In the last lesson we did some review and I reminded you of the necessity to remember and to put into practice what we’ve learned. Here in Section II of this discipleship course we’ve been covering the book of Hebrews along with the pattern of the tabernacle, helping us to develop our personal relationship with God.
We’ve covered a lot of material from the book of Hebrews which is all about the contrast between the Torah Law given by Moses and the covenant of the Spirit given through the broken body and blood of Christ. Our complete focus as a New Testament priest must be on Christ, however as Paul said we can learn from the Old Covenant Law.
Hebrews 8:5 tells us that the physical temple was a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. So that means if we want to touch the heavenly realm where Christ dwells, we can look at the pattern that God displayed through the tabernacle.
Let’s go back to the pattern of the tabernacle so that I can remind you of how we can use this as a pattern for our daily devotion as we offer up the morning and evening sacrifice of prayer. I want you to see yourself walking as a priest through the temple.
I want you to see yourself offering up your daily sacrifices because you are a priest. The pattern of the tabernacle is a heavenly pattern of the cruciform life. It’s the joining together of God’s space and man’s space - the intersection of the heavenly realm and the earthly realm.
In previous lessons we have talked about the Bronze Altar which was the beginning place of entering into the Tabernacle of Moses. It was the place of blood sacrifice and symbolized the blood of Christ shed for us on the cross. It’s learning to live the cruciform life, it's living a life of sacrifice where we stand in the power of grace.
It’s all about grace, forgiveness, mercy, reconciliation and a heart free from the guilt of sin. It’s the starting place of prayer, praise and our daily personal devotion. As we pray, we must acknowledge the power of the blood of Christ, dedicate our lives to the cruciform way, accept His forgiveness and forgive others. It’s all about the sacrifice of our bodies that we covered in Lesson 23 and Lesson 24.
Once you acknowledge the blood sacrifice at the Altar of burnt offering and are cleansed from a sinful conscience then you proceed to the Bronze Laver to be washed. We need this daily cleansing as we approach the Father in prayer. The Bronze laver is first of all the place of baptismal identification seeing ourselves accepted in Christ and joined to him. It’s what we studied in Lesson 21: Baptism Into the Body and Lesson 22: Baptism Into Water. It’s also completely identifying with Christ being washed, cleansed and refreshed by the water of the word of God. This is when we begin to meditate on the word of God so that our minds are renewed and we build up our inner man.
We are now ready to enter into the Holy Place behind the first curtain. The only light you had inside the Holy Place was from the oil burning in the Golden lamp stand. It’s what we covered in Lesson 15: Baptism In The Holy Spirit.
Inside the tabernacle behind the first curtain was also the table of Shewbread and the altar of incense.
The Table of Shewbread had 12 loaves of bread that were daily replaced and represented the diverse twelve tribes united together as one nation of Israel. As the priest daily partook of the loaves it was a demonstration of them being a living representation of the entire nation. It’s at this time that we devote ourselves daily to being a dedicated follower of Christ. It’s identifying with Christ’s living in us and taking up our cross, by eating the flesh and drinking the blood of Christ. It’s a place of daily communion and complete surrender praying that the kingdom of God would come in our hearts as it is in heaven.
We now come to the golden candlestick which was daily filled with oil and gave light to the Holy Place. The Golden Candlestick represents the need to totally rely on the Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, knowledge and the Spirit's power for daily living. It’s at this time that we are asking to be filled with the Spirit. The anointing oil of the Spirit brings light, healing and restoration. The anointing of the Spirit flows from the cross giving us wisdom and power to fulfill the purpose of The God in our lives. It’s what we covered in Lesson 16: Living The Spirit Filled Life.
The Altar of incense was right before the curtain where the Ark of the covenant was placed. The Altar of incense is about carrying the presence of God through prayer, praise and our lives dedicated to worshipping in spirit and truth. It’s at the Altar of incense that we spend time communing with the Father. It’s what we covered in Lesson 27: The Place Of Worship.
I cannot overemphasize how being filled with the Spirit and having the anointing oil of the Spirit upon our lives is important. It’s about the vertical life of worshiping and loving God with all of our hearts so that truth is in the inward parts. In this school of discipleship, we’ve not yet talked about the Holy of Holies.
The Holy of Holies was only entered once a year and that was to be done only by the high priest. The Holy of Holies was past the second veil where the ark of the covenant was located. If you are as old as me, then you probably remember the Indiana Jones series of movies where Harrison Ford was searching for the lost ark of the covenant. Well, that was all completely fiction. However, it’s important that we understand the importance of what the Ark of the covenant and Holy of Holies represented.
It was once a year on the Day of Atonement when the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies and approach the Ark of the covenant.
Hebrews chapter 9 verses 3 thru 9 says behind the second curtain was a second section called the Most Holy Place, having the Ark of the Covenant covered on all sides with gold. Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. God instructed Moses to tell the children of Israel, I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim's which are upon the Ark of the Covenant and that is in Exodus chapter 25 verse 22.
The ark represented the manifest presence of God where no man could live.
The cherubim were winged angels like those that guarded the tree of life in the garden of Eden. Genesis chapter 3 verse 24 is an interesting scripture to look at in regard to the Mercy Seat which was the place of God’s presence on the earth. It says after Adam sinned God drove the man out of the Garden and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubim and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep him from going back to the tree of life. God cut off access to the garden, the place where God and man walked in open fellowship and the cherubim were the guardians.
The gold covered box called the ark of the covenant had these same cherubim’s wings above it. Inside was a golden urn holding manna which represented God’s supernatural provision. Aaron’s staff was also inside which represented God’s authority and the 10 commandments which represented the standard of God’s holiness.
People like to say that you can’t put God in a box and I agree, but if there were ever a box that could contain eternal truth, it was the Ark of the Covenant.
Remember what I said in the last lesson because repetition is one of the main keys to learning retention. If I’ve said this once, then I’ve said it 20 times in this school. God told man in Genesis chapter 2 to cultivate and keep the garden. The Hebrew word for cultivate is abad and the Hebrew word for keep is shamar. These same Hebrew words are used to describe how the priest cared for the tabernacle of Moses. The tabernacle was a precursor to the temple of Solomon.
The priests were to cultivate and keep the tabernacle. In addition, we are told that God walked in the garden during the cool of the day. God also walked in the midst of the temple. The meaning is clear. The garden was a temple for God. Like the temple, the garden was the joining together of God’s space and man’s space - the intersection of the heavenly realm and the earthly realm.
Adam was a priest who walked with God, bore his image, was clothed in his glory and demonstrated servant leadership in the garden. Adam was also a king created to rule, which means man was to be God’s representative in the earth and through man God was to exercise his rule and authority in the earth.
I’m going to make what could be a controversial statement to some, but I do believe man’s original disobedience brought a rift not just between man and God, but it brought a rift in the heavenlies. God walked in open fellowship with Adam in the garden, there was an open heaven where God and man had direct access to one another.
In Adam’s disobedience, he lost open fellowship with God, the glory of God that covered him and access to the tree of life. Adam also lost an open heaven, but the direct result of losing an open heaven was that he abdicated his authority that was given to him by God, to Satan.
The disobedience of the first man Adam was felt by the entire created order, which had become corrupted by his sin of disobedience.
Romans chapter 8 verse 20 says that the entire created order was corrupted as a result of Adam's sin which means man, the plants, the trees, the animals, the birds, the fish and even the heavens themselves. Sin, death and corruption touched the whole created order. Ephesians chapter 2 verse 2 says that Satan is presently the prince of the power of the air. Yes, as a result of Christ's death, burial, resurrection and ascension his power and authority has been disrupted. However, until the return of the last Adam upon this earth, as the ruling king of Kings, Satan still has power. He was not given this place by God, but he was given this place by man’s disobedience.
Satan and the angels who fell with him, operate in the realm that immediately surrounds the consciousness of mankind, which the Bible calls the `heavenlies'.
Satan’s desire is to blind the minds of people, keeping them captive under his deceptive power through moral transgression or to define it simply, to keep them in the bondage of sin through disobedience. When people are living under the bondage of sin, their minds are blinded to the glory of God. The eternal darkness designated for Satan and his spiritual forces to which scripture refers is essentially a moral darkness, but its cause is not simply the absence of light, it is the absence of God, who is light.
In saying of all this, the Holy of Holies where the Ark of the covenant resided demonstrated two things. It gives us a picture of God’s manifest presence along with his holiness, but it’s also a picture of the depravity of sin. It was meant to show man how far he had fallen away from the Creator, who loves him so much, but can’t have fellowship with him because of his corruption and death. No man could enter the Holy of Holies, but the high priest and he could only enter once a year.
The veil was the symbol of separation between a holy God and sinful man, they cannot dwell together because of death and moral transgression.
The tabernacle thus expressed the union of two conflicting truths. God called man to come worship and serve Him, yet man because of his sinfulness might not come too near: the veil kept him at a distance. The Law of Moses, temple, sacrifices and order of worship testified to God’s longing for the restoration of fellowship between God and man. The open fellowship that was lost in the garden. It also testified to man’s unfitness to be in a holy God’s presence.
If you go back to Lesson 5: Why the Law? You will remember that the law was given to show us how sinful we are. The Law was not given to make men acceptable to God. Let me say that again, the law was not given to make men acceptable to God for by the "works of the Law" no one can be accepted by God as Paul taught in Galatians 2:16. F.F. Bruce says it was "to lead men to repentance." It was impossible for any man to fulfill the demands of the Law.
The Law demanded living right, but was incapable of providing the power to accomplish it. Its function was to make people conscious of their sin and look to their need for a Savior.
Under the old blood covenant, the priesthood sacrificed innocent victims on behalf of the worshipers and as they worshiped by faith, they received temporary ceremonial cleansing under the law. What I mean by temporary, is that they had to keep making those same sacrifices over and over under the law to continue to receive cleansing. We saw in Lesson 4: The Blood Covenant that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Under the old blood covenant, the worshipers by faith, presented innocent animals to be sacrificed on their behalf.
Hebrews chapter 10 verses 1 thru 4 says, since the law has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the actual form of those realities, it can never perfect the worshipers by the same sacrifices they continually offer year after year. Otherwise, wouldn’t they have stopped being offered, since the worshipers, once purified, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? But in the sacrifices under the Law there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
It’s an interesting fact about the book of Hebrews. The first 8 chapters of Hebrews don’t mention the word blood, up until Hebrews chapter 9.
In chapter 9 the word blood is mentioned 12 times in regards to sacrificial atonement Hebrews chapter 9 verses 11 thru 12 says when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves, but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. Hebrews chapter 9 verse 24 then says Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.
Jesus was both the high priest and the sinless sacrificial lamb, He took away the sins not just of the Jewish nation, but Christ absorbed the sins of the whole world in his body on the Cross. I think we many times minimize the greatness of the atoning work of Christ.
Let’s take a look at what happened from the cross, to when Jesus ascended to the heavenly holy of Holies, placing his atoning blood on the mercy seat in the heavenlies. As Jesus, the son of God hung on the cross of Golgotha, outside the city of Jerusalem between two criminals the Father turned his back on the Son.
The sin of the world was laid upon the Son of God. It was such a monumental act that creation itself reacted to the pain inflicted upon the last Adam when Christ literally became sin for us. At that moment for three hours it says the sun stopped shining. Luke chapter 23 verses 44 thru 46 says it was about the sixth hour and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, while the sun’s light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last. Matthew chapter 27 verses 51 thru 52 records the events this way. It says at this moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened.
It reminds us of when Moses met God face to face on Mount Sinai and the earth shook as God established a covenant with the Hebrew nation.
In like manner when the curtain temple was torn from top to bottom the earth shook, signifying that the door of heaven, had been re-opened through the crucifixion. It was the establishing of a blood covenant with the whole created order by the sacrifice of the last Adam. It signified that the glory of God was no longer going to be held in an earthly copy of the Holy of Holies, but as a result of the cross the whole earth will eventually be filled with the glory of God. The cross was just the beginning place of the restoration of all things.
Let’s look at what happened during the 3 days from the crucifixion to the resurrection.
Let me remind you of this fact. The Bible does not tell us everything. The Bible is history, but it’s telling us the story of God’s redemptive history in time. It’s God’s love story to humanity showing us His redemptive hand through the Hebrew people, his chosen vehicle to redeem a fallen humanity bringing us back to Himself. We know that Jesus died and we know that he was buried in a tomb in the city of Jerusalem. That’s an historical fact. Jesus' body was in the tomb because Roman guards were stationed to make sure no one took his body.
Jesus' last words were ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit’. As I’ve taught in this school, man is a triune being made up of spirit, soul and housed in a body. Yes, this would include Christ because he was the last Adam.
Let me remind you of what Genesis chapter 2 verse 7 says, the Lord God formed man from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul. Man is created an eternal living soul. You can kill the body, but the inner part of man lives eternally. If I had a heart attack right now and died my body would be here in this room, but the inner part of me, the spiritual man made up of my living soul cannot die.
The body of Christ was in the tomb, but where did Jesus’s spirit and soul, the spiritual part of man that can’t be killed, go during this time?
I’m going to tell you what I believe scripture teaches. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 12 verse 40 that just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. We see in the book of Luke chapter 16, the story of Lazarus and the Rich man.
In this story we see that the righteous and the wicked after death were located in the same place, but separated by a great gulf. During the Old Testament period Hades or as it was called in the Old Testament Sheol was divided into two compartments: one for the righteous and one for the wicked. The rich man was being tormented and Lazarus was in paradise which was also called Abraham’s bosom.
It says in Luke chapter 16 verse 26 that a great chasm was between them and you could not pass over it. Remember there were two criminals on each side of Jesus as he died on the cross. One of the criminals that Jesus was crucified between said, Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. Jesus said today you will be with me in paradise. I believe that Jesus’s living soul along with the thief’s living soul went to the righteous side of Hades, spoken of in Luke chapter 16 and it’s because Jesus said they would be in paradise.
Let me show you one more somewhat controversial text in I Peter chapter 3 verses 18 and 19. It says that Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison. A lot has been said about this text. It appears that the aim of Peter is to emphasize the redemptive work of Christ's sufferings and the completion of his work as the mediatorial High Priest.
It’s the proclamation of his final victory over death and the grave. In his resurrection Christ ascended from the depths of the earth.
In Revelation chapter 1 verse 17 and 18 Jesus says, I am the first and the last and the living one. I died and behold I am alive forevermore and I have the keys of Death and Hades. The proclamation Jesus made to the spirits in prison, spoken of in I Peter chapter 3 verse 18 is the proclamation that His mission to earth, as the ruling king priest, was accomplished. He made an end to the curse of Adam’s disobedience. He brought immortality to mankind by absorbing the curse of sin on the cross then destroying death through his resurrection.
The two angels at Jesus tomb signified that the way to the tree of life had been reopened and the fellowship between God and man was restored.
The gospel is not just that Jesus forgives sins. The gospel, the word of the cross or you can call it the revelation of the mystery, has to do with much more than just forgiveness. In Acts 3 verse 21 Peter talks about the restoration of all things which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time. The prophets in the Old Testament and the apostles in the New Testament talked about the ‘day of the Lord’.
The ‘day of the Lord’ is a transitional period of restoration where God is going to reverse the curse completely from the earth.
The restoration of all things began with the resurrection and ascension of Christ to the heavenly mercy seat as our high priest. It will be further unveiled when Christ returns to the earth as the king of kings. Christ will rule upon this earth from Jerusalem establishing His kingdom rule over all the nations. I’ll cover this in the next lesson in greater detail.
Let me show you some more interesting scriptures. Ephesians chapter 4 verse 8 thru 10: says when Jesus ascended on high, he led a host of captives and he gave gifts to men. In saying, He ascended, what does it mean, but that he had also descended into the lower regions of the earth? He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things. Let me repeat that last sentence. He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.
So again, we see that Jesus went to the lower regions of the earth after dying on the cross. He was then raised from the dead. The scriptures seem to indicate that he did not come up out of the lower regions of the earth by himself. Remember the earthquake that happened when Jesus died? It also says that many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many.
Christ did not come out of Hades alone, but he came out with the righteous saints of the Old Testament.
He did not just bring them out, but it says he led a host of captives when he ascended. The righteous part of Hades was cleaned out and the souls of those saints ascended with Christ. Christ was the only one with a resurrection body because he is the first fruits, but he took the souls from the righteous part of Hades with him. It’s like a portal from the depths of the earth, to the heavenly realms was opened. The restoration of all things had begun.
Hebrews 9:12 and 24 says that when Christ ascended, He entered once for all into the holy place, not by means of the blood of goats and calves, but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. Jesus when he ascended entered…into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. The blood of Christ was placed on the heavenly Mercy Seat and Christ the conquering king priest sat down victoriously.
He opened the gates of the garden where man and God can be in open fellowship once again. The restoration of all things had begun.
I want to show you a scripture that Paul wrote in Romans chapter 3 verses 23 thru 25 where he said, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood. Propitiation has to do with the Mercy Seat. In this text the word propitiation actually means Mercy seat.
Propitiation is one of those words that we just don’t use anymore so most people have no idea what it means. In the Old Testament the word was used mainly in Leviticus and Exodus and it always had to do with the blood sacrifices and its cleansing power to cover sins, like the blood applied which delivered the children of Israel during the Passover. In the New Testament it has to do with the sacrifice of Christ removing the barrier between God and man.
The temple veil was torn from top to the bottom when Jesus died, signifying that the propitiation of Christ sacrifice has forever removed the barrier separating God and man through the body and blood of Christ. The cross is where mercy and judgment kiss, they meet together.
God’s not hiding behind the veil. Christ mediatorial work as lamb of God and high priest has rent the veil, mercy has absolved, absorbed and overtaken judgment. If you remember in Lesson 25: Part 1 The Sacrifice of Praise that David setup in the city of Jerusalem on Mount Zion his tabernacle. It was a tent that housed the ark of the covenant. David setup 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days out of the year singers, musicians along with prophetic leaders to pray, praise and worship before the ark. It was during this time period that much of the book of Psalms was written.
The Psalmist in Psalm 57:1 says, be merciful to me, O God, for in you my soul takes refuge in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge. Psalm 36:7 says, how precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. Psalm 91:4 says, he will cover you with his feathers and under his wings you will find refuge. Under the wings of the mercy seat, we find healing, we find help in times of need and we find everlasting mercy because it’s there that we touch the living God.
Hebrews chapter 12 verses 22 thru 24 says you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem and to innumerable angels in festal gathering and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven and to God, the judge of all and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
The blood of Abel cried out for revenge, but the blood of Jesus cries out mercy, mercy, mercy. We are called to enter into a personal abiding living faith. We are not in a relationship with a book, because the living word has been written upon our hearts by the Spirit. We are not in relationship with a building because we are the temple of God where the Spirit dwells. We are not in a relationship with ritualism because we have the very life of the Spirit. We don’t have to wait once a year to enter the most Holy Place because it’s been opened through the blood of Christ and now heaven is being poured out into the world through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
A life of mercy is about giving others the very forgiveness that we have received. Colossians chapter 1 verse 19 thru 20 says in Christ all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
The reconciliation of all things, whether on earth or in heaven, has begun as a result of Christ's death, burial, resurrection and ascension to be seated on the heavenly Mercy Seat.
A lot of people get confused between grace and mercy. Let me make it simple. Grace is all about the free gift of Christ, his unmerited favor giving us the power to live above sin, produce the fruit of the Spirit and operate in the gifts of God. It’s God’s ability working in and through us.
Mercy is about God’s compassion to us in our weakness and wrongdoing. Ephesians chapter 2 verses 4 thru 5 says God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.
Mercy points to the forgiveness of wrongdoing. In both the Old and New Covenants, mercy means to have special and immediate regard to the misery which comes from the consequences of sins. It’s the goodness of God that we absolutely do not deserve. James in his epistle says to speak and act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy.
Mercy triumphs over judgment. Let me repeat that powerful statement to you again and let it sink in. Mercy triumphs over judgment. We all deserved death, but God being rich in mercy forgave us, opened the door, brought us near to Himself and is restoring us on a daily basis.
Paul told us in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verses 17 thru 19 that anyone who is in Christ, is a new creation. The old has passed away behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. We’ve all been given this ministry of reconciliation.
The message and ministry of reconciliation is all about showing mercy. Once your eyes are opened to the degree to which God has been merciful to you, it’s out of that heart of compassion that you show mercy to others. The question I want to ask you is how do you respond when you see hurting people? It’s extremely important that as a priest you represent the merciful high priestly ministry of Christ. We are all called to share the good news. Romans chapter 2 verse 4 says it’s the kindness and goodness of God that leads people to repentance.
The end result of all that I taught in this lesson is the practical application of mercy. Is your heart moved with compassion? Are you genuinely concerned about people? These are important questions because they reveal the attitudes of our heart. Colossians chapter 3 verse 12 says that Christ is all and in all. Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness and patience.
Jesus Christ is a merciful high priest who can have compassion upon our weaknesses.
As His priests we need to demonstrate to this hurting world His mercy and compassion. Mercy will reach out, care, sympathize and help people. Mercy is to show favor and kindness to the hurting. We serve a merciful God and we are told to be merciful, just as our Father is merciful.
So, who do we show mercy to? We follow Christ's example by showing mercy to the port, needy, sick, diseased and mentally ill. To those grieving the death of friends and family. Just as Christ was merciful to the woman caught in adultery, we are supposed to be merciful to those who have fallen into sin. Galatians chapter 6 verse 1 says if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Jesus taught us to even have mercy on our enemies.
Mercy is reaching out and doing good to those who cannot help themselves because they are wounded.
How do we show mercy to the hurting? Jesus beautifully displays the way we should show mercy to others in the story of the Good Samaritan. In this story there is a man who encountered unfortunate circumstances, he was left half dead, beaten and stripped. The Samaritan came upon this man and he "felt compassion" for him. Through mercy the Samaritan was moved to action! He took the man and bandaged his wounds. He poured oil and wine on them to bring healing. He helped provide a way out of the problem. He took care of him until he was whole. This is a lesson we need to learn well. Mercy goes beyond just feeling bad for people’s unfortunate circumstances.
If it’s within your power, then you need to help the hurting both spiritually and practically.
According to Romans chapter 12 verse 8, mercy is also a spiritual gift. It says the one who does acts of mercy, let him do it with cheerfulness. Mercy is one of the seven spiritual gifts mentioned in this chapter.
Everyone’s probably heard of the Salvation Army which has been a great example of what we call a Mercy ministry. We need to support ‘Mercy Ministries' and be involved with helping them, it’s part of being the royal priesthood representing our merciful high priest. As the Good Samaritan we need to bandage the hurting with the love of God. We need to use the power of the Holy Spirit and word of God to bring physical and inner healing to the hurting. Practically helping people out of their difficulties by providing for people's basic necessities as they are being made whole. I’ve been involved with these types of ministries in New York City, Dallas and other places that I’ve lived.
Just a note of observation. It’s important for Mercy Ministries that feed, clothe, provide counseling and housing for the poor. To have a vision for whole people, not dependent people. The church must give to the poor and hurting, but the church is not to be a crutch for the poor, God is their provider.
The Samaritan provided temporary help until the hurt man could become a whole man. We should encourage those who can provide for themselves to do so, as soon as they are able to work.
Now as we finish this up let’s take a look at what can hinder us from showing mercy. Legalism is the main hindrance to showing mercy. A legalist is more interested in following the right rules and ritualism, than in helping the hurting. Those who are bound by legalism have a form of godliness, but their hearts are too hard to be moved with compassion and mercy for the hurting. Legalists are too involved with their religious duties to be of help to anyone else. The Pharisee was too busy with his religious duties to be genuinely invested in helping the hurting which is what the story of the Good Samaritan teaches us.
Living in sin will also hinder us from showing mercy. Living in sin hardens our hearts. It’s why the author of Hebrews in chapter 3 verse 13 tells us to exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. A hard heart becomes insensitive to the needs of others.
Sin makes the heart selfish, causing it to be concerned only with its own needs.
To walk in the mercy of God is to not only help those in need, but to forgive those who have transgressed against us. God has entrusted to the believer the responsibility of forgiving. If you’ve watched movies, tv shows or maybe you at one time or currently are a Catholic. In the Catholic Church they have what is called the confessional. It’s where a priest sits in a box with the parishioner sitting on the other side of the partition confessing sins and asking for forgiveness.
Every member of the body of Christ is a priest and all of us have the power to forgive others.
The ending of the Lords’ Prayer that Jesus taught us: says if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. We are to forgive those who have wronged us because we’ve been forgiven.
Here is the toughest instruction which is to love our enemies and pray for those who treat us wrong. Matthew chapter 5 verses 44 thru 48 Jesus tells us to love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Let me tell you, it takes total surrender to the cruciform life of Christ to be merciful to your enemies.
We do not have the power to cleanse people from sin or give them eternal life. We do have the power to release people from the guilt they have from the wrong they have done to us. This is the power of forgiveness and mercy. Having mercy on others and forgiving them releases our own hearts to be free from holding grudges and becoming bitter.
As a holy priesthood living in the presence of our merciful God, we need to show mercy to our hurting world. We are Christ representatives and if we don't reach out to be a blessing to this world, who will? We are not just called to offer up spiritual sacrifices, but we are also created to do good works that will be a benefit to others.
The gospel lived out practically is the only remedy for the social ills that our society faces. It is time for us to put faith into action by showing mercy to the hurting world in which we live.
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