“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36)
When you see lost people, do you have compassion? Do you see them as harassed and helpless? Do you see them as aimlessly wandering, like sheep without shepherd? I’ll admit that often I don’t see people this way. It’s easier not to. If you really saw people as harassed and helpless it would compel you to do something. Doing nothing is far more comfortable than the alternative.
Yet, this is what Jesus calls us to. Furthermore, this is what Jesus modeled for us. So, what does this compassion look like? What does it feel like? I’ll let Darrin Patrick explain from his new book Church Planter:
The root of the word compassion in English means “to be together [com] with someone’s pain [passion].” So to demonstrate compassion toward someone is to agree at that moment to enter into suffering with them, to choose to enter their reality–hopes, dreams, sins, and rebellion. If your heart is clogged up with protecting yourself, you are unable to enter in the the loves of other people because all of your energies will be consumed with avoiding their pain. Compassion is the only way not to focus on your own comfort. Compassion is the God-given emotion that enables us to be distracted from our own wants and focused on others’ needs.
