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A Unique Perspective
Jesus, A Model of Mercy When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.—Mark 10:47 Robert Brand One of the definitions of “mercy” is “compassionate treatment, especially of those under one’s power.” Since Jesus was the spiritual, intellectual, and physiological superior of everyone with whom he came in contact, it is easy to see how this important virtue was part of the Savior’s everyday life. His was a life of compassion toward the undone human condition, for in his pre-human existence as the Logos he had personally witnessed mankind’s fall into sin and condemnation. John stated of our Lord, “He knew what was in man” (John 2:25). As he walked the earth during his brief ministry, Jesus was also aware of the coming time of blessing—a reality that not even his closest disciples appreciated. His awareness of the “big picture” of the heavenly Father’s plan gave our redeemer a unique perspective in all his dealings with others. Three Reasons for Jesus’ Miracles A key aspect of the ministry of Jesus Christ was the performance of miracles, many of which involved healing the sick. There were at least three basic reasons for those miracles. The first was to establish his messiahship. The disciples of John the Baptist were sent to Jesus to determine, “Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another” (Matthew 11:3)? Our Lord responded by giving his miracles as evidence, an answer more powerful than a simple yes or no. A second reason for miracles was to provide a typical picture of the work of the kingdom to come. At the time Lazarus died, Jesus said to Martha: “Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” (John 11:23-25). Mercy was a third reason for our Lord’s miracles. A quick word search in a concordance for “compassion” will quickly demonstrate that mercy was a significant factor in our Lord’s miracles. For example: “Jesus had compassion on them [two blind men], and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight” (Matthew 20:34). While we appropriately apply the phrase that Jesus was “touched with a feeling of our infirmities” (Hebrews 4:15) to the prospective Bride of Christ, there is no doubt that Jesus was also moved by seeing mankind’s imperfections first-hand. He had the power to heal the sick, and he used that power generously. A Woman of Canaan Mercy was shown in many of our Lord’s experiences with believers and nonbelievers alike. Once a “woman of Canaan” approached Jesus, requesting that he heal her daughter who was “vexed with a devil.” The Lord, however, ignored her, and his disciples asked him to send her away. Jesus explained the reason for his lack of response by saying, “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” In other words, since the Jewish nation was God’s chosen people and in relationship with God under the Law Covenant, our Lord’s ministry was focused on the nation of Israel, not on the Gentiles. Since this woman was a Gentile, Jesus had no responsibility to respond to her. She again beseeched him with the words, “Help me.” The Savior maintained his position by saying, “It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs” (“dogs”—house pets, not vicious dogs—was a pejorative term used by the Jews in that day for Gentiles). She agreed with him, and yet, she continued her plea with an insightful response: “Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” What persistence! This Canaanite was not disagreeing with Jesus; she was reasoning with him, and he appreciated her tenacity. “Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.” (Matthew 15:22-28).
This healing was an expression of mercy. Jesus had no obligation to this
foreigner, and yet, her respectful importuning caught his attention and he
decided to help her daughter. In our experiences, we also may see a situation
where we have no responsibility to lend assistance, and yet, there may be an
opportunity to be merciful, and thus be more like our Master. It can be
something as simple as a traffic situation where we technically have rights but,
upon viewing another driver in an unsafe predicament, we yield with a friendly
wave and smile. We are all better off for such efforts. Jesus, Jairus, and a Sick Woman Another example of Jesus’ mercy involved a woman with a request for herself, not her child. Jairus, “a ruler of the synagogue,” came to Jesus in anguish over his dying daughter. But before Jesus could attend to his request, a woman who had been ill for twelve years and had spent “all her living” on physicians, simply touched the hem of Jesus’ garment. That act of faith resulted in her immediate healing. The Lord asked, “Who touched me?” When the details were known, he said, “Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace” (Luke 8:40-48.) Jesus then responded to Jairus’ urgent request. Jesus demonstrated mercy not only in attending miraculously to Jairus’ daughter’s condition, but also in interrupting what he was doing with Jairus to assist the sick woman. Jesus could easily have told the woman he was busy with an urgent request and she would have to wait, but we cannot imagine him doing such a thing. He was too generous, too merciful, for that kind of remark. Jesus was never too busy to help someone, especially those who demonstrated faith. We would all do well to heed the apostolic admonition to be “in season” and help others at every opportunity, even when doing so is not personally convenient (2 Timothy 4:2). The Ten Lepers Mercy can also be demonstrated in what a person chooses not to do. The expression “less is more” can often fit into expressions of mercy. Such was the case in our Lord’s dealings with the ten lepers (Luke 17:11-19). Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem when ten leprous men stood at a distance and beckoned: “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” The Savior told them to show themselves to the priests in accordance with the guidelines contained in Leviticus chapters 13 and 14. As they walked away in compliance, they were miraculously healed. Only one of these lepers, a Samaritan, returned to give thanks to Jesus. Our Lord’s wonderfully subdued reflection was an evidence of his merciful disposition: “Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?” This was not a strong and forceful rebuke, but rather a searching question. While the healed men indeed should have returned to give thanks, Jesus no doubt had mercy on their failure to thank him due to their understandable exuberance at their miraculous healing. We can do the same in our dealings with those we help. When proper gratitude is not demonstrated, we can simply be thankful they are now better off for our efforts, and be compassionate toward their lack of an expression of appreciation.
There are few examples of mercy more powerful than our Lord’s dealings with the impetuous apostle Peter. All readers of the Bible know the story of Peter’s three denials of Jesus. Peter boldly declared: “Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended” (Matthew 26:33). Our Lord’s response in the next verse was prophetic: “Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.” Matthew records the poignant result of Peter’s eventual three denials: “Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly” (Matthew 26:75). After our Lord’s resurrection, Jesus met with Peter in the well-known dialog where he asked Peter three times, “Lovest thou me,” and ended with the admonition, “Feed my sheep” (John 21:15-17). There is little doubt that Peter’s three denials were the reason behind Jesus’ three persistent questions. Our Lord’s discussion with the apostle Peter was a reassurance that he was forgiven. It was an act of mercy, an act of compassion. Peter then went on to be a faithful apostle and leader of the early Christian church. There is another example of Jesus’ concern for Peter. When an angel announced the Lord’s resurrection to the women gathered at the tomb, he added: “Tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee” (Mark 16:7).
Peter, like all of us, was subject to human frailties. No matter how spiritually
strong we might be, we cannot escape human shortcomings. We are all thankful for
the Lord’s mercy as reflected in his forgiveness of these shortcomings and
providing yet another opportunity to serve him further. We can likewise be
merciful to those who disappoint us. Jesus’ Instructions to Us In the beatitudes, we read, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7). This statement by Jesus is similar in concept to his admonitions on forgiveness. Later the Saviour laid down a principle that we can use to obtain forgiveness for ourselves: “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14). Apparently, as we show mercy to others, it will providentially be shown to us. Developing the virtue of mercy will cause us to be more Christ-like. Thus our efforts contain a triple blessing: We become more like our Master, we benefit all we come in contact with, and we personally obtain additional mercy from the Lord. Mercy is a wonderful virtue and we see it demonstrated repeatedly in the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us take his example to heart, and likewise endeavor to develop this same character quality. |