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Written by Chris Nowlin
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Over the past quarter, this series has investigated ways to determine who are our needy neighbors, how to find them, and how to initiate contact in order to show them love and mercy. We determined that God requires us, as his children, to live a merciful life all the time. We are to look for ways to show mercy daily, and that by showing love and mercy, we point to the mercy of Christ in our lives.
The starting point for living a merciful life was as individuals or within our families. Now it is time to move forward and incorporate our merciful living into the life and outreach of the local church body. Tim Keller states that the church has the responsibility to providing merciful acts to the local community wherein it resides. In a large urban setting, this could mean the neighborhood surrounding the church or a local ministry. |
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Written by Chris Nowlin
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Last month we discussed the various ways to “find” your neighbor. Now that you’ve looked around and surveyed your small bit of this world, opportunities to provide mercy are most likely beginning to appear everywhere you look. This is where it gets tricky. How do you make contact?
In his book Ministries of Mercy: The Call of the Jericho Road, Tim Keller proposes that we make contacts with our needy neighbors by “building bridges” by first addressing our fears, then becoming neighborly, and finally showing love to our neighbors through loving deeds (128). |
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Written by Chris Nowlin
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Last month we determined that our “neighbor” is anyone in need. If you haven’t read the book Ministries of Mercy: The Call of the Jericho Road by Tim Keller, I highly recommend that you do so. As I stated in the last article, this book pointed me to scripture, which revealed my own sinful attitudes and actions toward the mercy ministry. Now that we’ve determined that God requires us to be merciful all the time, the burning question is, “How do I get started?” It’s true that mercy ministry is a daunting task. There are so many opportunities and little resources. Keller encourages us to examine four channels through which mercy is provided. The first channel is through the family. Keller says, “All individuals have the responsibility to develop their own ministry of mercy” (123). The second channel is through the local church. Keller states, “Each congregation should develop programs and ministries of mercy that mobilize the gifts and resources of the congregation to aid the needy” (123). The third channel is through voluntary organizations, mission societies, and parachurch organizations. The fourth channel of Christian mercy is the state. Keller defends this by stating that there is biblical mandate for the state to help the needy by looking at scripture where both Hebrew and pagan kings were called by God to administer mercy and justice to the poor. In addition, Joseph managed a hunger-relief program in Genesis 47. |
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Written by Chris Nowlin
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Being merciful is against my nature. When I was an active deacon, I tended to shy away from mercy opportunities, which is troubling, since mercy is a major portion of diaconal service. Somehow, I was able to rationalize this by being the “financial” deacon and leaving mercy to others.
I joined the Fanning the Flame team last year and was assigned a book by Tim Keller, senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian in Manhattan, entitled Ministries of Mercy: The Call of the Jericho Road to read and report my findings back to the team. The very first sentence pointed me to Luke 10:29 where the lawyer asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus responds with the parable of the Good Samaritan. I am assuming you know this story, but if not, stop now and read Luke 10:25-37. |
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Mercy Ministries 
