One quality every true believer must possess is compassion. One definition states, “To have compassion means to empathize with someone who is suffering, and feel compelled to reduce the suffering. It’s a fuller, truer definition than feelings alone, and it’s a very biblical understanding. (NET; ESV; all emphasis mine)
God’s Holy Word speaks of compassion from Genesis all the way through Revelation. If it wasn’t something He truly wished, why would He have had the writers include this throughout His love letter to us? Below are just a few Bible passages that speak about compassion.
Psalm 103:1-4; “Praise the Lord, Oh my soul; with all that is within me, praise His holy name. Praise the Lord, Oh my soul. Do not forget all His kind deeds. He is the one who forgives all your sins; who heals all your diseases; who delivers your life from the pit; who crowns you with His loyal love and compassion.”
Isaiah 30:18; “For this reason, the Lord is ready to show you mercy; He sits on His throne, ready to have compassion on you. Indeed, the Lord is a just God; all who wait for Him in faith will be blessed.”
Isaiah 49:10-13; “They will not be hungry or thirsty; the sun’s oppressive heat will not beat down on them, for One who has compassion on them will guide them; He will lead them to springs of water. Shout for joy, Oh sky. Rejoice Oh earth. Let the mountains give a joyful shout. For the Lord consoles His people, and shows compassion to the oppressed.”
Zechariah 7:9; “The Lord who rules over all said, ‘Exercise true judgment and show brotherhood and compassion to each other.'”
Romans 9:15; “For He says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.'”
Ephesians 4:31-32; “You must put away every kind of bitterness, anger, wrath, quarreling and evil slanderous talk. Instead, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you.”
1 Peter 3:8; “Finally, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, affectionate, compassionate and humble.”
James 5:11; “Think of how we regard as blessed, those who have endured. You have heard of Job’s endurance, and you have seen the Lord’s purpose, that the Lord is full of compassion and mercy.”
The list could go on and on. Even passages that say “merciful,” “sympathetic,” “empathetic,” “considerate,” kindhearted,” and other such synonyms speak to the meaning of compassion for others. Our Savior was compassionate for people from just about every walk of life, without regard to their social standing.
Peter found out this fact when he was directed to take the word to a centurion named “Cornelius.” In Acts 20 34-35, we read, “So Peter opened his mouth and said, ‘Truly, I understand that God shows no partiality [also Romans 2:11], but in every nation, anyone who fears Him and does what is right is acceptable to Him.'”
While Peter was giving them God’s word, Acts 10:44-48 tells about the Holy Spirit falling on them, and Peter saw first-hand that even Gentiles could be saved if they received and accepted the true word. After all the miraculous signs that Peter personally witnessed while with Jesus, it took the one he was responsible for with Cornelious and his house for Peter to more fully understand the true nature of our Creator.
James 2:15-16 gives an example of a nature that is anything but compassionate. “If a brother or sister is poorly clothed, and lacks daily food, and one of you says, ‘Go in Peace, keep warm and eat well,’ but you do not give them what the body needs, what good is it?”
There is a song by Thomas O. Chisholm (1866-1960) from 1923 called “Great Is Thy Faithfulness, Oh God My Father.” It’s a good message about God’s compassion.
1.) Great is thy faithfulness, Oh God my Father; there is no shadow of turning with Thee. Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not; as thou hast been, Thou forever will be.
Ref.) Great is Thy faithfulness; great is Thy faithfulness; morning by morning, new mercies I see. All I have needed, Thy hand hath provided; great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me.
2.) Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest; sun, moon and stars in their courses above. Join with all nature in manifold witness, to Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love. (ref)
3.) Pardon for sin, and a peace that endureth, Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide. Strength for today, and bright hope for tomorrow; blessings all mine with ten thousand beside. (ref)
Our Heavenly Father gave us the greatest compassion possible by providing the way for us to be able to spend eternity in Heaven with Him. He could’ve said we weren’t worth any effort on His part, but He sent the Lord Jesus the Christ to give Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus honored the Father by submitting to His will, even to suffer death on a cruel cross. John 10:18 plainly states that He willingly gave Himself for us.
In light of this, a couple of questions come to mind. Should we expect compassion from the Father if we aren’t compassionate to others? Should we expect forgiveness from the Father if we ourselves won’t forgive others? If we are to be a part of the Shepherd’s precious flock, should we not receive and accept His free gift and live for Him?
One point here: the Father knows that we will sin as long as we’re in these fallible human bodies. Romans 3:10, Romans 3:23, and Romans 6:23 make this perfectly clear. However, He gives us the pathway to forgiveness in 1 John 1:8-10. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” This applies to all who have received and accepted Jesus as their Savior (Romans 10:9-13)
For all who do not have the Savior, those who have rejected His gift of Salvation and have only this world in their hearts, their outcome is listed in Revelation 20:11-15. This is known as the White Throne Judgment, and all who will be in that long line will be lost forever in the Lake of Fire. There are no pardons, no forgiveness, no mercy for those in that Judgment. They gave up their chance to eternal life when they took their last breath here without Jesus as their Savior.
As for true compassion, no one has sinned so greatly that the blood of Jesus can’t reach them. All who truly call on Jesus to forgive them and be their Savior will be saved. That’s a promise from the Father, and He never goes back on His word.
Finally, the choice of where you will spend eternity is totally up to you. It’s a free-will choice that the Father will force no one to make. The best plan would be to consider that no one is guaranteed another day here, and the time to make your choice would be right now.
Jesus is never too busy to take your call. When the time comes, He will welcome you Home personally. Paul said in Philippians 1:21-23, “for to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.” This message is also found in 2 Corinthians 5:6-8.
All the signs are here that are pointing to the end of this age being very near. God wants no one to fail (2 Peter 3:9) and will accept all who call on His Son for Salvation. Eventually, the time here will run out, and the wrath will begin. All who, at that point, are part of the Shepherd’s flock will be removed to be kept from that horrible time (1 Thessalonians 1:10, 1 Thessalonians 5:9-10, and Revelation 3:10).
Your eternity, your choice. Please make the absolute best decision you will ever have, and ask the Savior to prepare a place for you. Admit you are a sinner; believe He is the only way to the Father (John 14:6), and call out to Him to save you.
Hope to see you at Home!