Compassion without Question: What DID Jesus DO?
I am not a “fly by the seat of my pants” kind of human.
I admire all of you who have an internal propensity toward spontaneity. I, however, do not. I much prefer to do all the research I can on a subject, read as many reviews as possible, and make an informed plan based on research and facts.
This is especially true when I travel. Although I am working on this, I prefer to be at the airport several hours before my departure time because you just never know when the security line is going to be 100 people long. My husband, Russ, on the other hand, prefers to show up at the airport a solid 30 minutes before his flight starts boarding. Needless to say, the first time we flew together, we both had to compromise a bit.
It isn’t just the airport I’m particular about when I travel, though. I hate going to new destinations completely blind. I’ll spend hours researching our destination, reading restaurant reviews, stalking Facebook groups and profiles, and reading as many random blog posts as possible before I ever set foot in a destination.
When Russ and I traveled to Moab for our honeymoon, I did so much research that I had a full-on itinerary created for us. Of course, that itinerary got blown to smithereens when I tore my calf muscle on day 1 and ended up laid up for 24 hours and in a brace for the rest of the trip. Thankfully, the same wasn’t true for our trip to New Orleans. I loosened up a bit and hadn’t made an itinerary for us, but I had done my research. The first day we were there, Russ had to work. Consequently, I was able to spend the entire day walking the French Quarter, finding the places I had researched, and acquainting myself with the area.
I guess you could say I have a bit of an addiction to information–I want to have as much of it as I possibly can, not just about traveling, but with anything that intersects my life in a way that has an impact. My friends and family who are closest to me know this about me. They tend to start conversations with statements like, “Have you done any research on….” or “Have you read any material by…” because they know my slight obsession with digging into different topics.
While I’m obsessive about researching, digging, and finding out as much information as I can, I know that there are times when I need to relax. I know there are times when God calls us to act out of compassion instead of digging into our questions.
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When Compassion Overwhelms
Luke tells a story about Jesus being overcome with compassion in chapter 7:
Shortly afterward, Jesus left on a journey to the village of Nain, with a massive crowd of people following him, and his disciples. As he approached the village, he met a multitude of people in a funeral procession, who were mourning as they carried the body of a young man to the cemetery. The boy was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow. When the Lord saw the grieving mother, his heart broke for her. With great tenderness he said to her, “Please don’t cry.” Then he stepped up to the coffin and touched it. When the pallbearers came to a halt, Jesus spoke directly to the corpse, “Young man, I say to you, arise and live!”
Luke 7:11-14 TPT
Sometimes, I forget Jesus’s humanity. Stories like this, though, tend to remind me how Jesus was moved by his emotions, just like we are–or at least should be. In this narrative, Luke tells us how Jesus was traveling with a large following when they encountered another large crowd of mourners in a funeral procession. This crowd was mourning the loss of a widow’s only son. When Jesus saw the grieving mom, his heart broke for her.
It’s so easy for me to read over those words and jump to the end of this story where Jesus raises the widow’s son from the dead. When I do that, I miss this important part of this story.
Jesus’s heart broke for this grieving mother.
Then, with tenderness and compassion, he says to her, “Please don’t cry.”
Finally, he spoke to her son and told him to rise and live.
Jesus was overwhelmed with compassion and tenderness for this grieving mom. This compassion sparked immediate action. First, he comforted the grieving widow. Then, he brought her dead son back to life.
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Compassion Without Question
One of the things that strikes me about this story is the fact that Jesus asked no questions about this woman. He simply saw that she was grieving, and his compassion moved him to action. That’s the thing that sets this story apart for me. When I think about some of the other stories about Jesus’s interactions with women, more conversation is recorded:
The Samaritan Woman at the Well
The Woman Caught in Adultery
The Woman who Poured Perfume on Jesus’s feet
This interaction is different, though. In this interaction, Jesus’s heart was broken in her grief, and he acted without any questions or conversation. He saw her need, and he met her need.
This act changed the trajectory of this woman’s life. Apart from the devastation and grief of losing her child, this woman was also a widow. She had already buried one man in her life and grieved that loss, and now she was grieving another. If the emotional toll of that wasn’t too much to carry, the uncertainty that came with the loss of the men in her life was also more cause for alarm for this woman. We don’t know how long this woman had been a widow, but we do know that in the Roman Empire during the first century, women were dependent on the men in their lives for provision and protection.
This woman found herself in an especially scary and dire situation.
Then, Jesus showed up, was moved by her grief, and immediately acted.
If you’re like me at all, then you probably like to have all the facts and all the details before you act. Sometimes, though, the best way we can be like Jesus is to allow our compassion for others to move us to action without asking a single question.
That’s so hard–especially in this day and age. We tend to default to skepticism and cynicism more often than we default to compassion, don’t we? What if we allowed our compassion and empathy to move us to action more often than we dug for all the facts and details? How many peoples’ lives could we change?
Just like Jesus changed the trajectory of the widow’s life, one small act of empathy and compassion could be the one thing needed to do the same for those we intersect with daily or even by chance.
This story is such a good reminder for us to practice more empathy and compassion. It’s a great reminder that we need to stop asking people to let us know if they need anything and, instead, see their needs and fill them.
That’s what Jesus did here–he saw someone hurting, acknowledged what she needed, and he met that need.
Friend, I don’t know about you, but I’m not always the greatest at seeing needs and filling them. I’m much better at saying, “Let me know if you need anything” and then secretly hoping they don’t need anything. I can’t help but wonder, though, how much better would our worlds be if we acted out of compassion more regularly.
This week, I hope God opens your eyes to the needs around you and stirs up compassion and empathy in your heart. I pray that God reminds all of us of Jesus’s compassion without question and allows us the opportunity to show others that same thing this week.
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Reflections:
How likely are you to be skeptical/cynical over compassionate/empathetic?
Who are the people in your world who could most benefit from your compassion without question?
What are some ways you can open your eyes to those around you who need your compassion, empathy, and action this week?
