I desire mercy and not sacrifice

I desire mercy and not sacrifice

ByPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 4 minutes

I am happy to welcome you to „Daily Word for Spiritual Edification”! God is so good to all of us! I am grateful for this opportunity to share with you the revelations He has given me. God desires you to realize what riches you have been given through God’s Word. These riches are incomparable to silver or gold. God’s Word is immortal, eternal, life-giving and wholesome, containing answers and solutions. Let’s continue talking about the power of compassion.

«As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, „Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him. Now it happened as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, „Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard that, He said to them, „Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance» (Mathew, 9:9-13).

Jesus knew all the people; He knew their thoughts that were not always good and pure; nevertheless, He was moved by compassion for them. The Pharisees saw only that Jesus was eating with sinners and thus breaking the law. He answered to them and said to go and learn what it means to“desire mercy and not sacrifice”.

This revelation was the secret of Jesus’ success in ministry. This is the same thing God wants to teach us today. God desires mercy and compassion, instead of sacrifice.

If your house is on fire and you are not a fireman, do you still try to do something to put the fire out? Or you wait around for the fire brigade to arrive? So, what if you have to wait for a long time?

«Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion» (Luke, 10: 30-33).

What motivated the two supposedly godly men in this story? What thoughts filled their minds? They were ‘full of the law’. These people thought that they were pleasing God, – since it is not right to be late for the service or rehearsal, no matter that there is a beat up, injured man lying on the ground in need of their help.

Levite passed by and the priest passed by; only one Good Samaritan who wasn’t Jewish was moved by compassion, stopped and helped.

Ask yourself these questions: «What is your motivation? How do you react when you see people in pain? Who do you want to resemble — Jesus or a Pharisee»

It is crucial to grow in compassion and mercy towards people, because that is what is pleasing to God and releases His power and grace.

Be blessed! We will continue tomorrow!

Pastor Rufus Ajiboye

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