FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10

How Much Has Your Heart Been Broken So That You Can Show Mercy. How Much Mercy You’ve Need of Determines The Mercy You Can Give

Scripture: Numbers 13:22; Luke 10:29-37

The New Testament is full of examples concerning who is my brother. Perhaps the most classic Jesus taught is the parable of the Good Samaritan. Verse 30 says, “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.” A priest was representative of the leadership of the religious structure of that day. What kind of heart was being imparted to people through the pulpits? Verse 32 says, “Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.” The Levites did the duties of the temple and were very much a fixture of the religious system supposedly fully committed to the Lord. Samaritan’s were, on the other hand, the outcasts considered second class citizens. And yet it was the Samaritan who had the compassion. The issue here becomes not what your station or position in the religious system is, but how much has your heart been broken so that you can show mercy. How much mercy you’ve need of determines the mercy you can give. Is it possible the groaning of the Body of Christ right now is part of God’s developing real mercy that leads to compassion; which is being woven into the fabric of our beings so we can really be the people of God, shedding religious appearances and jumping into the full measure of God’s call? The giant of Ahi-man has to be slain in the Church. Our reaction to people in need often points to how much of a giant Ahi-man is in us.

Acknowledging what is in you-Phm 1:6

  I walk in the company of the wise. I walk in the fullness of the Spirit, and the Spirit speaks through me. My words will be the words of God. My words are spirit, and they are life. They bring life; they provide life.

My words are seasoned with grace, and they bring edification to every person under the sound of my voice. I will speak that which is true, and I will speak the truth in love.