Compassion in a World of Cruelty

We are gonna finish chapter 5 with some closing remarks regarding the compassionate character of Nehemiah in contrast to the corruption of the nobles and officials who we looked at last week. This message is simply Compassion in a world of Cruelty.

Cruelty is the DNA of our enemy while compassion is the DNA of our Lord. Cruelty is all around all spheres of life as people seek out their own interests while compassion flows most prominently from people who love God and who seek to love His creation as well.

Compassion or oftentimes translated Mercy in the OT, is a character of God that flows through His people. It is perfectly displayed in the works of God towards his people built upon HIs covenant love for them. As love is the foundation of God’s compassionate mercy, it calls him to act upon it towards all humanity and specifically his people.

Exodus 34:6-7 “6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.””

You will notice that mercy and grace are many times mentioned in tandem in the Scriptures. They are very similar and yet there is distinctiveness to them. Both flow from God to humanity unconditionally. Both mercy and grace are based on God’s general love for all humanity and yet his specific love for His people. The great difference between mercy and grace is that grace is an act of love and kindness given to those undeserving while mercy is love and kindness given to those undeserving and in desperate need.

This is why salvation is an act of mercy and grace. God is bestowing on us what we don’t deserve by his grace in Jesus Christ. But salvation is also an act of mercy because we are in such a miserable and wretched state.

This mercy and grace that we experience as followers of Jesus transforms us into new spiritual persons where we now are compelled by the Spirit of God in us to go and show mercy and grace to others as well. That mercy and grace we can simply call compassion because they flow out of a heart that loves God and therefore loves all that God has made, including mankind. You may at times give grace to those who are not in need as they receive it or mercy to those who have great need.

My parents do not need gifts from me because they could go out and buy anything they want. My gifts are physical acts of grace. But when I give a gift to a homeless man or suffering friend, my compassion is rooted in mercy because they are desperately in need and my gift provides some relief to them.

Nehemiah shows great compassion in our story today and in that compassion we challenged to do the same.

Context:Nehemiah as governor

Neh 5:14 “14 Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year to the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes the king, twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor.”

Twelve years as Governor 445-433 BC

Neh 13:6 tells us that he returned to Susa to serve the king but then asked permission to leave Susa again for Jerusalem to handle some issues among the people. But as he served his twelve years, Ezra records from the memoirs of Nehemiah this theme of compassion.

What we will learn with more in depth in just a moment, Nehemiah was many governors appointed by Persia in this land. Some of these governors served the people well, like Nehemiah while others did not.

These verses are not Nehemiah’s humble brag about his great generosity. Instead, this is very much a testimony to the Jews of how their leader was not a burden to them in a difficult time but instead displayed great compassion

T: Lets look at a few observations about his compassionate mercy towards them:

A Matter of Providence

Neh 5:10 “10 Moreover, I and my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain.

Look back with me to our passage from last week. We learned how Nehemiah displayed exemplary leadership in calling out and exposing the Jews in re: to the sin that dwelt among them. We looked at how as God’s appointed leader, he should take the opportunity to lead the people away from sin and to pursue reconciliation among one another.

But as verse 10 reminds us, Nehemiah was not just standing in the middle as mediator, trying to reconcile the differences of his brethren. He was also generously helping those in need at his own expense. He was trying to help physically relieve the burden on the people.

As verse 12 reminds us, he was appointed by Artaxerxes to this position as governor. He was sent to rebuild and he did so in less than two months. He remained and served as governor for 12 years and we have to see his appointment and his opportunity to lead the people these 12 years as God’s providence.

Since God does all things according to his plan and for his glory, we should see this appointment of Nehemiah as God’s way of bringing his purposes to fruition through his people. Last week, we learned that God’s providence led Nehemiah to be the leader needed to confront and call His people out of sin! This faithful work of God led to a revival among the nobles and restoration in the community.

But our verses today also remind us that Nehemiah providentially was placed as leader so that God might work compassion and mercy in and through him. Nehemiah would be considered by our standards as a wealthy man.

Neh 5:17-18 “17 Moreover, there were at my table 150 men, Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. 18 Now what was prepared at my expense for each day was one ox and six choice sheep and birds, and every ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. Yet for all this I did not demand the food allowance of the governor, because the service was too heavy on this people.”

The Governor had many people to entertain around his table. 150 men are mentioned and were most likely the heads of families and nobles in Jerusalem. Also dignitaries would visit and would be entertained by the leadership. Nehemiah mentions that daily ox and sheep were slaughtered to accommodate the mouths to be fed. To feed these people, a considerable amount of ox and sheep were slaughtered daily. The number of those animals in totality give us clear understanding of the wealth of Nehemiah. The totals are astounding: over 4,300 ox and over 26,000 sheep slaughtered over his 12 year tenure. Nehemiah makes it a point that those animals were not paid for at the expense of the people but instead by Nehemiah own pocketbook.

We see then that God’s providence provided this wealth for Nehemiah and by God’s providence, that wealth was aptly applied to this situation in Jerusalem with immense compassion and mercy.

We need to see that God’s providence also places us in positions to be compassionate to others. Your leadership role at work is a great place for you to intentionally exert compassion and mercy on your employees. This does not mean, “ I am compassionate when I give them a check every week.” NO! That is what they earned. Compassion is giving them extra time on a break, or paid time away to serve their family, or a Christmas bonus. All of these acts of compassion are a benefit to those in time of need and perhaps suffering.

An illustration of this providential compassion is found in the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. Jesus teaches his people that this unexpected moment of compassion for a complete stranger and social enemy shows us how we should also show compassion for others. As the Samariatan passed by to find the Jewish man beaten and dying, the providence of God shines forth to show us that God placed this man at the right place at the right time for compassion to be displayed.

A Matter of Sacrifice

Neh 5:16 “16 I also persevered in the work on this wall, and we acquired no land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work.”

Nehemiah reveals for us that compassion from us requires a great cost. We must give up something that is dear to us in order to serve and love others with compassionate mercy. We have already learned that the wealth of Nehemiah was used in great ways so that taxes from the people did not go towards his food allowance.

We also see that Nehemiah was not only willing to pay for these expenses out of his own account but he also was willing to pass up on other financial advancements so that the people would not suffer. He states that his focus remained on building the wall and not acquiring more land. This shows us that while Nehemiah could have taken the opportunity to buy up this land that was being sold in the severe famine by his desperate brothers, he did not take advantage of the moment to gain more wealth.

The contrast of compassion is also made with preceding governors who were not so merciful on the people.

Neh 5:15-16 “15 The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God. 16 I also persevered in the work on this wall, and we acquired no land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work.”

During the work on rebuilding the city, temple and the walls, there were many Persian appointed governors of Judah including the ones listed in Scripture like Sheshbazzar, Zerubabbel, Elnathan and Nehemiah. Archeological discovery has revealed a more detailed list of the governors of Judah which were imprinted on clay vessels and seals dug up from the ground. The findings reveal that Judah had 6 governors during the time of their original return to Nehemiah’s day. Ezra tells us that these governors were tyrants who:

laid heavy burdens on people (taxation)

took from rations forty shekels silver

their servants lorded over the people

The contrast then is between Nehemiah and these tyranical

Compassion is not taking advantage of someone else’s struggle but instead being willing to sacrifice in order to help others in need.

Let’s look in more depth

luke 10:34-35 “34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’”

The great sacrifice of the Samaritan is of such great importance to our understanding of compassion. There is a Jew in great need, “half-dead” on the road, and the Samaritan is willing to undergo great sacrifice on his own behalf to care for this man. He treats his wounds, most likely with his own oil and his own clothing to treat his wounds. He sets the man upon his own animal to transport him to some safe and warm lodging. He then pays for the man to stay in an inn to rest by supplying two days wages of his own money initially and any extra money incurred for the innkeeper to care for his recovery.

This is such a clear picture that Jesus paints about the compassion towards our neighbor that requires great sacrifice on our part. Of course, there is no greater illustration than what was given up by our Savior who gave up more than a few days wages, and some rags and oil. He gave up himself to be the sacrifice needed to display the greatest act of mercy one can imagine so that sin can be atoned for.

Therefore, Christ compels us then to consider our compassion to be acts of sacrifice for others. This is providential on God’s part as he places us in these positions of care and it is sacrificial on our parts, as we remember our Lord and all that He gave up so we could be healed.

Isaiah 53:5 “5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.”

A Matter of Faith

Finally, Nehemiah gives us his reason for his compassion. Twice in this chapter, we see that Nehemiah is not being generous and merciful because he is trying to gain political votes in his reelection. He is not trying to make himself feel better by his charity. Nor is his benevolence a distraction to counteract the opposition that he has recently exhausted his mental state. He is compassionate by faith in and love for God.

Neh 5:15 “15 The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God.”

Fear in God is faith in God from an OT perspective. Remember earlier in the chapter that when Nehemiah held the nobles accountable to the word of God, he did so by holding to the faith they claimed to have in God.

Neh 5:9 “9 So I said, “The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God to prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies?”

Nehemiah closes this chapter with a prayer regarding his faith,

Neh 5:19 “19 Remember for my good, O my God, all that I have done for this people.”

The fundamental principle in our compassion for others is that it must flow from a genuine faith in God. A lost world surely shows compassion to each other by humanitarian efforts and love. But it is an incomplete compassion because it fails to capture to true essence of it…compassion that flows down from that which is revealed in Christ. Theirs is a hollow compassion that has its effect but true compassion is realized in a relationship with Christ. In that relationship, true compassion is seen by His work on the cross and then motivates others to do likewise.

Therefore the accountability to the Jewish nobles and the reason Nehemiah shows such mercy is because He first loves God and then loves his neighbor. This is the fundamental principles of the law of God which Jesus summarizes in two greatest commandments:

Matthew 22:37-39 “37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

This challenges our thinking on compassion so that we as people who claim to love God must use compassion as a litmus test of our faith. This is what Nehemiah does to the nobles. “Do you love God? If so, then why do you cheat your brothers and sisters?” If we truly love the Lord, then God’s people will be compassionate to others because the love of God is within us.

1 John 4:7 “7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.”

Secondly, consider the temptation to serve others with compassion with the wrong motives. With our ongoing struggle with sin, any moment of compassion has to be checked for authenticity. Make sure that as you serve with compassion the needs of others, that your love for God is the reason you do so. It can be a continual temptation in compassion to serve others for the glory of self instead of Christ.

Practically, we must consider then what situations that God has placed us in to show compassion to others. Providentially God has designated your boundaries of dwelling, He have given you the resources to be charitable (time, money, knowledge), He has saved you by His love giving you the foundation and reason for compassion. All that is left is to be faithful and kind to those around us.

A Matter of Hospitality

Finally we end with the question: who do we show compassion to?

For Nehemiah, we see his kindness extended to his brothers of faith and to the neighboring nations. It is mentioned that his compassion was given to those from other surrounding nations who came to eat at his table. He cared for them and fed them with honor.

Jesus teaches the religious elite in his day that the parable of the good Samaritan teaches us that compassion belongs to our neighbor, even those we might reject or distance ourselves from. Our compassion then should be extended to all just as the compassion of the good news of Jesus Christ and his opportunity for salvation is an invitation to all people.

The challenge with compassion is to not withhold it from some because he are different from them or disagree with them. Instead, God’s people are called to show love and acts of compassion to all people for God’s glory. The very meaning of hospitality means “love for the stranger or foreigner.”