The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.
I have been thinking a lot about compassion lately. I have also heard it mentioned in sermons and in the Bible lately as well, such as the above verse. One thing I have learned over the recent years of doing Bible studies is the level of compassion God has. It is part of His character, and it is meant to be part of ours. This is something that many of us, me included, often struggle with. Sometimes we don’t even realize we are lacking in this area. Until it is brought to our attention.
We are meant to have the character of Christ, of God. We don’t often think about His character or even think about if we are exhibiting His character. We go through our day doing all the things we usually do, rushing here, doing this, working, trying to get things done. We often don’t take the time to stop and look around us. To look at all those around us and to think about them and what they may be going through.
We hear a comment made and make a snap decision about what was meant. We pass by someone on the street who looks sad, but we don’t give it a thought. During each interaction we have, with family, friends, and people we don’t even know, we don’t take the time to think and extend compassion. It’s really a simple thing but also a profound one. Extending compassion to another, a kind word, understanding, assistance, forgiveness, is the greatest thing we could offer someone else. It shows His love.
Look at Ephesians 4:32 NIV, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”. Do you see God’s compassion there? If God can be that compassionate, shouldn’t we? What about Luke 23:34 NKJV where Jesus said “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”. People don’t always know what they are doing, and He still forgives and finds compassion. The compassion God has shown through Jesus dying on the cross is the greatest show of compassion I know of. We need to remember this and show this same compassion towards others.
It’s what He wants for us. It’s His character. It should be ours too.