Apples of Gold

I am totally dating myself here, but I remember watching The Adventures of Letterman onThe Electric Company.  This unlikely super hero would swoop in and take the letter from his varsity sweater and turn night into light or some other similar feat.  Changing one letter in a word can totally alter the meaning. 

Suffixes and prefixes serve the same purpose and their use can reverse the meaning of a word or alter it drastically. An example of this can be found in the word passion. One of the definitions of passion is a barely controllable emotion. In contrast, when you add 3 little letters to passion compassion is created. Compassion is defined as sympathetic concern for the sufferings of others.

I for one am grateful that God interacts with us compassionately:

The LORD is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. Psalm 103:8

The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. Lamentations 3:22-23

You do not have to look far today to see people fueled by passion. Emotions run high and being right is much more important than the well-being of the person who finds themselves in the path of an emotionally driven rampage. Compassion, however, is more difficult to find, even within the body of Christ. 

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Colossians 3:12 

It is often easy to show compassion towards those we are in complete alignment with. There is little that we would disagree on and we share the same interests and experiences. It can get a bit more tricky when we are interacting with those who disagree with us, whether they are other believers or those with polar opposite worldviews. I don’t see an unless in that passage-unless you don’t like them or they don’t like you, or unless they rub you the wrong way. Jumping off the page is must. This is the expected behavior of all who belong to God. I cannot pick and choose who deserves mercy and kindness. As followers of Jesus we are not merely to begrudgingly show compassion, we are to be clothed in it. The usage here is the sense of sinking into a garment. We are to be covered with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. It is what those around us should see when they interact with us. 

Paul doesn’t stop there. The next part is probably even more difficult. 

Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.  Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. Colossians 3:13-14

Treating others with compassion gets even more complicated when they have behaved reprehensibly towards us. We will be offended, we will be wounded. Will we respond passionately or compassionately? 

When the mob came to arrest Jesus something very unusual happened.

Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave. John 18:10

Wait, what? The disciples aren’t known for their swordsmanship. They have been healing the sick, feeding the hungry and teaching about God’s love. Malchus must have been in complete shock. His wound came at an unexpected time, from an unexpected source. Peter wasn’t a bad guy. Sure he was known to put his entire foot into his own mouth from time to time, but nothing like this had happened before. Peter’s poor attempt at defending Jesus deeply wounded Malchus. 

If Peter is capable of this we certainly are as well. When we head out to do the Lord’s bidding ruled by passion, rather than compassion our sword may strike before we realize what we are doing. Like Malchus, we may find ourselves on the other end of that sword, wincing in pain at the unexpected wound. 

Paul tells us we need to forgive the one who hurt us. In our own strength this is not possible. 

But Jesus said, No more of this. And he touched the man’s ear and healed him. Luke 22:51

When we have been hurt we need the touch of Jesus to bring us healing, both physically and emotionally. True forgiveness is not possible without allowing God to treat our wounds and restore our hope. 

Here is a good test to determine the motive behind your approach:

Passion tends to focus on how something impacts you. Compassion meticulously examines the impact on all considered, following the biblical approach of putting others before ourselves. If we find ourselves driven by passion we are as dangerous as a driver on a busy free-way with full-blown road rage. It is critical for the follower of Jesus to allow their passion to be under the control of the Holy Spirit. Taking the time and discipline to allow our “Letterman” to add com to our passion before we draw our sword is vital.

This stuff isn’t for the weak at heart. This is for the heart that is determined to trust God with the things that make no sense. May we sink into the garment of compassion, offering mercy to those we disagree with and forgiveness to those who offend us. 

I have chosen to be faithful; I have determined to live by your regulations. I cling to your laws. LORD, don’t let me be put to shame! I will pursue your commands, for you expand my understanding. Teach me your decrees, O LORD; I will keep them to the end. Give me understanding and I will obey your instructions; I will put them into practice with all my heart. Make me walk along the path of your commands, for that is where my happiness is found. Psalm 119:30-35