# 78 The Compassion of Jesus - Matthew 15:32-39

Introduction: Years ago, in a small town, a local church ran a soup kitchen to serve meals to the homeless and those in need. One cold winter night, more people showed up than usual, and the volunteers quickly realized they didn’t have enough food prepared. The large pot of soup was nearly empty, and there were still dozens of hungry people waiting in line.

One of the volunteers, feeling a pang of worry, whispered to the lead cook, 'What are we going to do? We won’t have enough.' The cook, a woman of deep faith, replied, 'We’ll do what we can and trust God with the rest.' She prayed quietly over the nearly empty pot, asking God to make it enough.

Miraculously, as they ladled out soup, the pot never ran out. Everyone who came was served a full meal, and there was even some left over. People left not only with warm bellies but also with a sense of hope and wonder.

That night, God showed up in a simple but powerful way, reminding everyone there that even when our resources seem small, God’s provision is boundless.

As we approach our passage today, we see a similar situation. Jesus and His disciples were faced with a crowd of thousands, and there wasn’t enough food to go around. Yet, through Jesus’ compassion and God’s miraculous power, a moment of scarcity became a moment of overflowing provision. Let’s dive into the story and see what it reveals about God’s heart for His people.

I. Jesus’ Compassion – 15:32

32 Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.”

You have got to love the words, “I have compassion on the multitude”. Compassion changes things around us. Concern for people and the needs that they have is what brings about life change.

One definition of compassion that I read was this: Compassion involves feeling another person's pain and wanting to take steps to help relieve their suffering. The word compassion itself derives from Latin and means "to suffer together."[1]

Jesus was full of compassion for people in need. This verse tells us the why of Jesus’ compassion.

1. There was a multitude of people.

2. They had been with Jesus for three days.

3. They have had nothing to eat.

4. They would faint along the way if He sent them away hungry.

Think about this - Compassion is what makes people act. This is true of both Christians and non-Christians. Para-church organizations like Samaritan Purse or the Union Gospel Mission started out of compassion. Even though FEMA has a bad rap today it was created out of compassion for people in dire situations. Salvation Army and the Red Cross are organizations that grew because of the founders’ compassion for people in need of help.

Thank God for the compassion of Jesus Christ. May we as His followers develop a heart of compassion for people in need.

II. Disciples’ Question – 15:32

33 cThen His disciples said to Him, “Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?”

The disciples were straight shooters. They ask a question of Jesus’ compassion. It’s a legitimate question,

“Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?”

Do you recall how I asked in a previous sermon if the disciples would remember when Jesus fed the five thousand with five loaves and two small fish? I shared with you then that the disciples needed to remember when God did something great. Why? All of us forget the great things God does in and around our lives. They forgot who it was that fed the five thousand. They forgot how many baskets of fragments they gathered up.

Do you see the word “fill” here in verse 33? This word carries the idea of providing enough food to fully satisfy. The disciples just couldn’t grasp how they could gather enough food in their present location to feed all these people.

· There were no Super 1 Foods.

· There were no Safeway’s.

· There was no Fred Meyers.

In the disciples' minds, this situation was just too big. How easily we forget the size of our God!

III. Jesus’ Question – 15:34

34 Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven, and a few little fish.”

If you look back to Matthew 14:13-21 where Jesus fed the five thousand you would see that He asked a very similar question. There they had five loaves and two fish, but here in this account, they report to Jesus that they have seven loaves and a few fish. The exact number wasn’t provided because, in the eyes of the disciples, the problem of feeding the multitude was a supersized and impossible task.

Remember I mentioned in the past that “Little is MUCH when God is in it.” And let us not forget all the miracles we looked at in the previous chapter. Jesus healed the mute, the maimed, the lame, and the blind. Surely feeding the multitude wouldn’t be a hard task for Jesus.

IV. Jesus’ Command – 15:35

35 So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.

Again, Jesus probably had the people sit down in groups of hundreds and fifties. Remember, this wasn’t Jesus’ first rodeo when it came to feeding a multitude (see Matthew 16:9-10). He had already successfully managed a mass feeding program earlier (see Matthew 14:13-21). All went well then, and no doubt all is going to go well here too.

I also read this, and I saw ORDER. You must make sure that ORDER is given top priority when it comes to taking care of the needs of people.

I heard recently on the news that about thirty humanitarian aid trucks are allowed into Gaza daily. The goal is to get three hundred trucks into Gaza daily. Talk about the need for direction, guidance, and ORDER. There must be a command post.

In Jesus’ command, we see needed direction. Jesus never does anything haphazardly.

When people follow directions, everybody benefits, and this is what we see here in our text.

V. Jesus’ Prayer – 15:36

36 And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude.

How important is it to “give thanks” for food before eating it? I believe it is extremely important. The number one reason is that giving thanks acknowledges the giver. Jesus knew that it was God who provided all good things.

We read in James 1:17,

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

I also believe that in this verse we see that food moves from the hand of Jesus to His disciples, and then to the multitudes. Food travels through many hands before it reaches the needy. It moves through the hands of compassion.

Today people go to a grocery store and purchase food. That food is packed into the house, put away, and later brought out, cooked up, presented on the table, blessed, and then passed around. It too passes through many hands.

Never take the people who work for money to buy you food for granted. And never take the people next to you at the dinner table who pass you a dish for granted.

· Jesus thanks God – the GIVER!

· Then He gives the food to His disciples – the SERVANTS/PASSERS.

· The disciples take the food and pass it to the multitudes –the RECEIVERS.

Compassion moves through the channel of love. What a great statement for us to remember. From God’s hand to our hands, to the hand in need.

VI. Multitude Fed – 15:37

37 So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left.

The multitude who ate were filled. Has anyone ever told you, “Eat up”? The idea is to eat until you are full. Sometimes we even tell people that there are seconds and thirds or take as much as you like. We desire to make sure people are filled when they eat.

Do you recall earlier when I mentioned the word “fill” in verse 33? I shared that the disciples were clueless about how they could gather enough food to “fill” the people until they were satisfied. But here in this verse, they were “filled”.

Notice too in this verse that when the disciples gathered up the leftovers there were seven large baskets full of fragments that were left.

How many loaves did they start with? Seven. They started with seven loaves (number of perfection), but when they collected the fragments that remained, we are told that they gathered up seven large baskets (number of perfection or completion). I find it interesting that in the miracle of feeding the five thousand in Matthew 14 the baskets mentioned there were small wicker baskets, but here in Matthew 15, the baskets mentioned are large hamper-style baskets. Jesus provided enough food for everyone in the crowd.

We miss so much when we just read the text without digging into the text. Being a good student of God’s Word is important. Learning what we have already about this miracle has grown our faith.

VII. Miracle Completed – 15:38

38 Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala.[2]

Can you feed four thousand men, besides women and children with seven loaves and a few fish? The human answer is, NO! Impossible. God's answer is, YES! Nothing is too hard for God.

This miracle demonstrated that the Lord’s blessings through His disciples would fall not only on Israel (14:13–21) but also on Gentiles. This is perhaps most clearly seen in Acts 10–11 when Peter shared the good news of salvation with Cornelius and his Gentile household. After Jesus had dismissed the crowd, He returned to the western shore of the Sea of Galilee to the city of Magadan, a variant spelling of Magdala, just north of Tiberias. Mary Magdalene (Matt. 27:56) was from Magdala, also called Dalmanutha (Mark 8:10).[3]

Remember, when a miracle happens people are to respond by glorifying God. We are to make God big and enlarge Him before others.

Conclusion: There are ten takeaways from the section of Scripture today – just grab a hold of one. I am just going to mention them without additional commentary. Here they are:

1. Seek to develop a heart of compassion.

2. Watch out for viewing life through natural eyes.

3. Remember to review the great things God has done in your life.

4. Allow God to use what you have (insignificant as it may be).

5. Let God set the game plan.

6. Give thanks to the ultimate giver. And don’t forget those who give today so that you have something to eat.

7. Be ready to serve the multitude. Be Christ’s hands here on earth.

8. Don’t despise leftovers.

9. Thank God for miracles. When you witness something supernatural around you.

10. Ministry opportunities are available in other locations. Allow God to lead you. [1] Spännäri J, Juntunen E, Pessi AB, Ståhle P. Compassion-A key to innovation: What promotes and what prevents innovation in organizations? Front Psychol. 2023;14:1058544. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1058544 [2] The New King James Version (Mt 15:32–39). (1982). Thomas Nelson. [3]Barbieri, L. A., Jr. (1985). Matthew. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 56). Victor Books.