Jesus Is Divine Compassion!

4th Sunday after Pentecost, 7/2/17
Matthew 9:35-10:8


Jesus Is Divine Compassion!
I. He has the needy harvest on his heart.
II. He sends out kingdom harvesters.


I ran across a statistic the other day that will likely impact the way we carry out ministry here at Resurrection. It stated that 75% of millennials will not even consider joining a church that is not actively involved in mercy ministry. In other words, they want to see Christian faith in action helping the less fortunate.

Certainly there’s a place for that among us. As long as our main focus is always on sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, we ought to be doing what we can to help those in need. As people who have been so richly blessed in so many ways we should be showing Christ’s love for others by helping them as we can.

And we’d like to think that we’re compassionate. We’re concerned about the plight of our fellow human beings. We tend to turn away from watching video footage of human suffering for any length of time. Many of us are passionate about various efforts to do what we can to help people.

But let’s be honest. Our efforts at times wear us out. We realize that our focus on helping others has caused us to neglect other important people and things in our lives. We often wonder if we’ve become enablers. We come to the conclusion that others are abusing our charitable nature. And finally, we realize that our efforts to help others are simply a drop in the universal bucket of human suffering.

And then, as Christians, we realize that if anything is going to really make a difference in people’s lives, if anyone is going to do something that will have a lasting impact in helping others as they really need it, it’s going to be our God. And he does. Jesus does.

We see our Savior, Jesus, doing that very thing in the word of God before us this morning. Jesus shows compassion. In fact, Jesus is divine compassion. Where we fail to show that compassion to others in our lives, Jesus shows it for us. And then his love for us which caused him to sacrifice himself for us moves us to be filled with compassion for others.

Part I.

I enjoy looking at optical illusions, especially with other people. I’ll see one thing and the other person will see something entirely different. There are times when I’m certain I never would have seen what they are seeing if it weren’t for their input. They’ve helped me open my eyes to other options and perspectives.

Two people can see the very same thing and see two completely different things.

I hate to admit it, but I think that would have been the case with me if I had stood next to Jesus on this day in his life as described by Matthew. Listen to what Jesus saw, “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…” I intentionally stopped reading Matthew’s account right there. Imagine you’re standing next to Jesus that day. You’ve walked with him through all these towns and villages. Crowds of sick people came to him all day long. Crowds of people came to listen to him teach them. Perhaps you helped his disciples with some crowd control that day. And just when you thought you had directed the last person to go see Jesus, an endless line of more people stretched out before you. And now you stand with him and you lay eyes on that crowd at the same time Jesus does. What do you see? More work. Too much work. Too many people. No time for myself. My tank is on empty. Jesus, send them away. Please send them away!

But what does Jesus see? A mass of sinners who desperately need his help. And so Matthew, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, describes exactly how Jesus felt. “He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” His only concern was what they needed. He wasn’t concerned about what he needed, as tired and weary and hungry as he might have been.

So, why was he so concerned for them? What seemed to be their issues? “They were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Jesus had been teaching them his saving truths. We’re told in other places that the people were amazed at his teaching because it contained the authority of God and wasn’t merely human opinions. You see, these people had been fed daily doses of doctrinal drivel. Their rabbis spouted endless opinions about trivial daily matters. Jesus spoke to them about their sin and God’s grace, about the punishment their sins deserved and about the heaven God promised them.

And to lend authority to what he was stating about their salvation and about who he was—the promised Messiah—he went about “healing every disease and sickness.” That’s sounds exactly like what we need. We’d like Jesus to do the same for us—heal us of whatever ails us. But this is the reality: every one of these people whom Jesus healed eventually died of something. Their physical healing wasn’t what they really needed. What they really needed was spiritual healing. In his compassion for them Jesus did just that. He preached. He taught. He drove them to despair because of their sins and then he healed them with the gospel—the good news of their forgiveness and eternal life in him.

Bottom line—this event wasn’t about Jesus; it was about these sinful human beings who were spiritually harassed and helpless. When he saw them, he had compassion on them.

Jesus is divine compassion. He had the needy harvest on his heart.

Have you ever wondered this: When Jesus looks at you, what does he see? Does he see someone who simply needs a few minor adjustments in attitude or intention and then all will be well? Does he see a person whose greatest need is a little physical or emotional relief? A little healing? Does he see someone whose happiness could be attained with a small infusion of cash? There are times when we may think he sees all those things, but we’d be misguided at best and dead wrong at worst. You see, Jesus never came to be your life coach or your personal physician or your financial planner. He came to do what you needed most of all. And so when he sees you, he sees someone who is harassed and helpless spiritually, someone who is in desperate need of forgiveness. And his heart goes out to you. He has compassion on you. And so he ultimately made his way from helping this crowd to helping every sinner when he suffered and died. He removed your sins from you and made you the child of God he delights in. He’s your Savior. And he is moved to be that Savior for you because he is divine compassion. He knows what you need most of all and he provides it.

Part II.

When you have something important you want to do—something that will be important in the lives of people who matter to you—I’m sure you recognize the importance of a contingency plan. If this component of the plan doesn’t happen, then we’ll adjust and do this in order to attain our goal. It might be as trivial as having an alternative in case the weather doesn’t cooperate. It might be as critical as the alternative of life-saving surgery.

As Matthew informs us, the heart of Jesus is filled with compassion over the spiritual condition of the masses of people coming out to him. So what does he do? He sends out 12 men who have had little to no prior training in kingdom work. He sends out men who have learned life’s lessons in places such as the hull of a fishing boat or a seat in a tax collector’s booth. He sends out men who harbor all sorts of misconceptions about what the kingdom of God really is and what Jesus has come to accomplish. That doesn’t exactly instill our confidence, does it? It sounds as if this plan has a huge potential for failure, doesn’t it? So, what’s his Plan B?

There is no Plan B. The plan of Jesus to bring what sinners need most of all—spiritual healing—has always been to proclaim his saving word through his Church, his people. Sure the disciples would make mistakes. Yes, they would face instant and powerful opposition. Of course, Satan would be poised at every moment to pounce on them and derail and destroy their kingdom efforts. But Jesus was and is and always will be ruling over all things for the good of his Church. His resurrection from the dead and his ascension into heaven assure us of it.

Our mission as a national church body, as a local congregation, and as individuals in the kingdom of God is to join in Christ’s kingdom work. The Lord of the Church equips his people with his word and sends them out to share that saving word. That’s his only plan and that plan works. Look how it’s worked for you! Look what a change the word of God has made in your life! You’re certain of your forgiveness. You’re confident of your eternal life. You strive to live to the glory of your Savior, and now he uses you to reach others. Why? Because the heart of Jesus is still filled with compassion for sinners.

Jesus is divine compassion. He sends out kingdom harvesters.

Jesus declared 2,000 years ago that the harvest is plentiful. It still is. Perhaps more than ever. Instead of sinful pessimism over the evil in our world and people who revel in it, let’s remind ourselves of the power of the word of our God and the fact that he has called us to share it. The Lord Jesus, whose heart is filled with divine compassion for you, feels that same compassion for every sinner. So let’s place our sins of complacency and despondency regarding kingdom work at the foot of the cross, and, having received the assurance of our forgiveness, get busy. We have work to do—kingdom work. Souls are dying without Christ! Lord, fill us with your compassion for the lost and for sharing your saving word! Amen.