Matthew 14.14

And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick. Matthew 14.14

One of the most frequent phrases in the gospels is "Jesus being moved with compassion...." I never counted the exact number of times it occurs, but in listening to the Gospels on tape it seems like it appears in almost every chapter. Jesus would be tired and want to rest, then "being moved with compassion" he continued to minister. He would need to eat, but "being moved with compassion" he would feed the 5000 first. He would be going in one direction, but "being moved with compassion" he changed his plans to teach, heal or comfort.

We cannot have the mind of Christ and not be moved with compassion. It is one of the defining characteristics of Jesus life and ministry. In this phrase we see two components to Christ-like compassion. The first is a feeling. The second is an action.

To be compassionate, we must first feel the feelings of others. The pain of my brother or sister, my neighbor, my co-workers, fellow students and others around me must also be my pain. Remember, the image of the body of Christ in I Corinthians 12. If I get up in the middle of the night and stub my toe in the darkness, the rest of my body doesn't just say, "Oh well, that's the toe's problem, let it take care of itself." No! The whole body reacts. The brain coordinates action sending blood to the area to aid healing and raising the temperature in the area. The feet and legs modify how they walk to give the toe some rest. The eyes examine the toe to see if the damage is serious. The fingers hold the toe and test to see if it is broken.

So, it must be in the body of Christ. We must all react to the pain of our brothers and sisters. We also need to extend this compassion to the world at large. A hungry child, an abused wife, a person trapped by addiction, a youth caught up in the deception of a gang, a business executive running to stand still in his business, a teenage girl unmarried and pregnant. We cannot ignore these people, and we must not condemn them. As someone once said, "The only time to look down on anyone is when you are holding out a hand to help them up."

Which brings us to the second component of "being moved with compassion." That component is action. We don't simply need to "feel" compassion for someone then go on our merry way happy that it isn't us. What we need is to put legs to our sympathy. When Jesus was moved with compassion, he got busy. James tells us that if we just say, "Ah it's too bad you are hungry and without clothing, be fed and be clothed" with out doing something about it our Christianity is really no good to that person.

We must not only feel t he pain of others, but we must also do what we can to relieve that pain. So, here are some practical ways to do this. First, pray for the person as you would pray for your own need. Seek the face of God for that person's needs. Second, ask yourself, what do I have that can help this other person. If someone is without food, and you have a well stocked pantry, why not sneak a box of food onto their doorstep, ring the doorbell and slip away. Third, ask yourself, what can I do to help this other person? Sometimes, the easiest thing we have to give is material things, food, clothing, money, etc. It is often harder to give of our time.

If someone is facing an emotional crisis, can you spend a few hours on the telephone with them listening, comforting and praying with them? If someone's car is broken down, can you give them a ride? If someone needs work done around the house while they are recovering from an illness can you donate some time to wash dishes and sweep the floor?

To be like Jesus, we must be "moved with compassion." So, maybe it's time we rolled up our sleeves and got to work. Amen and Amen.