Injustice seems rampant today. We hunger for wrongs to be righted, yet showing mercy appears weak and lets the offender off the hook. So how do we reconcile Jesus’ teaching for us to want justice, but also freely give mercy? In this video, we see how Jesus flips the script by redefining our understanding of justice and mercy, what it would look like for us to live as people of justice and mercy, and how living out Jesus’ radical, countercultural teachings leads us towards lives of peace, contentment, and purpose that we’ve been craving.
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MESSAGE NOTES
To live for the Kingdom of God is to live under the authority of God and work for the world around you to be reconciled to him. This only happens when we live for His upside down kingdom:
- Poor in spirit – Upside down living is complete reliance on God.
- Those who Mourn – Upside down living is being broken over your spiritual condition.
Those who are Humble –Upside down living responds to brokenness with Humility.
“Blesses” or favor means: contentment, satisfaction, joy, fulfillment. This is everything we’re chasing… God says all these come naturally to those who live for his Kingdom!
[Matthew 5:6-7]
“God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”
1. God favors those who desire justice.
So, what does it mean to “hunger and thirst for justice”? A literal rendering would be “God favors those who hunger and thirst for integrity, upright living, and conformity to God’s moral commands.”
In reality, to seek Justice/Righteousness is to fill the hole back in. It is a restoration of the way things ought to be.
[Isaiah 1:17]
“Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”
[Micah 6:8]
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
[Jeremiah 22:3]
“This is what the Lord says: Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor, the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place.”
[Isaiah 55:1]
“Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink—even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine or milk— it’s all free!“
[James 1:19-20]
…human anger does not lead to the righteousness of God.
2. God favors the merciful.
Mercy: Action of compassion or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender or enemy. Not giving someone what they deserve.
[1 John 3:7]
“Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous.”
Pete Scazzero said “You can’t be right with God if you’re not right with others.”
[Colossians 3:12-13]
“Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.”
[1 Peter 1:15-16]
“But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”
We are called to show mercy…
(1) To those who make mistakes – Matthew 12:17-20, James 2:13
(2) To those who let us down – Luke 23:34, Colossians 3:12-13
(3) To those far from God – Matthew 9:10-13
“Jesus connected before He corrected.” Pastor Chris Hodges
(4) To ourselves – Psalm 38:4-8, 1 Timothy 1:13-15
In a world filled with injustice and oppression, corruption, deceit, selfishness and lies…we are tempted to responded in one of two ways:
- Become apathetic, cynical, or lose hope and give up
- Or our desire for things to be fair has turned our hearts away from God to other means (kingdoms) to settle the score
Jesus doesn’t say that we should ignore sin in our hearts or in our culture
- Point out the problem and become part of the solution
- Where do you see evil in the world?
- What good are doing in the world to fill the hole that evil has left?
What evil do you see in your own heart?
- What parts of your life would God describe as UNrighteous?
- How hungry are you for your sin to no longer live in you?
- What are you doing about it?
Where do you need to show mercy?
- To those who make mistakes.
- To those who let us down.
- To those far from God.
- To ourselves