So much of our struggles are rooted in pride. Pride puffs us up and drives us to feel superior or important. Interestingly enough, we can’t be prideful and merciful at the same time.
Look at Peter’s conversation with Jesus. He approaches Jesus in Matthew 18 and asks, “Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till 7 times?” Jesus clarifies to Peter, “I say not unto thee until seven times: but, until seventy times seven.” But Jesus isn’t done. He explains a parable about the power and requirement of humility in mercy. A servant owed a large debt, and his master came to collect. “But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made” (vs. 25).
The servant begged for mercy, specifically he asked for more time: “The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all” (vs. 26).
The master was moved with compassion, and didn’t just grant him an extension, he actually forgave him of all the debt. Great story, right? Well, Jesus wasn’t done telling it.
“But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt” (Matthew 18:28-30).
What?? The servant turned around and took another servant by the throat and demanded payment for a much smaller amount!? I think we can all agree that the forgiven servant quickly forgot the mercy of his master. We can hopefully see how he doesn’t reciprocate mercy, but how is this prideful? Think about it: pride puffs us up. The forgiven servant was trying to place himself in a position of power over his coworker. By making himself “more important,” he put the other servant in his place. This is a promotion of self and self-interests. Unfortunately for him, word got back to his master.
“Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses” (Matthew 18:32-35).
True, Godly mercy is humbling ourselves to each other and extending grace and forgiveness because God has truly been gracious and merciful to us. If we struggle to let go of offense, we are walking in pride, and the mercy of God does not flow from us. If we hold onto bitterness and hold past wrongdoings against others, pride has taken root in our lives, and mercy cannot flourish. If we cannot forgive, how are we behaving like Christ who took all of our sins upon him? The cross is the ultimate symbol of humility and mercy. In his humility, Christ surrendered himself to a punishment he did not deserve to extend mercy to every one of us.
The first step in walking in God’s mercy starts with laying down our pride. This is a challenge for most of us because we often use pride as a way to protect ourselves. But I need God’s mercy in my life. That means I too must humble myself so that I can extend mercy to others. I have a lllloooonnnngggg way to go, but I recognize this need for growth in my own life.
What do you think? I’d love to hear from you.
Thank you for the insights into this subject. This is one of those things that I read and think, “I need to read this every day”!