Luke 6:36 AMPC
[36] So be merciful (sympathetic, tender, responsive, and compassionate) even as your Father is [all these].
The audience determines the reception. The supply, in response to the demand, will always be defined by a personal knowledge and a clear understanding of who is making the demand. The verse above is the exact replica of the Sermon on the Mount, which was quite extensively discussed in Matthew's version. It is clear that Jesus was speaking to His disciples and not to the crowd. A time comes when the message is for the crowd, but a time also comes when the message is for those who have decided to follow Jesus with the whole of their hearts. There is nowhere in the Bible that God has said following Him will be very easy or without any resistance, but He assures us of His presence and power alll through the journey. That is what makes the tough times worthwhile. That is what keeps a man motivated to hold on and press on. Where are you: in the crowd, or one of the many disciples?
The call to the disciple has been the same since Jesus pronounced the words above. The standard has not been lowered at any time, and the demand on those who pay total allegiance to the Lamb has not been lowered at any time. As it was in the days of Adam, so was it in the days of Luke, and so it remains to this day. Education, enlightenment, earnings and elocution have not in any way impacted the standard of God for all who seek to come to Him. As we know, human relationships are complex, and it is difficult to navigate any without conflicts. Even the best of friends have disagreements, but how these are managed become testaments to their emotional and spiritual maturity. For all who have come to the saving knowledge of Jesus, you are not permitted to live, talk, relate or behave like those who are still under the influence and control of the world.
There is a way the world handles these things, but it is not the way a child of God should. Mercy is an attribute that is spiritual, and can only be rightly produced by people who have submitted to the Spirit of God. Mercy is defined as 'compassion or forgiveness shown towards someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm'. Why does that sound a bit familiar? Is it not because all of us are beneficiaries of the mercy of God? Is there anyone alive who can say s/he has not received grace one way or the other at some point in life? God has shown the way mercy is to be done, and then, He supplies the grace and strength we need to show it to others too. God will not demand from me that which He has not first supplied sufficient grace for. As children of our Heavenly Father, we show Him off when we look, walk, talk and relate like Him. The world may not always listen, but it can recognise the difference when a child of God lives the right way. Am I one? Am I a good reflection of what I have already received? God's time of favour is here.
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