Matt 5:7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
We are raised on the Golden Rule, "do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
Jesus tells a story about a wealthy man whose servant owed him a great deal of money.
Let's look at this situation in modern times. Let's just say the wealthy owner of a Cadillac dealership (we'll call him Bob,) provides vehicles and service for Donald Trump, one of the richest men in the world. Bob borrows a large sum of money from Trump to subsidize an addition to his dealership. Now, a year later, there's a recession and cars aren't selling. Bob's debt payment comes due and he doesn't have the finances to pay. So he goes to Mr. Trump and asks for more time to pay off the debt.
In Jesus' story, Trump shows mercy, graciously forgives the debt and wipes the record clean.
The story doesn't end there. Jason, a hard-working wrench-turning mechanic asked for an advance from Bob a few months ago because his wife needed surgery and they had no insurance. Bob loaned him the money to pay hospital bills. Now that Bob's in a crunch, he calls Jason into his office and demands immediate payment of the debt. Jason hasn't got that kind of money, heck, he works on commission and there hasn't been any work coming into Bob's service drive all week. Jason can't repay the debt all at once and asks for more time. Instead, Bob fires him.
According to Jesus' reckoning, Trump would have discovered Bob's unforgiving behavior and demanded he pay up or turn his business over to Trump.
Then He goes on to say that's how it is with God. How can we go to God begging for mercy and forgiveness of our sin, when we expect of others what we refuse to do? Jesus taught his disciples to pray, "forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." We reap what we sow.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Father, may we be acutely aware of how we treat others as we go through our day. Would we be mindful always of Your boundless mercy, Your unfailing grace and eternal love. Move in us to be merciful to others. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
