We live in a culture of condemnation.Scroll through social media, watch the news, or listen to political conversations and you’ll quickly notice something: criticism, outrage, and judgment are everywhere. But Jesus offers a different way.

This Sunday we will continue our Lenten series “A Bright Sadness” by exploring one of the most famous lines Jesus ever spoke which is found in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:1-12:
 

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”
(Matthew 5:7)

One of my favorite theologians, John Stott, once said:

“The Sermon on the Mount is the best known but least obeyed part of Jesus’ teaching.”
 

Why? Because Jesus’ words are simple, clear and... hard. They often run directly against the current of our culture and even our instincts. Yet Jesus insists that the truly flourishing life, the blessed life, is a life marked by mercy. In a world quick to condemn, Jesus invites us to become people who extend extravagant mercy because we ourselves have received mercy from God.
 

Where do you need mercy today?
And who might God be inviting you to show mercy to?