Oh man, today's message at church this morning just messed me up! It was drawn from Psalm 25: 10 "All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth, to such as keep His covenant and His testimonies." And I want to share with you my understanding of it and maybe you’ll glean something that will transform your life and somebody's!
The preacher (I forget his name but he's an
American who has been in ministry for over 40 years), started by narrating a
story of his wife. She had long lost contact with her best high school friend,
an orphan. When she found her years later, the friend was married to a man who
too was orphaned, and they were living in depressing poverty with their five
children. When the pastor heard the story, he told his congregation and they
joined hands and bought groceries and cloths to the needy family. Because no
one had ever shown them such mercy and friendship, the family was so moved that
it started attending church and eventually got saved.
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| "...I was in prison and you came to see me..." |
It's this kind of mercy, accompanied by the
truth of the gospel that Jesus Christ calls every believer to demonstrate, said
the Pastor. Jesus already gave us the precedence, so there's no saying I don't
know how to begin. This we find in Acts 10:38 which tells us God anointed Jesus
Christ with the Holy Ghost and with power and He went about doing good, and
healing all that were oppressed of the devil.
This power and anointing is at the disposal
of every believer as John 14: 12 affirms: "The truth is, anyone who believes in
Me will d the same works I have done, and even greater works because I go to be
with the Father."
In a world that is desperately seeking
answers, a world that has seen men of stature seek riches and power from shrines
and others commit suicide, a world that sees many homeless children coming to
lodge on the streets, what are we Christians really doing about it?
The adage – "better late than never" – is timely
in situations like these. We can transform the world by demonstrating God's
mercy and truth. Many make the mistake splashing money at the expense the other
important ingredient: truth. Truth challenges us to live pure lives; to be
Christ-like because it's when we are that we don't boast. Philanthropy though
legitimate is not a ticket to heaven. It's only by grace that we get there lest
any man boasts (Ephesians 2:8). The act of mercy is ineffective without truth
just like truth on its own will not accomplish what mercy will.
Just in case somebody has not grasped this little
word "mercy", I looked up its synonyms in my Encarta dictionary and this
is what I found: compassion, forgiveness, kindness, sympathy, humanity,
understanding, generosity, benevolence, grace, blessing, relief, godsend, etc…
You have to agree with me that God, through
His Son Jesus Christ was the epitome of demonstrating all these. And He has
designed us to do likewise. Isaiah 58:7 says: "I want you to share your food
with the hungry and to welcome poor wanderers into your homes. Give clothes to
those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help."
Proverbs 3:3 also challenges us not to let mercy
and truth depart from us: "Wear them like a necklace; write them deep within
your heart." The beauty about this is it comes with great rewards, as verse 4
affirms: "Then you shall find favour, good understanding, and high esteem in
the sight of God and man."
Now, I want to pose a question: How many of
us professing Christian really go out of our comforts to pray for, encourage,
support, be gracious and look kindly on others? I don't know about you but I don't
remember when I last took a bowl of soup to a sick neighbour!
See, you really don't have to be rich like Charles
Mbire to help, or a Robert Kayanja to know and share the truth. As the Pastor
said, "If you set your mind to it, everyday you'll be able to do something
good for somebody."
So let's not stop at being Sunday
Christians but everyday Christians striving to be Christ-like. Step out today
with a purpose to show mercy and truth. I leave you with something from Matthew 25: 34-40:
"Then the King will say to those on the right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you fed me. I was thirsty and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger and you invited Me into your home. I was naked and you clothed Me. I was sick and you cared for Me. I was in prison and you visited Me. Then these righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give You a drink, or a stranger and give You hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we see You sick or in prison and visit you? And the King will tell them, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these My brothers and sisters, you were doing it for me."
