July 10, 2004

THE COMPASSIONATE ONE

"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were... like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36, NIV).

Again and again the four Gospels portray Christ as the compassionate Saviour. His entire life and ministry was characterized by extraordinary compassion. Somehow, Jesus was always able to see everyone in a crowd with personal concern and empathy.

The compassionate Christ had much to say about compassion. He told the story of a servant who piled up an incredibly large debt that was impossible for him to ever repay. "The lord of that servant was moved with compassion,... and forgave him the debt" (Matthew 18:27). In compassion, Jesus touched the lepers, healed the blind, raised the dead, and encouraged the oppressed.

The book, All Quiet on the Western Front, tells the moving story of a German soldier on the attack against the English in World War I. He leaped into a shell hole with bayonet ready for action. Suddenly, he spotted an English soldier, mortally wounded and bleeding. Touched by the sight, he took his canteen and gave the wounded soldier a drink. The English soldier gave him a look of gratitude, then pointed to his own breast pocket. The German removed from the pocket an envelope. As he did so, pictures of the Englishman's family dropped to the ground. Just before the English soldier died, the German soldier held up before him the pictures of his wife, children, and mother. What changed the scene? Compassion. Here is food for thought: "It was compassion that brought Christ from heaven. It was compassion that led Him to clothe His divinity with humanity, that He might touch humanity. This led Him to manifest unparalleled tenderness and sympathy for man in his fallen condition."--Signs of the Times, August 25, 1898.

My Prayer Today: Lord, teach me how to be compassionate to others as You are to me. Amen.