God of Compassion

This week we are wrapping up a look at the last two parables that Jesus offered to his followers in the Gospel of Matthew. Last week we saw how we have a God of expectations. A God that wants us to act.

This week we continue with that theme by recognizing that we follow a “God of Compassion.” A God that wants us to be there for those around us. Our scripture comes from Matthew 25:31-46. The words will be on the screen.

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Please pray with me…

Judaism during the time of Jesus was a self-absorbed, me-focused religion. The most important aspect was to follow the law. It was believed that it was through an ability to keep the law in which a person was accepted and loved by God.

The problem was that as Jesus pointed out it was impossible. Jesus tells those that would listen that when a person failed at one part of the law they failed at the whole law. Just like it is impossible for us not to sin it also was impossible for them not to sin.

Jesus feared that after he left that his early followers might return to an understanding of scripture not based from what he taught them but based off of the teachings of their childhood. A focus on the law instead of grace.

We can also if we are not careful get wrapped up into rule following. We can turn our faith inward and live our lives with a focus on comparison between what we are doing and what those around us are doing.

Jesus isstating what James states in his book of the Bible. Jesus is saying that faith without works is dead. It doesn’t mean that you don’t have faith but faith without works is a faith without action.

Jesus wasa man of action. A man who was focused more on his relationship with God and with a willingness to show love to those around him. We are called to be like Jesus and live our lives with Jesus as our example.

We should choose to be outward instead of inward focused. Our treatment of others in many ways shows our understanding of God. When we are outward focused, we are saying to those around us that we view our God as a God of compassion.

This isChrist the King Sunday. This Sunday is when we remember that Jesus is not only our Savior, but he should also be the one that rules over our lives. He should be the one that we use as our example on how we treat those around us.

A good king would focus on the well-being of the people that he was reigning over. The king should be making sure that their constituents have enough to eat and are being kept safe from the enemies of the country.

The problem in the world then and I think probably now is that there are not a lot of good monarchies. For the most part even though they may start out with good intentions because they are all powerful within their area, greed and power will often enter in and what happens becomes all about them. All about their wants and needs being raised up instead of a focus on those they are serving.

Our God will always be a God of compassion. A God that will put the wants and needs of the people first. He will be the type of king that will assure that the people are taken care of, that their needs are meant.

We are to be the workers that help the king accomplish his goal. We are the ones that need to do what we can to assure that the needs of the people are meant. It is when we are doing this that we are serving Christ the King.

Jesus is using the adage that I use often of us living in the world but not of the world. We have to remember that it is him offering this parable. He is not gone yet. He is still among them. They don’t know of the saving grace of God and the power that they will have within them through the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is attempting to prepare them for what is to come. They are to become the good king to those around them without the overwhelming power to force others to follow their lead. They will have to lead by example.

Jesus’ audience would have also possibly believed that they were good because they were Jewish. They were a part of God’s chosen people. They were among the people that were given the rules. There would be no way that God would abandon them.

What we know is that they abandoned God. Their focus was not on what God wanted them to focus on. They had a “me” focus when God wants us to have a “we” focus. Their religion and the way they followed God were all about themselves.

Last week I brought up that we are in the in between times. Jesus has left the earth, and we are awaiting his return. They were in the “before” times. Jesus was still teaching and preaching to them the message of what God wanted from them.

He is telling his audience that if they continue to be “me” focused. If they continue to not look out for the sick, the imprisoned, the poor, then they would find themselves far away from God. They would be cursed and thrown into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

They willfind themselves working against instead of for the God that they seemed to want to follow. They will be who they considered the Gentiles to be. Those that were far away from God.

The problem we can have is that we can end up viewing this as a “today” message. We can end up making our actions be about proving to God we are good enough instead of focusing on doing what we do because God loves us and wants us to love those around us.

There isa reason why when Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was he used the Old Testament breakdown of the Ten Commandments: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

A follower of Jesus needs to do both. We need to love God and love our neighbor. We need to love God. Our first reading offers us what that can look like. Ephesians 1:17 tells us that we need to seek “the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him.”

This is telling us that we need be willing to spend time with God for us to become knowledgeable of the ways that God wants us to work for him in the world. We shouldn’t decide what we should do. We need to be willing to let God guide and direct us. We need to let God tell us what to do.

This means that we have to be willing to rely on the Holy Spirit. Jesus was different than the others that walked the earth because his head and his heart worked together. He was filled with the Holy Spirit.

He received knowledge from the God within him and that knowledge was directed down into his heart. He had a heart of compassion unlike those around him because his understanding of the needs of those around him came from God.

This needs to be our goal. Ephesians 1:18 says it this way. We need to have “the eyes of our hearts enlightened” by God. We need to be open to what God is attempting to say to us and where he is trying to guide us.

The language we use for connecting to God at Kirkersville is being formed and developed. We are to spend time with God in order to be formed more closely into the image of God. A God of compassion. A God not focused on our needs but focused on the needs of the people around us.

We do this by praying to and listening to God. We must be willing to allow God to speak into our hearts. This will allow us to understand the people that God wants us to show that God loves them and wants to be in a relationship with them.

We can go deeper with God when we are willing to spend time in scripture so that we can receive greater knowledge into the nature of God. We offer ways to do this at Kirkersville through our Bible studies, weekday devotionals and the “Daily Bread” devotionals available for you to read.

We want to give you the tools that will lead you to be connected with God with both your head and your heart. This should lead you to than desire to have a greater compassion for those that are around you.

I am living proof of this. I am not naturally a compassionate person. I am not naturally someone who would go out of my way to help someone who I see has a need. But as I have spent time with Jesus, as I allowed my head knowledge of him to enter into my heart everything has changed. I became a person of compassion.

We often speak of helping a group called “Starting Strong Ohio.” In fact, we are gathering items to help them right now. This is a group that helps young adults that are aging out of foster care get a good start in their new lives of freedom and a need for self-reliance, and self-care.

When I came to Kirkersville I saw the empty building across the street and believed that this might be the answer. This could be a place that could be temporary housing for these young adults.

I kept this plan hidden until a post came across Facebook of a member of the church attending a fundraiser for a group called “Fostering Further.” It was through listening to God that I was told that it was through this connection that the church would be able to help.

“Starting Strong Ohio” was a new part of that nonprofit at that time, and we were able to get into the building and the leader explained to us all the reasons why it wouldn’t work. I was devastated, internally asking God why he gave me this vision without it being something that would work. I wasdisappointed.

As wesat down afterward Yvonne told us her vision. It was at this point that Mark brought up that he knew of a group of apartments that were about to come up for sale. These apartments became what is known as “Hope Landing.” Transitionalapartments for those that are aging out of foster care.

It is through allowing God to open us up to having a “heart of compassion” for those that are hurting and in need of him that leads us to being the people that God desires for us to be. It leads us to clothing the naked. It causes us to visit the sick and the imprisoned. It guides us to becoming the voice for the oppressed.

Kirkersville United Methodist is called to be more than a group of people sitting in the pews and watching online on a Sunday morning. We are called to be people of compassion. I can’t tell you right now what that means, but I believe that our vision for the next three years can lead us to finding out.

The question becomes are we going to be willing to step up, step out, and become the followers of Jesus that God desires for us to be. Are we going to allow the heart of compassion that God wants each of us to have to drive us into action for those that God has placed before us.

We have a “God of Compassion” that is asking for the people of God that follow him to be “People of Compassion.” Are we going to be willing to live and love as God has called for us to do.

Please pray with me…