In Romans
12:15-16 we learn that, like Christ we are to empathize with
others. The calling of Gospel in our individual lives is not one to live alone,
as a hermit, hording our knowledge of the Good news. Rather, we are called by
Christ, and filled with the spirit, to go out and tell others of Christ. (Gal
6:1-2, 10) This telling is two fold as we see in Romans
12, we rejoice with those who rejoice, and we are to weep with those
who weep.
If you ask my wife, she'd say I’m a
sympathetic crier. I can watch a movie with a father who cries for the loss of
a child and I’ll lose it too… But I struggle to cry or feel for the bad guy in
a movie.
So, we must ask, who are we
being called to be sympathetic with? Even those who persecute us? Simply put,
YES! Jesus had mercy on those who were beating him, (Luke
23:34). When Jesus could have called an army of angels to kill all
humans who were beating / crucifying him, he called to the Father and asked
that he would have mercy on them.
One of my current
aggravations is when I hear a believer spill hatred toward anyone verbally. The
other day I heard a believer mention hating someone who was in court that had done
wrong toward his or her loved one. I’ve also recently heard hatred spilled out
for the Muslim community because of political and religious reasons. My heart
however breaks for both, I don’t want to see anyone suffer hatred from people
who should live mercy, or see these people without a proper knowledge of God.
In reflecting on this
teaching of being merciful even to our enemies, what keeps our Gospel
communities from obeying this text? I believe there are several reasons
that we don’t live out our life individually and corporately as Christ did.
Bitterness
Jealousy
Vindictiveness
Selfishness
LACK
OF TRUE FOLLOWING OF CHRIST
Why should the Gospel
Community show mercy to our opposers? Why would we feel sorrow for our,
political, spiritual, or physical enemies? Two simple answers…
This
is what Jesus did (John 11:35)
This
is what Jesus does (Heb. 4:14-16)
I want to leave you and possibly any Gospel community
with a question that I’ve had to work through over the past couple years.
Is Christ’s sympathy for us producing sympathy in us for all?
(Remember, we are to be the
visible Christ, until he returns.)
Matt. 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
This passage probably can be state backwards too… blessed
are the ones who received mercy, for they shall be merciful.
