Matthew 9:35-38
Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Yesterday two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston marathon. As I write these words we don’t know who made and set the bombs or why. By the time you read these words those responsible may already have been apprehended; or maybe not. Most of us spent Monday evening, April 15, listening to news reports and seeing images of the devastation. I found myself feeling like I did when I heard about Columbine or 9/11 or Virginia Tech or Sandy Hook. At times like that we feel shock and disbelief; we feel fear, helplessness and maybe even anger. But, eventually, we will see an image or hear a voice, and we will feel compassion.
Compassion is the capacity to be deeply aware of the suffering of another combined with the desire to relieve that suffering.
The ancient Greek word used to describe the compassion of Jesus in this text is splagcnizomai; which carries a meaning of “being moved to one’s bowels” for in the ancient world the bowels were seen as the seat of emotions like love and pity. In our culture we might say compassion is something we feel deep in our “gut.”
Within hours of the Boston attack I saw dozens and dozens of examples of this kind of compassion shared on Facebook, Twitter and in interviews with first responders as well as ordinary citizens who were moved to reach out to care for the suffering of others. Two days after the attack a Chicago newspaper carried the headline, “Tears for Boston.”
The Bible tells us:
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
He was moved deep within his being, in his gut, by their helplessness, their lostness, their pain; and he was moved to do something about it.
Then Jesus says something very interesting.
Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
I have often heard Jesus’ words here taught or preached in support of traditional evangelism and missions, and that is quite appropriate. But, in looking closely at the whole context, it seems to me that the center of the passage is the compassion of Jesus.
Jesus saw the crowds who were lost and helpless, and he felt compassion for them. Then he told his followers to ask the “Lord of the harvest” for more workers.
It strikes me that Jesus is calling for his followers to “catch” his compassion for the world. He is looking for people who allow themselves to be moved by the suffering and lostness of the world. He is looking for people who love the world as he loves the world.
Sometimes I wonder what the world around us thinks of us as followers of Jesus. Do they think of us as people who think we are somehow better than other people? Sometimes I think they do. Do they think of us as people who care more about being “right” about theology and doctrine than we do about issues like poverty and HIV? Sometimes I think they do.
I think Jesus is saying that we, as his followers, are to be known – more than anything else – by our compassion.
We are to represent Christ and bear witness to his gospel through our capacity to feel the pain of others and our willingness to care for them in the name of Jesus.
As St. Francis of Assisi was reported to have said, “Preach the gospel always. If necessary, use words.”
Pastor Brian Coffey
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