“Blessed are the Merciful”

​B I B L E  B I T S  &  B I T E S
Devotions for Families

Season: Beatitudes
Episode 5: “Blessed are the Merciful”
Today’s Bible Bite: Matthew 5:7 – “God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” (NLT)

Video Story:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFKR96ecxqQ (Douglas Talks – Blessed are the Merciful)

“Do to others as you would like them to do to you.” (Luke 6:31, NLT)

Showing mercy is when we’re kind to someone whether we think they deserve it or not, like giving someone a second chance when they mess up or not getting mad when things go wrong. We love it when people show us mercy, but sometimes we’re not so good at giving mercy. But what did Jesus say about that? He wants us to treat others the way we want to be treated. That means that if we want people to show us mercy (and I don’t know anyone who doesn’t), we need to be willing to show mercy to others. God has shown us His incredible mercy by providing a way for us to be forgiven for the bad things we do…without us being able to do anything to earn His forgiveness. We need to show that kind of mercy to others too. If we refuse, the Bible also warns us that we shouldn’t expect to be treated with mercy by God…and that’s a pretty frightening thought, because none of us is perfect and we need His mercy in our lives each and every day.

Think about it...
• Showing ‘mercy’ is about being kind just because, especially when others don’t expect us to be kind. When might we not want to show mercy?
• God tells us that showing mercy is one of the conditions for receiving mercy. How have you experienced God’s mercy?
• God shows us His mercy by forgiving us. Is it ever okay not to forgive other people?
• Forgiving someone doesn’t mean that what happened is okay. Forgiveness means not holding it over someone else. This requires us to be merciful. When has someone shown you mercy?
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Prayer: Thank you, God, for your incredible mercy. Without your mercy it would be impossible for us to know your love, forgiveness or to be part of your family. Help us to be merciful to others because we have experienced your mercy.
~ Pastor Jane