“Mercies Qualities” – Sunday, May 12, 2024

SERMON PREACHED AT
STOUFFVILLE UNITED CHURCH
REV. CAPT. JOHN NILES
MUSIC BY DANIEL MEHDIZADEH AND CHOIR

Sometimes, you can go home again, and it is just as you remember it—at least some of it is. I remember how a few years before transferring from the Reserve Force Military to the Regular Force Military and eventually leaving the parish ministry; I returned home to Thunder Bay to the last place my father served in the military –  when he was attached posted with the Lake Superior Scottish Regiment – before releasing after his service of 30 years came to an end.  It was my mother’s home town and the place he met her and married her after WWII. And the place we all knew would be his final posting before releasing. I went that Sunday to the first church I remember attending as a child- Current River United – before our family was posted to other places in Canada and Europe.

Having spent time with my mother in the hospital the days before, and the funeral director the evening before to make the future arrangements for my mother knowing it wouldn’t be long; I arrived just as the service was starting and sat on the end of the second last pew on the right, where I had first sat that Sunday in my early 20s after returning to church after what appeared to me at the time to be a long absence. As I again sat there, I remember how a few months after returning I had been invited to join the choir.  Everything was, as I had remembered it—even some of the people in the choir—though now older and grayer. I could see myself as a child being hushed by my mother in the fourth pew from the front on the left side. I guess it didn’t work for I’m still talking in church.
Returning, at the time after many many years, then to sit in a church pew where it all began for me in the church; where I began this journey that brought me to be eventually here with you. I thought again of God’s mercy, and theirs at Current River and yours. As Shakespeare said,

The quality of mercy is not strain’d,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.

            We live in a world where it’s so easy to become callused and indifferent. We are bombarded daily with news of tragedies, violent acts, and suffering people, wars and demonstrations. Living sanely in such a world as this, often necessitates developing a thick skin. Unfortunately, a thick skin and a hard heart are often confused with one another. Instead of developing a thick skin, many develop a hard heart. It is often the love and encouragement of our mothers and others that keep our heart soft and open.

A young man was visiting his brother and sister-in-law who were hosting Mother’s day that year and was surprised to find his young nephew, Timmy, helping them bake the cupcakes. After they were done, his sister-in-law allowed Timmy to put the icing on the cupcakes. When he had finished, he brought them to the table. “The cupcakes look delicious, Tim,” his uncle said. And he took a bite while looking at the other cupcakes. “Timmy these are so good.”   As he finished one and took another he again complimented his little nephew. “The cupcakes look beautiful, Tim,” his uncle said. “How did you get them iced so evenly?” And he took a large bite while waiting for the answer. His nephew replied, “I licked them.”

An Eight-year-old Mary wrote her mother a note for Mother’s Day. “Dear Mother, here is the box of candy I bought you for Mother’s Day. It is very good candy. I know, because I already ate three pieces.”

Eight-year-old Carol also wrote her mother said, “Dear mother, here are two aspirins. Have a happy mother’s day.”

Have you ever thought that we all need encouragement?  The dictionary says that encouragement means “to give courage, confidence; to hearten, reassure, buoy up, to exhort.”  We all need to be reassured or to buoyed up every once in a while. That’s because life is hard. And it hurts.

             Last week we learned about the brutality of life without mercy, and the equality of mercy, as well as the quality of mercy. This week I want us to look at mercies qualities.

I

            “Mercy triumphs over judgment.”  Why? We find within the word itself the answer. Mercy comes from two Greek words, charity and compassion. Charity refers to the old meaning of the word — in the sense of loving concern – making the choice to be kind when others are callous and uncaring. This is a love that “…bears all things, hopes all things, endures all things, a love that never fails.”

            A man is in bed when there is knocking on the door. He rolls over and looks at his clock. It’s half past three in the morning. “I’m not getting out of bed at this time,” he thinks, and rolls over. Then, a louder knock follows. “Aren’t you going to answer that?” says his wife. So he drags himself out of bed, and goes downstairs. He opens the door and there is man standing at the door. It didn’t take the homeowner long to realize the man was drunk. “Hi there,” slurs the stranger, “Can you give me a push?” “No, get lost, it’s half past three. I was in bed. And you shouldn’t be driving.” says the man and slams the door. He goes back up to bed and tells his wife what happened and she says “Dave, that wasn’t very nice of you. Remember that night we broke down in the pouring rain on the way to pick the kids up from the baby-sitter and you had to knock on that man’s house to get us started again? What would have happened if he’d told us to get lost?” “But the guy was drunk,” says the husband. “It doesn’t matter,” says the wife. “He needs our help and it would be the Christian thing to help him. Don’t let him drive, if he has a car. Just drive him home. Get his address and give him ours and he can come back and get the car in the morning.” So the husband gets out of bed again, gets dressed, and goes downstairs. He opens the door, and not being able to see the stranger anywhere he shouts, “Hey, do you still want a push?” and he hears a voice cry out, “Yeah, please!” So, still being unable to see the stranger, he shouts: “Where are you?” And the stranger replies: “I’m over here, on your swing.”          

            The principal Hebrew word for mercy speaks of an emotional response to the needs of others. It means to feel the pain of another so deeply that we’re compelled to do something about it. In fact, people in Bible times believed that the seat of emotions was found in the intestinal area. That’s why the King James Version uses the phrase, “bowels of mercy.”                
William Barclay defines mercy this way: “To get inside someone’s skin until we can see things with his eyes, think things with his mind, and feel things with his feelings; to move in and act on behalf of those who are hurting.”
Mercy can be defined as: “good will toward the afflicted, joined with a desire to relieve them.”
I once heard of a preacher in the old South building up steam in his sermon, moving to a great crescendo. He said, “This church, like the crippled man, has got to get up and walk.” The congregation responded, “That’s right, reverend, let it walk.” And he added, “This church, like Elijah on Mount Carmel, has got to run.” “Run, let it run, preacher. Let it run.” “This church has go to mount up on wings like wings of eagles and fly.” “Let it fly, preacher. Let it fly.” Then the preacher added, “Now if this church is gonna fly, it ‘s gonna take money.” They all spoke up in unison, “Let it walk, preacher. Let it walk. Let it walk.”

II

            To be merciful not only to be charitable but it is to be compassionate. A few years ago, I was watching David Letterman, and he was broadcasting his show from Las Vegas. He was doing his opening monologue and he told this joke. He said that he was standing in front of one of the casinos, and a man came up to him looking desperate. “Please!” the man begged frantically. “Could you possibly spare $500. My wife is very sick, and I really need the money to take her to the doctor and to buy her the medicine she needs.” Dave looked at the guy suspiciously, and he asked the man, “Wait a minute! If I give you $500, how do I know you won’t just go into one of the casinos here and gamble it all away?’ The man quickly responded, “Oh no, I wouldn’t do that! I’ve got gambling money!”

            “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” Mercy not only means charity, but also, compassion.

To have compassion means to show someone kindness and grace. Grace as we know refers to God’s action towards us in Christ and our action towards others because of Christ. As the acronym G.R.A.C.E. explains it fully: it is God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.

A man called his mother in Florida. “Mom, how are you?” “Not too good,” said the mother. “I’ve been very weak.” The son said, “Why are you so weak?” She said, “Because I haven’t eaten in 38 days.” The man said, “That’s terrible. Why haven’t you eaten in 38 days?” The mother answers, “Because I didn’t want my mouth to be filled with food if you should call.”

Compassion, grace, or mercy means loving and caring for someone without the person deserving it and sometimes when the person doesn’t deserve it because we ourselves have been loved, encouraged, cared for, and forgiven in spite of ourselves by Christ. It means as a result responding to others with in that same manner.
Robert Schuller tells this story about Bernice Schug. He met Schug when she needed work and they hired her as a housekeeper. She was a lovely woman, showering the Schuller’s with love and poppy-seed rolls. But he says that no one knew of her hidden hurt. One day she came to Schuller and said, “Bob, I was reading the bulletin and I noticed that you are having a guest speaker next Sunday who was a Kamikaze pilot.” Schuller nodded telling Bernice that this particular pilot had a tremendous story about finding Jesus. “That may be true, but my boy was killed in WWII by a Kamikaze pilot and I don’t think I could handle it.” Schuller understood and told her he didn’t think it would hurt her to miss one Sunday. Schuller writes: “The next week the Japanese pilot shared his story. His love and gratitude for Jesus shone from his eyes. You could feel the love and release he had found. People were moved by his testimony. And when the service was over, I walked with him back down the aisle to the rear of the Church. Suddenly, as we approached the last pew, an older woman stepped out directly in our path. She stood firmly in front of the Kamikaze pilot and blocked his exit. She looked him squarely in the eye and said, “My son was killed by a Kamikaze!”  Schug had come to hear the story. We all held our breath as she continued, “I have seen how God has forgiven you your sins, and tonight, for the first time in 40 years, I’ve allowed Him to forgive mine. Will you forgive my hatred for your people?” With tears in his eyes the young pilot said, “Will you forgive me for what my people did to you?” She threw her arms around this Japanese man and they stood there holding each other, both of them crying and crying.”
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. And in that, mercy truly does triumph over judgement. You think about that. Amen.