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September 23, 2007AM
Romans 12:8
YOUR actions
A couple of weeks ago I received an email which contained the following story.
A group of alumni, now all highly established in their careers, reunited.
They went to visit their old university professor.
The conversation soon filled with complaints.
They all felt the endless stress of work and life in general.
The professor offered his guests coffee and retreated to the kitchen.
After a while he returned with a large pot of coffee.
He laid out on the table an eclectic assortment of cups.
Some were made of porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal.
Some were plain, some expensive, some quite exquisite.
Quietly he told them to help themselves to some fresh coffee.
After they had helped themselves, the old professor spoke softly.
“You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking cups were taken up first.”
No one seemed terribly interested in using the plainer and cheaper ones.
“It is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves.
“But that is actually the source of much of your stress-related problems.
“Be assured, the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee.
“In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink.
“What each of you really wanted was coffee, not a cup.
“But you instinctively went for the nicest cups.
“Then you began eyeing each other's cups.
“Now consider this: Life is coffee.
“Jobs, money, and position in society are merely cups.
“They are just tools to shape and contain Life.
“The type of cup you have does not truly define your quality of Life.
“By concentrating only on the cup, we risk enjoying the coffee.
“Enjoy your coffee!
“The happiest people don't have the best of everything.
“The happiest people make the best of everything.
“So please remember:
“Live Simply, Love Generously, Care Deeply, Speak Kindly.”
I can’t help but think that most of us came to church this morning stressed.
We would not have to look very hard to find something to complain about.
It hasn’t been very long since we last compared our life with someone else’s.
Lately I have done that every time I back out of my driveway.
I see the weathered shingles on our house with their tar patches.
Then I look at 5 of our neighbours’ roofs.
Their beautiful flat shingles are all less than two years old.
The most recent shingling job was completed just two weeks ago.
And the comparison of my roof with theirs causes me stress.
But if a coffee cup is only a container, so is a house.
It does not define my life.
So what does define our lives?
God defines my life.
And my response to His gifts defines my life.
God’s gifts make me a container.
And it isn’t so important what I look like on the outside.
What is important is the inside.
What is important and defining is that God has filled my life.
By focusing on the contents of my life I am kept from stressing.
Paul asks us, “Who are you, a man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me thus?” Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for beauty and another, for menial use.” (Romans 9:20-21)
God desires that we be vessels of mercy.
Romans 9:30 says, God has made us “. . . vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory.”
And we are given a beautiful description of a stress-free life.
“. . . he who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.” (Romans 12:8c)
We find two key aspects of life brought together in this phrase.
Paul is talking about our ACTION and our ATTITUDE.
Both must be in harmony.
But it won’t happen if our focus is on ourselves.
I Today we are going to consider today ACTION OF MERCY.
Next week we will focus on the ATTITUDE OF MERCY.
Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” (Matthew 5:7)
Jesus was merciful.
The Writer to Hebrews said, “Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people.” (Hebrews 2:17)
Jesus was like us in every way.
He was human.
As fully human as you and I.
He knew the pressures of life.
He knew the pettiness of relationships.
He knew what it was to be loved.
He knew what it was to be hated.
He knew what it was to be rejected and abused.
He knew poverty.
He knew wealth.
He had friends and He had enemies.
But He was known for something.
“As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, "Have mercy on us, Son of David!” (Matthew 9:27)
Over and over people would call out to Him.
“Jesus, be merciful!”
“Jesus, show us mercy!”
Jesus, a person just like you and me was merciful!
He extended mercy to everyone He met.
What was His mercy like?
Sometimes it was brutal honesty.
He sometimes called people a brood of vipers.
He sometimes called them a crooked and perverse generation.
That was mercy.
To speak the truth, even at the risk of being unpopular, is mercy.
Some might call it suicidal or crazy.
But mercy always desires the best for others even when the way is hard.
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” (Matthew 23:23)
Sometimes Jesus’ mercy was displayed in acts of healing.
He risked healing on the Sabbath because it was the right thing to do.
His heart ached to see hurting broken bodies.
And He rejoiced when He saw faith that confessed, “Just say the word Jesus.”
“Just say the word and the sickness will leave.
“Just say the word and my child will be well.
“Just say the word and I will see.”
“Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)
Sometimes His mercy was shown by loving the outcast of society.
He sided with prostitutes, tax collectors, lepers, Samaritans, demon possessed.
He crossed the lines of propriety.
He allowed a woman declared unclean to touch Him and find healing.
He allowed a prostitute to wash His feet with her tears and dry them with her hair.
He lived among the publicans and sinners.
He called the self-righteous to follow Him.
And He wept over them when they refused.
“His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.” (Luke 1:50)
His mercy was shown in forgiveness.
Among His final words spoken was this phrase, “Father forgive them.
“They know not what they do.”
To a thief dying beside Him He said “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
Did that thief deserve such hope or forgiveness?
No, and neither do any of us.
“But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:13)
Jesus, a man like us.
Jesus, our merciful High Priest.
To whom have you been a high priest?
To whom have you shown mercy?
When is the last time you did a truly merciful act?
An act of mercy means you have absolutely nothing to gain.
Much of what is done in the church I fear, is not totally unselfish.
We work in children’s ministry because we have a child at stake.
We work in youth ministry because our children are that age.
We greet because we like meeting new people.
These are not wrong, they are natural.
But mercy is not natural.
Acts of mercy are spiritual acts.
They are activities from which I receive no benefit.
They stretch me out of my comfort zone.
It is not just because I have an interest.
It is because God is inspiring and empowering.
When is the last time you did a truly merciful act – a God act?
I was thinking about that in my life this week.
I was hard pressed to come up with a satisfactory answer.
But something happened on Friday.
The big tree in the back yard of the church was cut down.
But that was not the only thing that came down on Friday.
The neighbour living behind us had her clothes line fastened to our tree.
So her clothes line came down.
Well that’s what you get for using someone else’s tree – right?
Terry graciously brought us lunch on Friday.
And while eating in the kitchen I saw our neighbour.
She picked up her clothes line lying on the ground.
She looked at the open space where our tree once stood.
I could sense her loss and frustration as I watched.
We commented about it as we ate.
And Terry said we need to do something for her.
Why should we do anything?
It was our tree.
Too bad for her but it isn’t our fault.
But Terry was right.
So he was commissioned to go to Kent and get a gift certificate.
Then go to her door and apologize and give her the certificate.
Perhaps it would enable her to purchase a post for her line.
But why apologize?
We didn’t do anything wrong.
And why should Terry do that?
It wasn’t his decision to cut the tree down.
But the plan was followed through.
A wonderful ACTION OF MERCY.
Yesterday morning I look again in the yard.
And there is a post put into the ground.
The clothes line attached.
Someone else from the church was responsible.
Someone else responded with mercy.
Yesterday afternoon I arrived at the church.
I saw another act of mercy.
Someone was painting the handicap markings.
This person had nothing to gain.
They were not going to park there.
They would not benefit.
Acts of mercy – truly selfless action.
A truly selfless act is what Jesus described as going the second mile.
Mercy is turning the other cheek.
Mercy is giving more than asked.
Mercy is doing the unexpected.
“But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” (James 3:13)
May these words of Jesus haunt us to live beyond justice and show mercy.
“If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.” (Matthew 12:7)