A. How many of you like Winnie the Pooh stories?
1. In one poignant story, we see Pooh Bear walking along a river bank.
2. Eeyore, his stuffed donkey friend, suddenly appears floating downstream, on his back of all things, and is obviously troubled about the possibility of drowning.
3. Pooh calmly asks if Eeyore had fallin’ in.
4. Trying to appear in complete control, the anguished donkey answers, “Silly of me, wasn’t it?”
5. Pooh overlooks his friend’s pleading eyes and remarks that Eeyore really should have been more careful.
6. In greater need than ever, Eeyore politely thanks him for the advice (even though he needs action more than he needs advice).
7. Almost with a yawn, Pool Bear points out, “I think you are sinking.”
8. With that as his only hint of hope, drowning Eeyore asks Pooh if he would mind rescuing him.
9. So, Pooh pulls him from the river.
10. Eeyore then apologizes for being such a bother, in his depressed tone, and Pooh, still unconcerned, yet ever so courteous, responds, “Don’t be silly…you should have said something sooner.”
B. Do you see yourself at all in that story?
1. Do you often react like Pooh when someone is in need?
2. Do you point out the obvious? “Looks like you are sinking…you should have been more careful!”
3. Do you make others beg for help?
C. Maybe your attitude is often reflected in this picture.
1. “You’ve got problems? So does everyone else. Here’s your straw – suck it up!”
2. Does that sound like Jesus to you? Certainly not!
D. One thing comes through loud and clear from Scripture and that is that Jesus had a compassionate heart.
1. Matthew 9:36: When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
2. Matthew 14:14: When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
3. Matthew 15:32: Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.”
4. Matthew 20:34: Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.
5. Mark 6:32: When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.
E. When Jesus was trying to help us understand what God the Father was really like, He told the story that we call the Parable of the Prodigal Son.
1. It might better be titled the Parable of the Lovingly, Gracious Father.
2. The climax of the story comes when the prodigal son had reached the very bottom and decided to return to his father and beg to become one of the servants.
3. He expected his father to be rather calloused and cold-hearted toward him when he returned, and so he had practiced his humble presentation.
4. But his father wouldn’t even give him the chance to deliver all his lines.
5. Jesus said: So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’” So they began to celebrate. (Luke 15:20-24)
6. Jesus wants us to know that our Father in heaven has a compassionate heart, and that’s why Jesus, His Son, also has a compassionate heart.
7. And that’s why we, His followers, must have a compassionate heart.
F. The New Testament has numerous commands that point to the necessity of cultivating a heart of compassion.
1. Look again at our Scripture reading from Colossians 3:12: Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
a. Don’t you wish that having a heart of compassion was as simple as putting it on, like putting on your coat?
b. Yet the idea of being clothed with compassion is a beautiful image.
c. Everyone can see the things we are clothed in…like what I am wearing today.
d. What a testimony our lives would give if we were so clothed with compassion that it was as obvious as the clothes we are wearing!
2. Let’s notice the parallel passage from Ephesians 4:32: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
a. In this passage Paul links kindness and compassion.
b. Our compassion for others needs to be expressed with kindness and gentleness.
3. Look at 1 Peter 3:8: Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.
a. In this passage, Peter links love, sympathy, humility and compassion.
b. Compassion, sympathy and empathy have a lot in common.
c. The Swahili translation for our word “empathy” is “poli” which means to feel somebody else’s toothache.
d. An important element of compassion is being able to notice and feel the pain of others.
G. So what exactly does it mean to have compassion?
1. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines compassion like this: compassion is sympathetic consciousness of others' distress together with a desire to alleviate it.
2. Compassion includes those two important elements:
a. Sympathetic consciousness of the distress of others – awareness and feeling.
b. And a desire to alleviate it – awareness and action.
H. Jesus vividly illustrated true compassion when He told the parable of the Good Samaritan.
1. Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’” (Lk. 10:30-35)
2. There are many lessons we can learn from this parable.
3. Jesus’ primary lesson for the Jews of His day had to do with the prejudice they felt toward the Samaritans. Their hatred for each other was mutual.
a. Jesus kind of set them up.
b. By having the priest and Levite pass by, everyone expected Him to make the hero a Jewish common person, kind of giving the story an “anti-clergy” twist.
c. So when Jesus made the Samaritan the hero, it really hit them between the eyes.
4. If Jesus were telling this today to a group of American Christians, he might make the hero a Muslim, or an illegal immigrant, or an unbeliever.
a. Sadly, sometimes an unbeliever is more likely to assist someone in need than a Christian.
5. When we see someone in need, there are three options available to us.
a. We can ignore the person – basically saying, “I don’t care!”
b. We can notice the person – but basically say, “I don’t care enough to help!”
c. Or we can notice the person, feel for the person, and do something, saying, “I care enough to help!”
6. From the example of the Good Samaritan we learn that having a compassionate heart results in the following:
a. A compassionate heart feels something for the other person. “He felt pity.”
b. A compassionate heart does something to help the person. Look at all the Samaritan did – bandaged him, transported him, paid for his care and expenses.
1. Compassionate action results in giving our time.
2. Compassionate action results in giving our resources.
3. Having compassion is costly and it should be.
I. Let’s put aside the question of danger and reasonable protections that we need to make for our safety, and let’s focus on our hearts for a moment.
1. When we are faced with someone in need, what are our initial thoughts and feelings?
2. If you are like me, then your thoughts and feelings sometimes go like this:
a. “It’s not my fault or problem that they are in this situation.”
b. “They should have been more careful or worked harder.”
c. “Their problem is beyond my abilities or resources.”
d. “I don’t even know where to begin.”
e. “I can’t take on another person or problem.”
3. If we are trying to be like Jesus, what should be our initial thoughts and feelings?
a. If we have a compassionate heart, then we should feel something for the person and their plight – we should hurt for them and with them.
b. If we have a compassionate heart, then we should be asking God how can you work through me to help this person? What do you want me to do?
J. One of the most shocking and powerful displays of Jesus’ compassionate heart can be seen in an incident recorded in Matthew 8: 1-4: When he came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cured of his leprosy. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
1. Mark and Luke chose to tell this same story, but with apologies to all three writers and to the Holy Spirit, I must say that in my opinion, we are not told enough.
2. We are told about the man’s disease and his decision, but what about the rest?
3. We are not told about his name, or his family, or his history, or his feelings.
K. Let’s speculate about some of these things for a few minutes.
1. What is the real story of this man who received the compassionate touch of the Savior?
2. The man made one appearance, made one request, and received one touch.
3. But no doubt that one compassionate, healing touch changed his life forever.
L. Let’s imagine that this man had a wife and children.
1. Let’s imagine what it was like the day he had discovered that he had leprosy.
2. In New Testament times, leprosy was the most dreaded disease.
a. The condition rendered the body a mass of ulcers and decay.
b. Certain types of leprosy would numb nerve endings, leading to a loss of fingers, toes, and eventually whole hands and feet.
3. The social consequences were as severe as the physical ones.
a. Considered a contagious disease, the leper was banished to a leper colony.
4. So on that day that the man discovered his leprosy, he went to the priest to be declared unclean.
a. That day was likely the last day he had touched his wife and children, and the last day he had been in his own home.
b. With that one pronouncement from the priest, he lost his family, his home, his friends and his future.
M. The banishing of a leper seems harsh, but was thought necessary.
1. The Ancient East hasn’t been the only culture to isolate their wounded.
2. We may not build leper colonies or cover our mouths in their presence, but we certainly build walls and duck our eyes.
3. A person needn’t have leprosy to feel quarantined or isolated or shunned.
a. The divorced know the feeling.
b. So do the handicapped.
c. The unemployed have felt it, as have the less educated.
d. Some people shun unmarried moms.
e. Some keep their distance from the mentally ill and the terminally ill.
f. We have neighborhoods for immigrants, convalescent homes for the elderly, centers for the addicted, and prisons for the criminals.
N. How long had he been a leper? Had it been a year, or five years? No one knows.
1. But he knew the rejection – at the sight of him, fathers grabbed their children, mothers covered their faces and children pointed and stared.
2. Some say that he got leprosy because he sinned, others think it was his parents who sinned.
3. He wondered why this had happened to him. Many a night he must have shaken his fist toward heaven saying, “What did I do to deserve this?”
4. But then he heard that a man named Jesus had come to his area – He claims to be God’s son.
a. He decided he would try something risky and reckless – he would place himself before Jesus – either he would hear his complaint and kill him or he would accept his demands and heal him.
b. But when the leper saw Jesus, he was changed.
c. Before Jesus spoke, the leper knew he cared.
5. From behind a rock, the leper watched Jesus descend the hill.
a. Throngs of people followed him.
b. He waited until Jesus was only paces from him, then he stepped out and fell before Jesus saying, “Master!”
c. Jesus stopped and looked in his direction as did dozens of others.
d. A flood of fear swept across the crowd.
e. Arms flew in front of faces, children ducked behind parents, and someone shouted “Unclean!”
f. Everyone stepped back except Jesus. Jesus stepped toward him…toward the leper!
6. The leper did not move, he just spoke: “Lord, you can heal me if you will.”
a. Had Jesus healed him with a word, he would have been thrilled.
b. Had Jesus cured him with a prayer, he would have rejoiced.
c. But Jesus wasn’t satisfied with just speaking to the leper.
d. Jesus drew near and he touched him.
e. His words were as tender as his touch “I am willing. Be healed.”
7. Immediately the leper’s body was restored to health.
a. He drew near and said, “Don’t tell anyone about this, but go and show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded for people who are made well.”
b. So the man arose and left to show himself to the priest, and then he would show myself to his wife and children.
c. The leper would never forget the one who dared to touch him and heal him.
8. It was not Jesus’ touch that healed the disease, rather it was Jesus’ word that healed him.
a. The leprosy was banished by a word from Jesus.
b. The loneliness, however, was treated by a touch from Jesus.
9. Oh the healing power of a loving touch from a compassionate heart.
O. In the popular, but raw movie Forrest Gump there is a scene that I think is a good illustration for us to end with.
1. Forrest says, “It’s funny how you remember some things. I remember the bus ride on the first day of school very well.”
2. Forrest is sitting on a tree stump as the big yellow school bus approaches and his mother encourages him to do well in school. The lonely and frightened boy with the big silver braces on his legs, boards the gigantic yellow bus, and as he walks down the aisle looking for a seat, he hears, “Seat’s taken.” He walks on “Taken.” He goes on, searching for a friendly face. “You can’t sit here.”
3. That scene perfectly describes the world we live in.
a. We live in a world that does not show much compassion to those who are different, those who are crippled with sin and have been assaulted by Satan.
b. The world is getting on the bus. They are looking for a place to sit. They are looking for compassion and kindness.
4. Forrest says: You know it’s funny what a young man recollects. I don’t recall what I got for my first Christmas and I don’t know when I went on my first outdoor picnic. But, I do remember the first time I heard the sweetest voice... in the whole wide world.
5. A kind, little girl named Jenny said: “You can sit here if you want.” As she invited Forest to sit beside her.
6. Forrest says: “I had never seen anything so beautiful in my life. She was like an angel.”
P. God bids us to extend that same invitation to everyone, regardless of who they are, what they look like, where they have wandered, or what might handicap them.
1. We can be the sweetest voice in the whole wide world or we can shake our head and say in so many words “this seat’s taken.” “No room for you here.”
2. Jesus’ compassionate heart caused Him to reach out to the untouchables of the world.
3. When we have a compassionate heart like His, we will do the same.
4. Let’s try to live this week with a compassionate heart like Jesus, and see if it doesn’t change how we think and feel toward others – especially the ones around us who require a little extra grace and understanding and compassion.
Resources:
“Just Like Jesus: Learning to Have a Heart Like His,” by Max Lucado, Thomas Nelson, 2008
“Compelling Compassion” Sermon by Doug Vance, SermonCentral.com
“A Compassionate Heart” Sermon by George Dillahunty, SermonCentral.com
“Compassion Does Something” Sermon by Jerry Vargo, SermonCentral.com
