It feels like it has been forever since my last blog post, yet simultaneously it feels like only a split second has passed. I want to take a few moments to share one of the numerous things that the Lord has been teaching and revealing to me this year — the topics of both love and compassion.
According to Webster’s Dictionary, ‘love’ is defined as an intense feeling of deep affection while ‘compassion’ is defined as sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others.
Ok… but, as a believer, what does love and compassion mean according to the Word of God?
1 Corinthians 13: 4-7,
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
Matthew 9:36 reads,
“When He saw the crowds, He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”
Matthew 14:13-14,
“Now when Jesus heard this, He withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by Himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed Him on foot from the towns. When He went ashore He saw a great crowd, and He had compassion on them and healed their sick.
Luke 7:12-15,
“Now as He approached the gate of the city, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a size-able crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.”
And He came up and touched the coffin; and the bearers came to a halt. And He said,
“Young man, I say to you, arise!” The dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. Fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited His people!” This report concerning Him went out all over Judea and in all the surrounding district.
We just read what love means according to Paul’s letter in 1 Corinthians 13 and we also saw how Jesus Christ Himself loved and had compassion on those He encountered. Not only did He have compassion, we witness a divine work happen following His compassion.
Questions I ask myself: “God, how can I best live my life to love the way You love and show compassion on those whom You have compassion?
Before diving deeper, I want to share a story about how I became a team leader on the World Race in 2019.
I went on the Race with the desire to pursue God wholeheartedly — to seek and serve Him and Him alone. My greatest desire was not to make friends, or to invest in anything outside of Him too much (selfish, I know) because I solely wanted to invest in my walk with Him.
Well, the first five months were great — despite my initial intentions, I made a lot of friends, served in many capacities, and grew in my relationship with God. Then, month 5 came along. The squad was now in Nepal and it was time for team changes. “No problem… there is no way I will be asked to be a team leader, so I am going to be fine whatever team I get put on.” Little did I know… God had something else planned out for me.
I was asked to be a team leader for a team of 5 other girls during the remainder of the Race. My immediate reaction was frustration — I didn’t want to give up my time, that would only hinder my walk with God. I didn’t come on this trip for a position, I just came to seek and serve God. I sensed the Spirit telling me in my heart, “This is what I have for you, Sarah. Are you willing to put aside your own expectations and follow after what I have for you?”
It took time to learn, but through becoming a team leader, I learned more about God than I ever could have in ways I did not expect. He opened my eyes. I learned about what it meant to love others — to put others first. I was loving God by loving my teammates and counting them as more significant than myself. Loving them the way Christ would. Without realizing, my walk with the Lord grew exponentially — I was even more hungry for the Word and more hungry for God’s love, because I wanted to share it with the world, with everyone I encountered. It was no longer about me, my walk, and what I could gain but about God using me as a vessel for His glory alone.
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One way I heard it described before is to think of it as vertical and horizontal relationships. During the first half of the race, I got closer to God, by learning about His character, His heart, His voice – an improvement in my ‘vertical’ relationship with the Father. During the second half — I learned about Him through ‘horizontal’ relationships — a world where He opened my mind to His vast, immense characteristics, specifically His love and the love that He has for His people. It is this love for His people that draws us even closer to the heart of the Father.
The 2 greatest commandments written in the New Testament:
Love God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength.
Love your neighbor as yourself.
Let us also not forget the great commission Matthew writes about in chapter 28 to “go out and make disciples of all nations.”
We, as believers, have all heard this before. Probably Sunday after Sunday. Yet… why does it still seem as if we are ‘missing the mark?’ When I look out into our congregations, why are there so many empty seats? Better yet, seats that were once filled but are now collecting dust just like the rest of them?
Questions I ask myself: “God, where are Your people? What are we missing? What am I missing?”
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Let’s dive into the Word.
We read what love is in 1 Corinthians 13.
Now… why do we love?
1 John 4:7-8, 18-19 reads,
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because He first loved us.”
God is love, correct? We read this in 1 John chapter 4. Whoever doesn’t know God, doesn’t love. The only reason we are able to love is because we have encountered His love in our own lives. We love Him and we love others because God Himself loved us first. The only way we could possibly love others with the love of Christ is if we know God ourselves.
We defined ‘what’ love is, and ‘why’ we love.
But… let’s say we have encountered the love of God…
What seems to keep us from loving the way He loves us? What keeps me, Sarah, from truly loving others?
There could be multiple reasons but I will mention what I believe is one of the biggest reasons and that is…
Fear — fear of the unknown, fear of the future, fear of what people might think about us… also known as, the fear of man — caring what people think, how they might react, what might happen if you say and/or do anything out of the ‘norm’. This is a fear that I think many of us fall into (at least I definitely have), especially in the culture we live in today in the US. We care more about our own reputation than God’s reputation. We care more about our own agenda than walking in obedience with God’s agenda. We have allowed pride and fear to rule instead of allowing His Spirit to rule. As Christians, this is why it is so important that we spend time with our Father and read His Word — so that we can stand firm on the Truth that as His children, we no longer are slaves to fear (we have been set free), but we have been given a Spirit of power, of love, and sound mind (2 Timothy 1:6-7).
“The fear of God is the beginning of knowledge.” My soul’s desire is to fear God and not fear man.
We love because He first loved us. We see God’s love for us through His act of selflessness by sending His own son to die on the cross for our very sins. Love is being selfless — as giving up one’s life as a sacrifice for the well-being of others. A selfless act. God’s love was shown on that cross — it is a love that compels Jesus’s followers to love others in the same way. When people encounter this God of love, it does away with fear. We no longer fear what the world thinks, but fear the God of the Heavens and the earth.
I am reminded as I am typing of how Paul himself in Romans 9:3 states, “for I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.”
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This time around, I would like to put a new perspective in the mix.
Referring back to Luke chapter 15, we see in the story of the lost sheep that God pursues the one that is left behind.
Luke 15, 1-7,
“Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” So He told them this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”
God pursues us. He is the Shepherd. He searches for the lost sheep and brings them home.
Not only do we see that the Shepherd went after the lost sheep, he also carried the sheep back to where he belonged; He didn’t just leave the sheep there to find his own way back. Oftentimes, we meet people, have edifying conversations, maybe they receive Jesus into their lives but we don’t follow through on their journey of sanctification. Sometimes it is not enough to simply go find the sheep, we need to pick up the sheep and help him find his way back home.
“For I did not come to call the righteous, but to call the sinners.”
Further in the chapter, we read about the parable of the lost coin.
“Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
We see a woman here loses a coin, and seeks it until she finds it — rejoicing over it because it has been found.
“For He has come to save the sinners, not the righteous.”
How often do we lose something materialistic and almost go crazy trying to find it, even though we really might not even need it?
It makes me think… I’m willing to look so much for a materialistic thing, probably even get upset if I can’t find it right away, but I search for it until I find it; the question I am asking myself is, “am I searching for lost souls to return to Christ as much as I am searching for these materialistic things that will one day burn?”
“Where your treasure is there your heart will be also.” I want my treasure to be in Heaven; my heart to be for His kingdom, one that has love and compassion for God’s people, and one that seeks out the lost so that they may be found.
In our human eyes and in our culture, it might not seem like a big deal that one is missing, we might not even notice, but to God, they are who He came for.
I no longer want to be blind to the very purpose He has called me to. To love and have compassion.
Questions I have asked myself: “What am I here for? How am I loving His people? Where is my compassion? for the saved? for the lost?”
If I am honest, many times I find myself lacking in compassion for others — so I have started praying for more of it.
My prayer to God, “Heavenly Father, make me more like Jesus. Instill in me compassion and love for the lost. Lord, even when I do not feel it, break my heart for what breaks Yours. Open my eyes, my ears, my heart, to see what You see. To feel what You feel. To love like You love.”
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Philippians 2 states, “count others as more significant than yourselves.”
In today’s age, we have distorted what love means. It is important that what you believe about love is aligned with the Word, because He is the definition of love — as humans we fail many times, but as believers, be encouraged, we carry the Spirit of God in us, who is love and who is compassionate.
1 Corinthians 14:1, “Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.”
There are many who have come to know the love of God — but stop there; almost like forming a numbness to the Spirit or living in fear of man so there is no motivation to share the love that is inside them, the love that changed them. I believe this is a tactic the enemy uses to keep us hush hush and prevent us from being the hands and feet of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is saying, “Go deeper. Pursue God. Pursue love. Don’t live in fear for I am with you.” We don’t just magically have all of the love in the world. It’s something God is trying to perfect in us. We should pursue love.
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Application.
Well, what am I supposed to do with all of this?
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Something practical.
When you walk into a room, step out of your comfort zone. Instead of heading straight for your ‘typical’ friends, take a breath — look around. Talk to God.
*Open your eyes (ask God to highlight someone to you).
*Go (Obey). Many people struggle to make it through this ‘step’ because the fear of man creeps in, doubt creeps in, excuses are made (“it wasn’t God talking,” “they already have friends”). STOP with this. Don’t allow the enemy to prevent you from being a vessel for God. Speak out Truth. Walk in the Spirit of boldness.
It is not an easy thing to do, but you will see how God uses your obedience — “be faithful in the little and you will be faithful in much (Luke 16:11).”
If you want God to use you for big things, have you been faithful in the ‘small’ things He asks you to do?
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I also am not saying the answer is to go overseas to find lost people — for many, this is an excuse to not have to do it in their backyard, where it’s challenging in different ways, I find. I believe God has you where He wants you in this very moment — are you responding to the call of loving Him and others where you are now?
Oftentimes, we set goals in our lives: “In 1 year I will go overseas and serve at an orphanage.” “In 2 years, I will have a degree from seminary and can preach to others.” But, what if, while we pursue our goals (good goals, even), we are missing the very purpose God has set right in front of us, in this present moment?
My encouragement is to seek ‘for the one’ — the one God wants you to pour into today — outcasts, friends, coworkers, strangers, family, anyone… don’t limit God to what He can do, how He can do it, and when He can do it.
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“Win them over…”
I have heard this phrase countless times as people are asking, “how do I not come off as trying to “win them over” to the gospel?” The question I ask myself instead is, “do I have love and compassion for this person?” “Do I see them the way Jesus sees them?”
I believe we need to view everyone as a human to love and have compassion towards. Sometimes it is easy to love, but sometimes it is the hardest thing to do. Especially if we have been hurt by others in the past — but remind yourself, your very sins nailed Jesus to the cross, yet He still chose to die for you. With that same love, we love others.
We are called to love God, to love others, and spread the Gospel. What if we simply loved them the way Jesus did? What if we, instead of picking and choosing who we talk to, love all humans and follow the Spirit’s prompting? Remember, God is the One who does the growing (1 Corinthians 3:6). It isn’t about you. It isn’t about me. It is about Jesus Christ.
What I have noticed in my own walk is when I am intentional in walking in relationship with the Holy Spirit, opening my ears, walking in obedience becomes a lifestyle.
God is with you, molding you, giving you strength and wisdom. Give yourself grace. You won’t be perfect.
“It’s progress, not perfection.”
Remember, we are no better — it is only because of God’s grace that we are saved. Are we going to be selfish and hold that love inside of us and keep it to ourselves?
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If there is something you are lacking in, or desiring more of — compassion, love, boldness, communication skills, etc — ask God for them. He gives good gifts to His children… He promises us that.
1 John 3:10. “By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.”
John 13:35, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
God is love — Because of His grace towards us, we know His love — let us seek out the one and bring him home for there will be much rejoicing in Heaven for that one.
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1 Corinthians 13:1-3,
“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.”
Maybe when we truly learn to walk out in love and compassion, showing no partiality, maybe then… we will be fruitful and multiply more than ever before.
Soli Deo Gloria
