Sabbath: To Love Mercy
Image © Pacific Press
Read for This Week’s Study: Matt. 6:25-33; James 1:5-8; James 2:15-16; Isa. 52:7; 1 John 3:16-18; Isa. 58:1-10.
Memory Text: “Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness; he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous. A good man deals graciously and lends; he will guide his affairs with discretion” (Psalm 112:4-5, NKJV).
As we have seen, the Bible is filled with passionate descriptions of God’s concern for the poor and oppressed, as well as calls for His people to work in their behalf. Despite the attention given to these issues, this biblical mandate has seen just sporadic and partial fulfillment and will be made complete only with the return of Christ and the supernatural events that follow.
Until then evil persists in many forms, fueled by the dark spiritual influences of the devil and his angels. This evil is often made most visible in poverty, violence, oppression, slavery, exploitation, selfishness, and greed. In such a world, our communities, our churches, and our families need to stand up against these evils no matter how hard at times it is to do so. In response to the love and commands of God, living in light of the ministry and sacrifice of Jesus and empowered and guided by the presence of the Holy Spirit, we must be compassionate, creative, and courageous in seeking “to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Mic. 6:8, NIV).
Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, September 21.
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This week we return to the theme of mercy. Christians of all people, having experienced the mercy of God, should embrace mercy in dealing with others.
Here are a couple of verses to remind us of God's mercy:
If God is long suffering and merciful to us as sinners, what attitude should we have towards other sinners?
Compassion should replace condemnation.
As a teacher you know that pictures are worth a thousand words. Our first thought is that pictures pertain to children only. No, adults have better understanding and remembrance with pictures also. In the picture above today’s lesson I see the Christlike attitude of extending a hand of forgiveness to a man who lifted a sword, then tripped over a rock and fell to the ground dropping his sword, or a man who tripped and fell losing his cane, and was extended a hand in compassion. This week we will learn how to extend our hands in various ways.
Human weakness wants judgement for others and mercy for us.
We want injustice to be corrected for us, but will react when corrections are given to us.
We don't mind exploiting the position of others but would explode when we are exploited.
This was the problem with Jonah.
He wanted the mercy of God to shower upon him but when the mercy was shown to people
whom he thought was unworthy, he was angry.
Holy Spirit alone can make us love mercy.
Left on our own, we are no different then the worse criminals in the world.
Praise God for his constant contention with our mind.
What you say is true, but there is a place for standing up against injustice done to others, and might not that look a lot like condemnation of the oppressor?
So true. We weak ones want judgement for others and mercy for ourselves. Perhaps it is a strange mixture of justice for the worthy, the chosen, the loved. Jonah's problem is seen again in the New Testament when the disciples asked if fire should be requested as a tool for separation. In small ways we echo this withholding of mercy as a sign of our acceptance. We may silently gloat when a warning we gave goes unheeded and the person reaps terrible consequences.Some have borrowed the concept of 'Karma' and 'you reap what you sow'. Our God is surely not like that. May the Holy Spirit soften our minds so we will not only love mercy for ourselves, but for others as well.
The wisdom of God, His power, and His love are without parallel. They are the divine guarantee that not one, even, of the straying sheep and lambs is overlooked, not one left unsuccored. A golden chain—the mercy and compassion of divine power—is passed around every one of these imperiled souls.
"Supreme love for God and unselfish love for our neighbor,--this is the foundation of all true godliness." Review and Herold,
7/28/1891 by Ellen White
The Sabbath School lessons are directed to the readers of the lessons that are applicable. The lesson on how to love mercy, is a general question, with particular goals in mind. The scriptures such as Matthew, James, Isiah, etc. are noted to lend substance to the opinions. I am not currently able to answer the questions for each day of this weeks lessons. Hopefully many others can.
mercy is that kind of “love that attends to human need in an unexpected and unmerited way.” In other words mercy is forgiveness. The Bible speaks of God's love for sinners -like Rom 5:8 quoted above. We are therfoe called to love Mercy and act in mercy to "the least of these" among us