Compassion Leads to Change

32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Ephesians 4:32

One evening I was hanging out with a friend when I realized that I was supposed to start my new job that morning. I was so embarrassed. How could I explain to my new boss that I went a whole day thinking it was Wednesday when it was actually Thursday? I called him fully expecting to have to find a new job, but to my astonishment he showed me compassion. He said, ‘I know there will be times when I need grace in the future, and I hope you will extend grace to me when I need it.’

The little compassion my boss showed me made me want to show more compassion to the people I interacted with. How much more should the compassionate forgiveness from God, through Christ, change me?

The compassion of Jesus is so much more powerful because He suffered so much more on this earth. Therefore he can relate to us in every way, no matter how much we have gone through.

God’s compassionate understanding for us stirs us up to show compassion to others. And the way we do that is by not focusing on what they have done, but rather focusing on why they did it. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.”

Christ-like compassion sees through the action of the offender into the heart of pain, and loves the offender like Christ loves us.

How amazing would it be for the world to see Christ-like compassion in the way we interact with our families and friends?

Prayer:
Lord, we we are so thankful for your compassionate forgiveness to us, help us to always remember that you bore our sin and shame and showed us unimaginable compassion when you died for us. May we keep your compassion in mind as we are faced with situations when we need to show your compassion to others. In Jesus name, Amen.