A Heart of Compassion

Anyone who has ever tried to garden understands how insidious weeds can be. If you don’t keep them under control, they will choke out the flowers or vegetables you are trying to grow. Weeds grow faster than anything and reproduce in abundance. Jesus told a parable about weeds being sown by the enemy in a newly planted field of grain. The servants wanted to pull the weeds to get rid of them, but the owner told them, “No, because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.” Matthew 13:29-30

The weeds are given a time to grow, but their destruction will come. It is just a matter of time – and only so that the plants are not destroyed. Jesus told many parables to help us understand what the kingdom of heaven is like. This is one of those parables. There will come a time when the ‘weeds’ will be done away with forever. Surely we do not want to be weeds. But this and other parables Jesus taught cause many to ask who is ‘in’ and who is ‘out’? We want a set of rules or steps to follow so we can be sure we are ‘in’.

Following Jesus isn’t always so ‘cut and dried’. Jesus spent a lot of time trying to help the people get past the many laws that defined holy living and get to the heart issues. Jesus said many times that it was just as wrong to think thoughts in your head as to do the things you thought of. In his ‘Sermon on the Mount’, Jesus redefined murder: “But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.” Matthew 5:22 He redefines paying someone back for a wrong they did: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn way from the one who wants to borrow from you.” Matthew 5:38-42 And he teaches us to love not only those who love us, but to love our enemies as well. He basically tells us that if we are going to be defined by the law, then we are going to need to be perfect in our following of the law.

Then he talks about heart issues. He tells us that people don’t understand what he is teaching because their hearts are calloused. So even if they hear the words or see the examples, they don’t understand what Jesus is teaching (Matthew 13). Hard hearts don’t have room for compassion for others.

Jesus shows compassion throughout his ministry. Even when he is in emotional pain because John the Baptist had been killed, he didn’t turn people away but had compassion on them and healed their sick (Matthew 14). And then he tells another story which gives us a very clear look at the criteria upon which we will be judged. Interestingly, it does not appear to be based on following the law perfectly. But rather, it is based on our compassion for others.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these bothers of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25 34-40

So it seems that once we love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and love our neighbor as ourselves, we will be transformed into compassionate people. And that is the final test – the separating the sheep from the goats. Are we compassionate people, caring for the needs of others? In the end, that is the true fruit of a life changed by Jesus.