“Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.”
Luke 6:36
We are merciful because God is merciful to us.
God is merciful
Mercy is an attribute of God. At Sinai, the Lord revealed Himself to Moses as the merciful, gracious, longsuffering, good and faithful God (Ex 34:6). God’s mercy is expressed through:
- His leniency, His indulgence—in the parable of the prodigal son (Lk 15:11–32), Jesus explains that God does not reject sinful people. He expresses His affection for all those who repent;
- His compassion, His pity—God is sensitive to humankind’s distress and eager to alleviate it. Earthly distress—after the fall into sin, God provided Adam and Eve with clothes. But above all, spiritual distress. Created to live in fellowship with God, humans suffer, consciously or unconsciously, from being separated from Him because of sin. In His mercy, God sent His Son to earth to deliver humankind from the grip of sin (Lk 1:78–79);
- His patience—many people are slow to accept the salvation Christ offers them. God gives them a time of grace to repent (2 Pet 3:9);
- His grace—God forgives the sins of those who come to Him with a repentant heart. Forgiveness erases their guilt towards God, but it does not abolish the earthly and legal consequences of the sin committed. Jesus forgave the thief at the cross, but did not spare him punishment;
- His goodness—God gives us infinitely more than we deserve. He has made us His children and leads us into His glory. Eternal life is the greatest gift a person can receive.
Jesus Christ teaches us mercy
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus urges us to be merciful because:
- God is merciful to us;
- God values mercy more than sacrifices (Mt 9:13)—for Him, our relationship with others is more important than obeying rules (Mt 23:23);
- God grants salvation to the merciful (Mt 5:7).
The Lord teaches us mercy and has given us the example. If we want to become like Him, we must learn to be merciful.
Indulgence
Jesus condemned the sin, not the sinner. He urges us not to judge our neighbor (v. 37), but to accept them as they are. Knowing that we are all weak, let us be indulgent toward others. Let us bear one another’s burdens (weaknesses) (Gal 6:2).
Forgiveness
In the parable of the unforgiving servant (Mt 18:23–35), Jesus emphasized the importance of forgiving our neighbor. He calls us to forgive those who offend us because:
- God forgives us;
- those who wrong us are not aware of the consequences of their actions for their own salvation— Jesus prayed for His executioners, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Lk 23:34);
- the happiness God has in store for us is perfect—the fact that the guilty are punished by God would add nothing to our happiness. It should be noted that forgiveness does not exempt the guilty from facing the punishment set down by human justice: obeying the law is essential to life in society.
Compassion
Jesus shared in people’s earthly and moral distress and alleviated it. He gave bread to the hungry crowd (Mt 15:32–38). He had compassion for the widow of Nain and gave her only son back to her (Lk 7:12–15). Let us be sensitive to the distress of others. Let us comfort those who weep. In Mt 25:34–46, Jesus invites us to help those who suffer. Compassion is also making decisions that go beyond our own interests to consider those of others.
Jesus had great compassion for His contemporaries, whom He saw as sheep without shepherds (Mk 6:34). We suffer to see people separated from God and we pray for their salvation. We want to show them the way to salvation by acting as true disciples of Christ. We contribute to the smooth running of the Church, so that those who wish to do so may find salvation.
Goodness
Jesus teaches us to do good unselfishly. By saying “love your neighbor,” He calls us to do good regardless of our neighbor’s behavior. We do not give to our neighbor to receive something from them, but because we have received so much from God. For the selfish person, practicing mercy can quickly become frustrating and painful. But it is a joy for those who are motivated by thankfulness to God (Rom 12:8).
Patience
God is patient with us, so let us be patient with our neighbor. We continue to pray for the salvation of people, even if they persist in their rejection of Christ. We do not pass judgment on those who no longer attend divine services; on the contrary, we patiently pray for them and show them our affection whenever we have the opportunity.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy! God is merciful to us. He shows us His grace, compassion and goodness. We thank Him by being merciful to our neighbor. We accept their weakness, forgive their trespasses, sympathize with their distress and patiently contribute to their salvation.
God’s mercy occupies an important place in the Old and New Testaments. It refers to how God acts towards humankind. God’s mercy refers, among other things, to His grace, compassion, leniency, generosity, longsuffering, patience, goodness and faithfulness.