Matthew 9:10-13 English Standard Version
10 And as Jesus[a] reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen, Amen.
One of the most visible character attributes of God, as seen in Scripture, is His mercy, is His compassion.
Both Old Testament and New Testaments testify to the unconditional love and mercy that arises from His compassion, even and especially when it is viewed alongside those passages that describe God’s just and holy wrath towards sin.
God is always completely who He is.
From our human experience, we expect God to be “one or the other,” as we are.
Instead, all His attributes are divinely and perfectly in harmony with Himself – never in competition.
As the Psalmist reminds us, God is not like us: “You thought that I was altogether like you” (Psalm 50:21).
“God’s essence is one indivisible whole, so that each and all of His perfections actively characterize God’s entire being. God’s perfections must be thought of as always actively present together and mutually influencing each other without any hierarchy, even when they are not all mentioned in a given passage of Scripture.” –John MacArthur
What is Compassion?
The dictionary defines compassion as
“a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.”
It differs from empathy or pity, in that while these words indicate an emotional response to the suffering of others, compassion advances, moves one to act.
The Old Testament Hebrew word for compassion is rāḥami and is often translated “mercy.”
In the New Testament, the Greek word is splagchnizomai: to be moved as to one’s inwards.
The root word is splagchnon, from which we get “spleen.”
The bowels or inward parts were seen, were understood to be the seat of inward affection, love, and pity, expressing an intense emotion, a yearning, that deeply moves one inwardly, creating an intense desire and longing to relieve suffering.
Exodus 33:19 English Standard Version
19 And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.
Exodus 34:6-7English Standard Version
6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands,[a] forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”
God proclaimed His name to Moses in response to his request to see God’s glory.
When we get a glimpse of God’s glory, we are seeing His attributes on display.
How comforting to read God defines Himself as compassionate, His very essence is one of deep compassion, moved to act because of the suffering of humanity.
Psalm 103:8-13 English Standard Version
8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13 As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
Isaiah 30:18 English Standard Version
The Lord Will Be Gracious
18 Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.
Lamentations 3:22-23 English Standard Version
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;[a]
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
James 5:10-11 English Standard Version
10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
Followers of Jesus Are Commanded to Be Compassionate
Matthew 9:10-13 Amplified Bible
10 Then as Jesus was reclining at the table in Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and [a]sinners [including non-observant Jews] came and ate with Him and His disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your Master eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when Jesus heard this, He said, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but [only] those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this [Scripture] means: ‘I desire compassion [for those in distress], and not [animal] sacrifice,’ for I did not come to call [to repentance] the [self-proclaimed] righteous [who see no need to change], but sinners [those who recognize their sin and actively seek forgiveness].”
Philippians 2:1-2 Amplified Bible
Be Like Christ
2 Therefore if there is any encouragement and comfort in Christ [as there certainly is in abundance], if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship [that we share] in the Spirit, if [there is] any [great depth of] affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, having the same [a]love [toward one another], knit together in spirit, intent on one purpose [and living a life that reflects your faith and spreads the gospel—the good news regarding salvation through faith in Christ].
If we have truly come to faith in Jesus, we have acknowledged the inescapable fact of our own sinfulness.
We have tasted personally of God’s compassion and mercy and realized that we have no innate righteousness that merits a place in God’s kingdom.
This knowledge should naturally create a humility in us towards others who are suffering both physically and spiritually.
Jesus said that He desires compassion, not sacrifice.
Religious works without a tender heart of mercy does not please God.
Paul admonishes us to imitate and model the same compassion we see in Jesus – compassion that sent Him to the cross.
John 15:13 Amplified Bible
13 No one has greater love [nor stronger commitment] than to lay down his own life for his friends.
1 John 3:16 Amplified Bible
16 By this we know [and have come to understand the depth and essence of His precious] love: that He [willingly] laid down His life for us [because He loved us]. And we ought to lay down our lives for the believers.
Here are four practical ways that Jesus taught us to show, model, compassion:
1. Compassion for Those with Physical Needs
Matthew 15:32Amplified Bible
Four Thousand Fed
32 Then Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “I feel compassion for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and have nothing [left] to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, because they might faint [from exhaustion] on the way [home].”
While Jesus’ ultimate work and mission was spiritual, accomplishing eternal salvation for the souls of men, He took much time to address the physical needs of those who came to Him for help.
One of His more familiar parables describes “the good Samaritan” who illustrated what it means to “love your neighbor as yourself.”
The pious religious priest and Levite passed by the man in need, but the Samaritan saw him and felt compassion (Luke 10:33).
Jesus concludes with the moral of the parable:
Luke 10:36-37 Amplified Bible
36 Which of these three do you think proved himself a neighbor to the man who encountered the robbers?” 37 He answered, “The one who showed compassion and mercy to him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and constantly do the same.”
We can model the love of Jesus by meeting needs.
James puts this principle in terms we cannot fail to understand:
James 2:15-17 Amplified Bible
15 If a brother or sister is without [adequate] clothing and lacks [enough] food for each day, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace [with my blessing], [keep] warm and feed yourselves,” but he does not give them the necessities for the body, what good does that do? 17 So too, faith, if it does not have works [to back it up], is by itself dead [inoperative and ineffective].
Physical needs are also often manifested in illness and disease.
While we do not have the power to heal sickness as Jesus did out of compassion (Matthew 14:14), we should do what we can to alleviate the suffering of the sick, including praying diligently for healing (James 5:14-16), visiting to provide encouragement and practical help (Matthew 25:35-40), and bearing with patience the extra burdens of caring for others with illness (Galatians 4:13-15).
Galatians 6:1-4 Amplified Bible
Bear One Another’s Burdens
6 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any sin, you who are spiritual [that is, you who are responsive to the guidance of the Spirit] are to restore such a person in a spirit of gentleness [not with a sense of superiority or self-righteousness], keeping a watchful eye on yourself, so that you are not tempted as well. 2 Carry one another’s burdens and in this way you will fulfill the requirements of the law of Christ [that is, the law of Christian love]. 3 For if anyone thinks he is something [special] when [in fact] he is nothing [special except in his own eyes], he deceives himself. 4 But each one must carefully scrutinize his own work [examining his actions, attitudes, and behavior], and then he can have the personal satisfaction and inner joy of doing something commendable [a]without comparing himself to another.
2. Compassion for Those Who Mourn
Luke 7:11-15 Amplified Bible
11 Soon afterward Jesus went to a city called Nain [near Nazareth], and His disciples and a large crowd accompanied Him. 12 Now as He approached the city gate, a dead man was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her [in the funeral procession]. 13 When the Lord saw her, He felt [great] compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.” 14 And He came up and touched the bier [on which the body rested], and the pallbearers stood still. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise [from death]!” 15 The man who was dead sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother.
A famous quote attributed to Ben Franklin says, “In this life, nothing is certain but death and taxes.”
We all have an appointment with death (Hebrews 9:27).
Some are born into extreme poverty and live their whole lives in need.
Others come into the world surrounded by great riches and have their every want or desire granted.
Yet physical circumstances have no bearing on a man’s ability to escape death; it is the great equalizer.
Jesus came to do away with the fear of death that holds all men captive (Hebrews 2:14-15).
As His followers, we can show the greatest compassion towards those who mourn, giving them hope in the reality that Christ has done away with its sting (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).
During His earthly ministry, Jesus brought back to physical life several who had died, acting out of compassion (Lazarus, the window’s son, etc.).
But all these died a natural death again.
Grieving during a time of death provides one of the greatest opportunities to show the compassion of Christ to those who mourn.
3. Compassion for Those Who Have Made Poor Choices
Luke 15:20-24 Amplified Bible
20 So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Quickly bring out the best robe [for the guest of honor] and put it on him; and give him a [a]ring for his hand, and sandals for his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and slaughter it, and let us [invite everyone and] feast and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was [as good as] dead and is alive again; he was lost and has been found.’ So they began to celebrate.
The story of the prodigal son hits home for all of us.
Sometimes we are the wayward child gone astray from our Father’s love.
But without compassion, we might just find ourselves in the place of the self-righteous, jealous brother who refused to celebrate, resented the outpouring of love and mercy, welcoming his younger brother found in the father’s welcome.
This much beloved parable illustrates the way God responds to each and every one of us, and how we ought to feel deeply and act intentionally to restore those who are suffering because of their own poor judgments and very willful choices.
There’s no better way to show the redemptive love of Christ.
4. Compassion for the Lost
Mark 6:33-40 Amplified Bible
33 Many [people] saw them leaving, and recognized them and ran there together on foot from all the [surrounding] cities, and got there ahead of them. 34 When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd [waiting], and He was moved with compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd [lacking guidance]; and He began to teach them many things. 35 When the day was nearly gone, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is an isolated place, and it is already late; 36 send the crowds away so that they may go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” 37 But He replied, “You give them something to eat!” And they asked Him, “Shall we go and buy 200 [a]denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” 38 He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” And when they found out, they said, “Five [loaves], and two fish.” 39 Then Jesus commanded them all to sit down by groups on the green grass. 40 They sat down in groups of hundreds and of fifties [so that the crowd resembled an orderly arrangement of colorful garden plots].
Matthew 9:35-37 Amplified Bible
35 Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages [in Galilee], teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news (gospel) of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness [His words and His works reflecting His Messiahship].
36 When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion and pity for them, because they were dispirited and distressed, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is [indeed] plentiful, but the workers are few.
The gospel presents a mission of compassion and mercy.
Separated from our Creator by the wide gulf of sin, we were lost and without hope. God’s heart was moved to act to relieve our suffering, sending His only Son as the sacrificial Lamb of God to atone for the sins of the world.
As followers, imitators of our Savior and Lord Jesus, may all our acts of mercy lead to an invitation to receive the good news of salvation and be reconciled to the Father – Sharing the gospel is an act of compassion with eternal results.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Dear heavenly Father, I praise you for being so kind, gentle, and patient with me. When I consider the difference between how much I know and how well I love, I am compelled to worship you for the truth and riches of the gospel. You don’t love me to the degree I love others; you love me to the degree you have hidden my life in Christ, which is completely. This good news is my peace, hope, and my joy.
It’s also the basis, and rocket fuel, of my repentance. Even as your kindness continues to lead me to repentance, and to more of Jesus, so I repent, Father. I repent of my ill- nourishing lingering resentments. I repent of my holding onto to a few hurts a little tighter than others. I repent of my not being as quick to forgive, heal, and move on as you intend.
I acknowledge what you already know to be true; I’ve enjoyed the role of victim a little more than I’ve relished the thought being a peacemaker. Avoidance has been easier than hoping. But Father, I now crave freedom more than I “need” justice. The only justice I need has been meted out on at the cross, where Jesus died for my sin, and you reconciled me to yourself.
So, Father, as I reach for the garments of grace—compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience, I trust you for strength to extend to others the same loving-kindness you have poured on me richly in Jesus. Bring glory to yourself, and I bring my convicted and grateful heart to you. So very Alleluia, So very Amen I do pray.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen, Amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 