You being a person who is merciful is for you to be able to identify with others. Those who only care about themselves can’t see how to treat other people. It is easy for you to understand that if you IGNORANTLY go around mistreating all those around you, they are going to mistreat you. If you keep on living like that, your life is going to be one of people trying to get even with you or trying to avoiding you.

One of the main possibilities for you finding yourself suffering emotionally, financially, and physically is because you may be having problems and failures relationally. Mercy is a vital attitude and characteristic for your success in life and healing for your problems. However, mercy has to face abuse, mistreatment, injustice, other people’s mistakes and failures, and neglect. You can ONLY show someone mercy when they don’t deserve it.

Everyone wants to at least be treated fairly. They would prefer to be treated better than that; but, the people around you are busy thinking about themselves, making mistakes, and saying and doing things that aren’t fair. They are busy giving you justifiable reasons for responding to them with retaliation or correction.

Justice and mercy aren’t compatible; an eye for an eye will give you justice; but, sooner or later, you will be losing an eye. Everyone does things that are wrong and deserve to be punished. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. How do you get mercy when you need it? You have to start sowing seeds of mercy in others. Being merciful to others BUILDS a life of mercy for you.

Jesus said in Luke 6:31 (NIV) “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” If you want other people to show you mercy when YOU don’t deserve it, then you must show them mercy when they don’t deserve it. However, when you show someone mercy, you will need to help them see what you are doing. They will have a tendency to not notice it when you do something nice for them.

You are showing people mercy through your life. Then you TEACH them how to built mercy relationships themselves. You aren’t just trying to be a nice person, you are trying to help people with THEIR relationships too. You aren’t showing someone mercy and then demanding mercy in return. You are gradually developing a two-way mercy relationship with them and TEACHING them how to do it with others.

It is only fair, if someone damages your eye, you get the right to damage their eye. Jesus said in Matthew 5:38-39 (NIV) “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” Now, that’s not fair!

You are facing struggles with divorce; you need God to show you mercy by giving you healing, help, and miracles. Other people are facing struggles; they need God to show them mercy by giving them healing, help, and miracles. If you are always examining everything everyone does and says, if you are constantly evaluating them and then correcting those things that they do that don’t fit into fairness, you are not building a life of mercy from God for yourself. But, some people don’t know they are setting themselves up for a merciless way of life.

When you ignore little failures, mistakes, and even things done on purpose, you are able to direct relationships into fun, enjoyment, pleasure, and friendship. Rather than demanding relationships of constant fairness, you get involved in relationships of love, forgiveness, grace, mercy, and joy. BUT, you MUST be pointing your life of mercy out to those around you. Not so they will be merciful to you; you do it so they will learn how to be merciful to others.

In all your relationships there will be areas that need working on. This is where Jesus teaches you how to BE fixed and how to fix others. After He works on you, He will help you lead them GENTLY into a better way of doing things. They may DESERVE to be abused back; they may even expect to be mistreated because of what they did to you. But, because you provide them with mercy, you TEACH them a better way to live life; and, you TEACH them how true Christianity works. Don’t just live the merciful life in your relationship with them, TEACH them what you are doing and how to live it themselves.

Mat 7:6 (NIV) Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces. If the person you are dealing with is an evil person, then mercy may not be able to change them. If they have DECIDED to give themselves over to doing wrong, bad, and evil, and if they have decided to neglect right, good, and righteousness, then they can’t be helped. Once you have reacted in mercy to them and they can’t receive it, stay away from them as much as possible. But, for those who are receptive to mercy, develop AND teach a mercy relationship with them so they can live a better life.