Original Entry: April 14, 2008
McMinnville, OR
“But go and learn what this means; ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:13
“If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent.” Matthew 12:7
For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings. Hosea 6:6
I am excited about hunting season next year.
The coming season will be all about Darby killing his first buck, James killing his first elk, and going to Eastern Oregon with my father to help him take his first bull. That leaves me hunting locally, which means general season archery elk and deer tags. After purchasing a new release I will shoot almost daily until archery season begins.
Although different than shooting a rifle, some basic principles apply to shooting a bow. I go through the same standard operating procedure of BRASS-breath, relax, aim, squeeze and straight/shoot. With a bow and rifle, unlike a shotgun, one of the foundational rules of accuracy is “pull and do not punch the trigger.” To pull or squeeze the trigger verses punching or jerking it is the difference between minute-of-angle accuracy and a missed shot. In pressure situations I am tempted to punch and not squeeze, which is why I have to walk through my SOP (standard operating procedure) for each shout.
As we begin our word study in Scriptures on the word “sacrifice” our two passages for today from Matthew stood out. There are several foundational principles that operate as the basis for a man’s faith, one of which is simply that compassion is greater than sacrifice. In these two passages Jesus is being accused of hanging out with “tax-gatherers and sinners” (Matthew 9:11) and not keeping the “Sabbath” (Matthew 12:2). In response to his critics Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6 that says, “I desire compassion more than sacrifice (NASB).” Depending on your translation this section may also read “mercy” or “loyalty”.
If Hosea used the word “loyalty” why would Jesus come along hundreds of years later and replace it with the word “mercy”? Did Jesus mess up? Did he mistranslate the Hosea passage?
No way.
If a man’s faith is no more than a list of rules that govern him, he will punch the trigger (so to speak) and his faith will hit the mark of legalism and miss the mark of love. If, however, his priorities are in order with compassion ahead of the law he is on his way to become a man full of grace and truth (John 1:14-17).
Christianity begins with ministry to “those who are sick” (Matthew 9:12) and not “those who are healthy”. If a man’s faith responses begin and end with the affluent, A-crowd, or those who have the means to reciprocate, he may be effective with his life but still fail to squeeze the trigger.
Watch Jesus squeeze the trigger, "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even `sinners' love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even `sinners' do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even `sinners' lend to `sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full” (Like 6:32-34).
Why do so many churches shun the needy? Why do their fiscal budgets despise those sick with addictions, lost in despair, oppressed by the enemy, and lost in sin? If church budgets do indeed reflect church values, then why (rather how) have we gotten so far off the mark?
What about your family’s budget? Have you punched the trigger choosing to serve self and the god of materialism more than the needy?
If a man pulls (squeezes) the trigger instead of punching it his life will be a representation of following mercy more than following the rules. Some church traditions are meant to be broken by those whose priorities are in order.
Has your church or faith become stagnant? Check your priorities.
