats what Jesus said...w/o love, you're just a !clanging bell ...that bell might just fall and hit you right on the noggin...and you're HISTORY!!
Lets just LOVE and LET LOVE, please, folks...we can do that w/o compromise, whadda ya think I've been doin?
It may or may not work, but we're only obligated to TRY...plant a seed...we do not give the increase...only the husbandman, JESUS CHRIST!
AMEN?:bow: I'll answer myself: AMEN!!

P.S. Bro.Light, give the guy a break, he's on his honeymoon, for heavens sake..please? with a cherry on top?

[accurate]

. please delete account

[Legacy]

The seven spiritual works of mercy are:

I. To instruct the ignorant
II. To counsel the doubtful
III. To correct offenders
IV. To endure injury
V. To forgive wrong
VI. To pray for others
VII. To comfort the afflicted




(from a study on the traits of mercy)

[tufluv]

ROMANS 16:16
"Salute one another with an holy kiss. The churches of Christ salute you".
BY: PAUL, an apostle of JESUS CHRIST.

ANYTHING, can be overdone..and it should not be forced upon people, this is common sense...but it was meant to be done in a spirit of love..ONLY..if not, then why do it? Sounds weird that someone would be banned to the back row for it! and you said a UPC church, hmmm...

In our AAFCJ, we do that, but its not forced or mandatory..but out of love., so then its not necessarily a "yucky" thing, but "holy" as in the verse above., between brethren, family members. At first, for me coming from a world of darkness, coldness, and hate, it was alien to me, but not anymore.

Are we not a family of GOD? SO-why not! But to kiss others not in the family, well, thats a personal issue..gosh, I had posted on this subject a bit back in the archives.
The way Light stated it, it brought to mind, to ME, a slobbery mess! is why I said "yuck". :D as in overdone!
Like when a dog licks you half to death-yuck! (no comparison to people, okay?) Although I recently heard from my son, that he had heard from someone? that in the OT days, it was considered a good thing for a dog to lick one's wounds., that their saliva is germ-free, etc. a way to clean the wounds, :confused: hmmm; :shrug: Go figure.
NEWS to me! ;) [about the healing properties].

[Xerf]

That Paul did not intend to institute a form of greeting seems clear from the fact that kissing among men was, and still is, a custom of oriental greeting to which the scriptures give ample proof. Joseph kissed all his brethren, Gen. 45:15, and Jonathan and David kissed one another, I Sam. 20:41. From this old custom, kissing was carried over into Christianity, and generally practiced. Therefore, there would be no need for writing the brethren to kiss each other, since they were already doing this. Furthermore, the institution of such a standard form of greeting would hardly be compatible with the general tenor of the Word of God. The whole difficulty regarding this passage is one of misplaced emphasis, brought about by focusing our attention on the noun "kiss" instead of the adjective "holy."

Paul's concern was not their particular form of greeting, nor does he necessarily imply a neglect on their part in this matter, but his concern was the lack of sincerity and uprightness as they were greeting each other in their accustomed manner. Then as now, their greeting was not always as holy as it should have been, but was a sad mixture of formality and hypocrisy with various shades of degrees. His other exhortations in the epistles warrant such a conclusion. For instance, a casual perusal of the two letters to the Corinthians shows that all was not well in their relationship. Although they were still greeting each other with a kiss, it ceased to be holy. Paul was saying, "Greet all the brethren with an HOLY kiss", the emphasis upon the holiness of their greeting rather than their manner. Would Paul be speaking today on the subject, he would probably say, greet all the brethren with an HOLY "how do you do", with an HOLY hand shake, with an HOLY "I am glad to see you."

[accurate]

. please delete account

[light]

When I used the term "kissey" I was not referring to kissing.
I'm not very good putting my thoughts in print. Maybe I can this time.

The church is being bombarded with people who want to water down this truth. Show the trinnies love and if you get around to it you might tell them a little truth, but what ever you do don't tell them they have to obey the word to the letter or go to hell. We are told don't cram it down their throats.

MERCY is explaining truth to the lost.


Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. PROVERBS 3:3-4

[tufluv]

BRO.LIGHT:
You are so-o right! in saying:
The church is being bombarded with people who want to water down this truth. Show the trinnies love and if you get around to it you might tell them a little truth, but what ever you do don't tell them they have to obey the word to the letter or go to hell. We are told don't cram it down their throats.
I myself, think its important to have the boldness to tell it like it is, but then am thought of by others to be too harsh! What could be more "harsh" than a burning lake of fire!?

I do understand, now, your reference to "kissy"., but now look what I said brought out - now Paul did not say what he meant, nor meant what he said, GEEZ!
OKAY, WHATEVER! Matters not to me, I KNOW what to do.
I "get" it. :D
REAL God's love CAN be demonstrated by a "holy" kiss.., maybe the real problem was men getting carried away, with that custom, of men greeting men with a kiss., as in "gays", and thats why he had to say something about the emphasis on "holy"., ever thought of that?!:eek:
We sisters here do thiS (greeting with a holy kiss), sometimes, not as a general rule, and usually only when not having seen one of our sisters for a long time, (as from the other churches) and the elderly sisters, especially, are always ready for this show of endearment, verdad, Hno's Isaac and Tony? LOL
Sorry to have gotten :nt: Pressing on towards the mark...!!

[Goodshepherd]

This is awesome..........................

Thanks Straitway,
"When you consider forgiving the people who have hurt you, you must always consider how much Jesus has forgiven you! You don’t deserve His love and can never earn it. He forgave you because He is a merciful, gracious God.

Mercy is distinctly different from forgiveness because God is merciful to us even when you don’t sin, just as you can be merciful to those who have never done anything against you. God’s mercy doesn’t just forgive your failures and faults, but reaches deep into all your weakness and need. His attitude toward you is merciful"

---this is really awesome

[ThirdGeneration]

Straitway- Thank you for sharing that great post.

[straitway]

Thanks all!

I have found the mercy of God to be more than an attitude--

MERCY IS A VERB!


Mercy is action. If we have an attitude of mercy, we will perform deeds of mercy. When springtime arrives it cannot be kept a secret. It expresses itself through blooming flowers and singing birds. (Asthma & Allergies too!! :) ) And when the springtime of mercy is in our heats, it makes itself known in a multitude of ways.
When mercy is translated into action, we are kind and gracious in our judgement of others.

* We look for the best in others.
* We ask ourselves "What circumstance led this person to do wrong?" rather than "How can I expose or punish this wrongdoer?"
* Redemption, not condemnation, will be our concern.

Mercy that is action ministers to others. It is one thing to feel mercy and a step further to show it to others. Those who are merciful dare to help lighten the load of another.

Mercy that is action forgives others. Perhaps there is no greater expression of love than forgiveness. When you have every right to be resentful but choose to forgive, you bring happiness that only mercy can bring.

:angel:

[ThirdGeneration]

Xerf- I found your post above to be very logical and consistent.

I believe that your reasoning as to why Paul wrote about holy kisses is very plausible given the culture and related Scripture you shared with us and the kinds of things we saw him talking about in these epistles (as you pointed out).

You then went on to find that given our culture today, Paul would offer somewhat different instructions. You stated, "Would Paul be speaking today on the subject, he would probably say, greet all the brethren with an HOLY "how do you do", with an HOLY hand shake, with an HOLY "I am glad to see you."

I agree! That would be the underlying principle and the heart of the teaching at work in American society today, given the "general tenor of the Word of God."

Thus, it appears that you and I agree that there are times that culture is relevant to the way that we live out the principles of God's Word in our lives.....

[accurate]

. please delete account

[UPC Lady]

Strait, Your posts on mercy have touched me very deeply. My how beautiful your words were! Lord bless you, UPC Lady

[tufluv]

ACCURATE:
These people have little pride and I love them.

ME:
Good thing I am an AMERICAN, not Spanish, or your choice of words MIGHT be taken as offensive. A little more consideration in choice of prose might be in order, for the description you have for some people you claim to love.

You make it sound (round about way) that these people you refer to [whom speak another language other than yours], don't give a hoot about themselves, that they're like mindless puppets...doing the bidding of whom? You might have added: the bidding of our LORD and savior, for HIS honor and glory, ONLY, not just any man/preacher, etc.
WHEN the truth is that some people, any color, do NOT fear anything! To go where others fear...[or are too w/o backbone], to put their claims to FEET! and GO! w/no regard for what others may think., this is rare!
Sorry, but I failed to see your real "love" for those whom you described in such a nonchalant way. :redcool:

IF I am mistaken, my apologies, but I am experienced in seeing or reading between the lines...having heard this kind of talk so much in my lifetime...
NEVERTHELESS, "I keep on marching towards that final GOAL, of seeing my JESUS face-to-face one glorious day!"
:bow:

[dllong]

What is the definition of "Mercy"?

Dave

[accurate]

:) americans lol

[accurate]

. :)

[survivor4christ]

mer·cy ( P ) Pronunciation Key (mûrs)

Compassionate treatment, especially of those under one's power; clemency.
A disposition to be kind and forgiving: a heart full of mercy.
Something for which to be thankful; a blessing: "It was a mercy that no one was hurt."
Alleviation of distress; relief: "Taking in the refugees was an act of mercy."

Sis. Wenona

[tufluv]

To: Accurate,
:grumble: :grumble: :grumble:
:grumble: :grumble: :grumble:

I'll be praying for your healing.:angel:

[accurate]

. im still alive

[accurate]

. he turned the water into wine

[tufluv]

Accurate:
:lame:

[accurate]

.

[accurate]

.

[accurate]

.

[accurate]

.

[searching]

Shame, shame.......(sliding my left index finger over my right index finger)

Me...

[seguidordejesus]

hmmmm

[searching]

Hey, it's Jay Leno without the big chin!!!

Me...

[nytxn1971]

mer·cy
pl. mer·cies

1) Compassionate treatment, especially of those under one's power; clemency.

2) A disposition to be kind and forgiving: a heart full of mercy.

3) Something for which to be thankful; a blessing: It was a mercy that no one was hurt.

4) Alleviation of distress; relief: Taking in the refugees was an act of mercy.

*edit*
Sorry, Survivor, I didn't see you'd posted the definition of Mercy already. :(

Tufluv... as for light cutting me a break... he just wouldn't be himslef if he did that.

It's nice to know that he's one of my biggest fans, since he's got everything I've ever written in discussion boards on file in his computer... seeing as he can so easily quote me like that.

*thinks he may have a stalker on his hands*
;)
(I hope you know I'm just joking with you light - love ya brother)

[light]

Originally posted by nytxn1971

as for light cutting me a break... he just wouldn't be himslef if he did that.

It's nice to know that he's one of my biggest fans, since he's got everything I've ever written in discussion boards on file in his computer... seeing as he can so easily quote me like that.

(I hope you know I'm just joking with you light - love ya brother) [/B]

nytxn I have nothing against you as a person.
I do have a problem with your belief "it's not nessary to have his name if you really can't be baptized because you are on your death bed" or for any other reason that might come up.
I would hope and pray that you would rethink your belief on
"the necessity of Jesus name baptism".

It is not only necessary but one must understand why they are being baptised.

Btw there is no reason to waste hardrive space when you can go to the other forums and cut and paste your comments.

I would like to congratulate you on you marriage. She is a very beautiful woman.

[nytxn1971]

Love ya, Light.
:)