He had compassion for them.
Romans 8:12 – 25; Matthew 13: 24 – 30, 36 – 43
The minister described the deceased as a ‘Christian Gentleman’! I sat up and I listened. The deceased, no doubt an honourable person of faith, continued to be described in these terms of social status. I was amazed. This was poor theology. The concept of ‘gentleman’ in the UK has a particular history. Over the centuries a ‘gentleman’ was the lowest ranked aristocrat. It was clear that he was not saying this is a gentleman who is a Christian. Even so it’s not a proper way to describe a Christian. The minister taking the funeral service had recently retired from the church after 30 years service. I was the new minister at the church and had happily agreed to him presiding as he knew the man.
My disappointment with my retired colleagues theology was unfortunately affirmed many months later. A couple times people implied I visited everyone. One day a person said directly to me: “You visit everyone.” I shrugged my shoulders. I mean that’s what a minister does. The minister is there for everyone. S/he makes no distinction. I said, “What do you mean, I visit everyone?” The reply came that the retired minister only visited the well to do – the gentlefolk. What saddened me more is that the minister had been raised in the humblest of homes and becoming a minister enjoyed some upliftment in his social status. He became enmeshed in it. He was trapped in a system that gave status to a clergyperson. I tell this story for two reasons. Firstly, it illustrates the teaching I have been offering from this pulpit that we get caught in systems and they control us. It is the demonic power of evil.
But I also tell this story because it illustrates how the church from time to time has described the Christian in very human and cultural terms. You see this minister’s theology was in that camp that saw a good Christian as a ‘good citizen’. Sometimes we have reduced the description of Christianity to our cultural norms. Good citizenship, a morality of hard work, upholding society’s values have all been ways of describing what a Christian is or should be. I sense in our denomination an implied definition of a good Christian as a person involved in justice. All I know that such definitions are not Biblical. And I also know that this kind of definition of a‘ Christian gentleman’, ‘good citizen’ and upholder of society’s values would have failed to define many of the white and black South African Christians whom I deemed to be faithful followers of Christ. Many stood against the government, were imprisoned, banned, even tortured, regarded as Communists, and if white, seen as traitors. I suppose they were revolutionaries. They followed a hallowed tradition. It goes right back to Jesus. Our Lord Jesus Christ was executed as a revolutionary. In a particular sense he was guilty of that. I don’t think one would have described Jesus of Nazareth as a ‘Christian gentleman’ or ‘good citizen’. Christ Jesus challenged societies values structures.
Today I want to offer you an important defining characteristic of a Christian. I not saying it’s the only one, but it seems to be a very important defining characteristic. The significant 20th Century German theologian and activist, 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”. What precisely Bonhoeffer is saying I am not sure, but I do get it that the Christian life is awareness of others’ suffering. When we speak of ‘others’ I think of everything other than ourselves – every living thing. Bonhoeffer seems to be saying that the Christian life responds to the suffering in the world. That is, the Christian feels with and for those who suffer. That is, the Christian is compassionate.
Compassion is synonymous with Christianity. Compassion is that feeling that arises when you are confronted by another’s suffering and desires to help them. Compassion has its roots in Greek and Latin. The Greek word ‘pathos’, to suffer, combined with the Latin preposition ‘cum’ meaning ‘with’ gives us the word compassion. Compassion means to suffer with. So in reality compassion is part and parcel of loving one’s neighbour. Compassion is what we see in Jesus. Jesus suffered with and for us. The Cross essentially symbolised the altruistic love and compassion of God for all of life.
The 18th Century German writer and statesman, Johan Wolfgang von Goethe, know to us as Goethe, made many insightful statements among which he said; “Kindness is the golden chain by which society is bound together”. Substitute compassion for kindness and ask is that the ‘golden chain by which society is bound together’? It does make sense, doesn’t it?
Take Charles Darwin who is seen as the author of the evolutionary theory. In the 19th Century Charles Darwin wrote on evolution in creation and humanity. The statement, ‘the survival of the fittest’ is attributed to him. It is meant to describe how evolution works. That is, it is the fittest and strongest forms of a species that survive and develop. That sounds reasonable. However Darwin did not coin that phrase but Spencer. Darwin merely was quoting Spencer. In Darwin’s book, ‘The Descent of Man’ Darwin argues that the survival of the species is due to the presence of compassion. He sees compassion and altruism evident in the animal world. Indeed there is a group today of psychologists whose research is showing that the compassionate instinct in human nature is one of the most important instincts in our survival. Maybe we need to stop and reflect on how animals will defend their owners even against stronger animals. And we might reflect how we humans care for our young. Humans are most vulnerable in their first 4 years. Compassion for the weak is an instinct deep within us that is only overridden by our selfishness. But still we humans survive because of compassion. You might like to follow this line of thought by further research. But it is interesting to know that Darwin saw the instinct of compassion as important to evolution. It certainly a new thought to me.
When I came to our texts for today I read Romans and saw Paul’s compassion. Then I read Matthew’s account of Jesus feeding the crowd with five loaves and two fish. It immediately came to me that both passages of Scripture show the compassion of Paul and Jesus respectively. Now I could wax eloquent on the fact that Roman 9 -11 really draw out the implications of the Gospel that Paul has been expounding in Romans 1 to 8. And I could once more speak about the miracle of feeding the crowd with food. I could talk about the merits of the rational arguments explaining what Jesus did. But what I saw as I read was the compassion of both. The real miracle in the feeding the 5000 is seen in these words; “he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion for them”. [Mt 14: 14] Jesus had compassion for them. He saw this huge crowd following him. They were looking to him for help. The day had been long. Tiredness had exacerbated their hunger. Jesus’ disciples concluded what we often do. “Go home”, they said. “It closing time.” “We can’t do anything at this late hour.” It’s too big a problem. We can’t deal with it.” But Jesus had compassion. He felt for those people. He wanted to address their basic need for food.
Did you hear the compassion in Paul’s words; I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience confirms it by the Holy Spirit — I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my own people, my kindred according to the flesh. They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; to them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, comes the Messiah, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. [Rom 9: 1-5] Paul feels for and with his fellow Jews. He longs to see them find King Jesus. He sees that they are losing out by following the Law rather than King Jesus. Paul here demonstrates the beatitude – blessed are they that mourn [Mt 5:4]. Paul is mourning for his fellow Jews. He would suffer for them if he could. That’s compassion.
Compassion is the feeling that has driven Christians to care for others, fight for justice and boldly proclaim Christ Jesus. Without this compassion the Church would be nothing and world impoverished. Without compassion the church is nothing and the Christian a pale shadow of the follower of Christ. If we are not compassionate then we are users of faith.
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The Talmud, the key interpretation of the Jewish faith, speaks of ten strong things. “Iron is strong, but fire melts it. Fire is strong, but water quenches it. Water is strong, but the clouds evaporate it. Clouds are strong, but wind drives them away. Man is strong, but fears cast him down. Fear is strong, but sleep overcomes it. Sleep is strong, yet death is stronger. But loving kindness survives death.”
Peter C Whitaker, Leighmoor UC: 06/08/2017
pgwhitaker@tpg.com.au
/ www.leighmoorunitingchurch.org.au
