1. What is likely to come to mind when we think of a merciful person?
When we think of a merciful person, we may imagine someone who is kind, compassionate, and generous. The Good Samaritan in Jesus' parable may come to mind. This foreigner treated a Jew who fell into the hands of thieves with compassion. The Samaritan "was deeply moved" by the Jew, and love moved him to see to it that he was cared for (Luke 10: 29-37). This parable highlights a beautiful quality of our God, a facet of his love that he shows us every day and in many ways: mercy.
2. How else is mercy shown?
Mercy can also be shown by failing to punish a person when there is a basis for doing so. Jehovah has been very merciful to us in this regard, for a psalm writer said: “He has not dealt with us according to our sins” (Ps. 103: 10). However, there are times when Jehovah has to vigorously discipline someone who has sinned.
3. What questions will we discuss in this article?
In this article, we will look at the Bible's answer to these three questions: Why does Jehovah show mercy? What is the relationship between firm discipline and mercy? And what can help us to show this quality?
WHY JEHOVAH SHOWS MERCY
4. Why does Jehovah show mercy?
For love. The apostle Paul was inspired to write that God "is rich in mercy." In this context, Paul was referring to the fact that God gives his imperfect anointed servants the hope of living in heaven (Eph. 2: 4-7). But God does not show mercy only to anointed Christians. David said in a psalm: "Jehovah is good to all, and his mercy is seen in all his works" (Ps. 145: 9). Since Jehovah loves human beings, he shows mercy whenever he finds a reason to do so.
5. How did Jesus learn that Jehovah is merciful?
Jesus knows better than anyone that Jehovah loves to show mercy. For thousands of years, he was with his Father in heaven before coming to earth (Prov. 8:30, 31). On many occasions, he saw how he showed mercy to sinful human beings (Ps. 78: 37-42). When teaching others, Jesus often highlighted this beautiful quality of his Father.
6. What parable did Jesus tell to help us see that his Father is merciful?
As we saw in the previous article, Jesus told the moving parable of the prodigal son to teach that Jehovah loves to show mercy . The son in the parable left home and “wasted his inheritance by leading a wild life” (Luke 15:13). In time, he repented of the immoral life he had led, humbled himself, and returned home. How did your father react? The young man didn't have to wait long to find out. Jesus said: “While he was still far away, his father caught a glimpse of him and was deeply moved. He ran to meet him, hugged him and kissed him tenderly ”. Instead of humiliating him, the father showed him mercy, forgave him, and accepted him back into his family. The son had committed many sins, but his father forgave him because he had repented.The merciful father in the parable represents Jehovah. By this poignant example, Jesus taught that his Father wants to forgive sinners who repent from the heart (Luke 15: 17-24).
ILLUSTRATION:
The father did not humiliate his lost son; rather, he received him with open arms. (See paragraph 6.) *
7. How is Jehovah's wisdom related to his mercy?
For his incomparable wisdom. Jehovah's wisdom is more than just a cool, intellectual quality. The Bible says that "the wisdom from above" is "full of mercy and good fruit" (James 3:17). Like a loving father, Jehovah knows that his mercy benefits his children (Ps. 103: 13; Isa. 49:15). It gives them hope even if they are imperfect. Because of his infinite wisdom, he shows them mercy whenever he finds a reason to do so. But it exercises this quality in perfect balance. Because he is so wise, he never goes to the other extreme and becomes permissive.
8. What do you need to do sometimes, and why?
Now suppose a servant of God purposely decides to lead a life of sin. So what should be done? Inspired, the apostle Paul wrote: “Stop associating […] with that person” (1 Cor. 5:11). Unrepentant sinners are expelled from the congregation. This is necessary to protect faithful brethren and to reflect Jehovah's holiness . But some think that the expulsion is not a display of God's mercy. Let's see if that's true.
CAN EXPULSION BE A SAMPLE OF MERCY?
9, 10. a) According to Hebrews 12: 5, 6, why can we say that the expulsion is a show of mercy? b) What example helps us understand it?
When it is announced in a meeting that someone we love is “no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses,” we feel deep sadness. We may wonder if it was necessary to expel him. Is expulsion really a show of mercy? Yes it is. If someone needs discipline, the wisest, most merciful and loving thing to do is to give it to them (Prov. 13:24). Can Expulsion Help An Unrepentant Sinner Change His Attitude? Yes. Many who have committed serious sin have found that the firm action the elders took was the jolt they needed to regain their senses, change their behavior, and return to Jehovah's arms. --Read Hebrews 12: 5, 6 ).
Let's think about this example. The shepherd of a flock realizes that one of his sheep is sick. He knows that to treat this particular disease he has to isolate the sheep from the rest of the flock. But sheep are social beings. They want to be with others and tend to get upset when they are taken out of the herd. So if the shepherd isolates a sheep to treat her, does that mean that he is being cruel to her? Of course not. He knows that if he allows the sheep to continue with the flock, the disease will spread. So by isolating the sick, he protects the entire flock (compare Leviticus 13: 3, 4).
11. a) Why can the expelled person be compared to a sick sheep? b) What help do the expelled have?
We could say that an expelled person is like that sheep, because he is spiritually ill (James 5:14). Like some physical illnesses, spiritual illness can be very contagious. For this reason, in some cases it is necessary to isolate the person from the congregation . This disciplinary measure is an expression of Jehovah's love for faithful members of the flock and can touch the heart of the sinner and cause him to repent. While he is expelled, he has the possibility to attend the meetings, where he can receive spiritual nourishment and strengthen his faith again. You can also get publications for your personal use and watch JW Broadcasting®. And when elders see you making changes, from time to time they can give you advice and guidance to help you recover so you can be readmitted as one of Jehovah's Witnesses. *
ILLUSTRATION:
A shepherd approaches a sick sheep that is isolated from the rest of the flock.
Even if a sick sheep is removed from the flock, it is still cared for by the shepherd. (See paragraphs 9-11).
12. What loving and merciful measure can elders take when a sinner does not repent?
It is important to remember that only unrepentant sinners are cast out. The elders know that this is a serious matter that cannot be taken lightly. And they also know that Jehovah disciplines "to the proper degree" (Jer. 30:11). They love their brothers and sisters and do not want to do anything that will damage their relationship with Jehovah. But sometimes the loving and merciful thing is to remove the sinner from the congregation.
13. Why was a Christian expelled from the Corinthian congregation?
Let's see how the apostle Paul handled the case of an unrepentant sinner in the first century. This Christian from Corinth had an immoral behavior, as he was living with his father's wife. How scandalous! Jehovah had told the ancient nation of Israel: “The man sleeping with his father's wife has brought dishonor to his father. Both must die without fail ”(Lev. 20:11). Of course, Paul could not tell the Corinthian congregation to execute that man; but he did tell her to expel him. The immoral conduct of this man was affecting a part of the congregation. There were even some who thought it was not such a serious sin (1 Cor. 5: 1, 2, 13).
14. How did Paul show mercy to the man expelled from Corinth, and why? (2 Corinthians 2: 5-8, 11).
Some time later, Paul learned that the sinner had made changes and truly repented. Although the man had tainted the name of the congregation, Paul told the elders that he did not want to be "too harsh." He gave them the following instruction: "You must kindly forgive him and comfort him." And he explained why: "So you don't feel overwhelmed by being too sad." Paul felt sorry for this man who had repented. The apostle did not want him to feel so overwhelmed and crushed with guilt that he stopped seeking forgiveness (read 2 Corinthians 2: 5-8, 11).
15. How do the elders show steadfastness and mercy with balance?
As is the case with Jehovah, elders love to show mercy. They act assertively when necessary, but show mercy when possible if there is a compelling reason to do so. If they did not discipline the sinner, they would not be showing mercy, but would be being permissive. Now, are the elders the only ones who should show mercy?
WHAT CAN HELP ALL OF US SHOW MERCY
16. According to Proverbs 21:13, what does Jehovah do to those who show no mercy?
All Christians want to be merciful like Jehovah. Why? One reason is that he does not listen to those who do not show mercy to others (read Proverbs 21:13). Since we do not want Jehovah to refuse to listen to our prayers, we are very careful not to be harsh with others. Instead of plugging our ears “to the cries of the needy,” we are always ready to listen to the Christian in pain. Furthermore, we take seriously this warning that the Bible gives us: "He who shows no mercy will have a judgment without mercy" (James 2:13).If we are humble and aware of how much we need mercy, we will be more willing to show it to others. Above all, we want to do it when a repentant sinner returns to the congregation.
17. How did King David show mercy from the heart?
In the Bible, we find examples that teach us to show mercy to others and not treat them harshly. Consider King David, someone who often showed mercy from the heart. Although Saul wanted to kill him, David was merciful to this king whom God had appointed and never tried to avenge him or harm him (1 Sam. 24: 9-12, 18, 19).
18, 19. On what two occasions did David show no mercy?
However, David did not always show mercy. For example, when Nabal — who was a rough man by nature — insulted him and refused to feed David and his men, David became enraged and said that he would kill Nabal and all the men in his household. Because Nabal's wife, Abigail, acted swiftly, kindly, and patiently, David was not guilty of shedding blood (1 Sam. 25: 9-22, 32-35).
On another occasion, the prophet Nathan told David about a rich man who stole from a poor man a little sheep that he was very fond of. David was enraged and said: "As true as Jehovah lives, the man who did this deserves to die!" (2 Sam. 12: 1-6). He knew that the Law of Moses said that if a person stole a sheep, he should give four sheep in compensation (Ex. 22: 1). But to say that this man deserved to die was too harsh a judgment. Actually, Nathan used that example to help David understand that he himself had committed several far worse crimes. And Jehovah showed David far more mercy than David would have shown the man of Nathan's example (2 Sam. 12: 7-13).
20. What does David's example teach us?
Notice that when David was carried away by fury, he said that Nabal and all his men deserved to die. And then he did not hesitate to condemn the man of Nathan's example to death. In the latter case, we may wonder why a man who was normally so good was so harsh in his judgment. But let's think about what Dav id's situation was . At that moment he carried a guilty conscience. The tendency to judge others harshly is a sign of poor spiritual health. Jesus gave this serious warning: “Stop judging, lest you be judged. For just as you judge others, you will be judged ”(Matt. 7: 1, 2). So let's avoid being hard on others and strive to be rich in mercy, like our God.
ILLUSTRATION:
King David showed no mercy to the man of Nathan's example. (See paragraphs 19-20). *
21, 22. In what ways can we show mercy?
Mercy is more than a feeling; it involves doing things for others. We can all think of people to help in the family, the congregation, or the territory. We will surely find many ways to show them mercy. Do we know of anyone in need of comfort? Can we bring someone something to eat or help them in another way? Does a reinstated sibling need encouragement or comfort from a friend? Can we bring the hope of the good news to others? This is one of the best ways to show mercy to others (Job 29:12, 13; Rom. 10:14, 15; James 1:27).
If we are vigilant, we will realize that all around us there are many opportunities to show mercy. If we demonstrate this quality, we will make our heavenly Father, the God who is "rich in mercy" very happy.
WHAT WOULD YOU ANSWER?
Why does Jehovah show mercy?
Because Jehovah loves human beings , he shows mercy whenever he finds a reason to do so.
Why is expulsion a show of mercy?
If someone needs discipline, the wisest, most merciful, and loving thing to do is to give it to them .
What will help us show mercy to others?
Mercy is more than a feeling; it involves doing things for others. We can all think of people to help in the family, the congregation, or the territory. If we are vigilant, we will realize that all around us there are many opportunities to show mercy.
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