Be Merciful February 18

“Do not harm him, for who can lay hands on the LORD’s anointed and remain unpunished?” The LORD will reward each man for his justice and faithfulness. (1 Samuel 26:9,23)

But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Luke 6:35-36)

Piety

Lord, you set forth a moral code that goes beyond human capacity. Help us to overcome our emotions and instincts and egos to follow that code. Give us ears to hear you and minds to understand your message. Then give us the will to accept your commands and live justly and extend mercy to even our enemy. Amen.

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/021807.shtml

Here goes Jesus…changing the rules again.

While there are many violent scenes throughout the Hebrew Bible, today’s scene from the book of Samuel, introduces non-violence – a concept advanced later in the Gospels and by Gandhi, Lech Walesa, Nelson Mandela, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and many others. David does not slay his opponent; he only steals his spear to make a point. The NAB points out that there is no Old Testament commandment demanding hatred of one's enemy, but the “neighbor” of the love commandment was understood as one's fellow countryman. In the Hebrew Bible, (Psalm 139:19-22), hatred of evil persons is assumed to be right.

If only you would destroy the wicked, O God, and the bloodthirsty would depart from me!

Deceitfully they invoke your name; your foes swear faithless oaths.

Do I not hate, LORD, those who hate you? Those who rise against you, do I not loathe?

With fierce hatred I hate them, enemies I count as my own.

But it is not right any longer. That sentiment is not tolerated by Jesus. Not any more. Jesus extends the love commandment to the enemy and the persecutor and even that big red SUV who cut you off on the icy Beltway while driving home from work yesterday. We, as His disciples, as children of God, must imitate His example and the example of God, who grants his gifts of sun and rain to both the good and the bad.

Yesterday, the Gospel reading of the Transfiguration from Mark instructed us to “Listen to Jesus.” Today, we learn the moral code that Jesus wants us to abide by and how it differs from human emotion and instincts. If the Lord is kind and merciful, how can we be anything but that as well? The Lord seeks a binding resolution that there will be a surge in our sense of justice and faithfulness.

Action

Who is your enemy? How can you turn over what some would say is common sense or emotion or instinct and overcome that enemy?

In a message today from the www.SaveDarfur.org group, they have issued a new call to encourage people to act on behalf of the oppressed in Sudan. David Rubenstein wrote:

The Sudanese government has thumbed its nose at all opportunities to cooperate with international efforts to end the violence.

The Bush administration has already developed "Plan B," a multi-tiered plan to push Sudan to end the genocide, but they keep delaying its launch. Adding to the frustration, despite the continuing mass-displacement and attacks, Special Envoy Andrew Natsios claimed last week that genocide is no longer occurring in Darfur.

We need your help to encourage President Bush and his advisors to launch "Plan B" before more lives are lost in Darfur.

Click here now to send a message asking President Bush to launch his plan to make Sudan cooperate with international efforts to end the violence.

The Sudanese government-sponsored genocide has already claimed at least 400,000 lives, displaced 2.5 million people and left more than 3.5 million men, women and children struggling to survive amid violence and starvation. We simply can't afford to wait any longer.

Please add your name to the petition and send a message…it only takes 30 seconds but it may spur action for justice and mercy toward the people in Darfur. Thank you.