Mother Teresa once commented: “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”[1] In addition she also said: “The fruit of love is service, which is compassion in action.”[2] And of all the people who ever lived Jesus exemplified this quality of compassion more than anyone else. As we read the gospels, over and over again, we see that Jesus was moved with compassion and never hesitated to meet human needs whenever he was confronted by them.
I love how Mother Teresa referred to love as compassion in action. For you see compassion without action is no compassion at all. True compassion looks beyond our own pain and is moved to see the pain in others, and do something to help alleviate it. But compassion is more than just action. Compassion also embodies an attitude of empathy to those we minister to. I believe that having the right attitude elevates our acts of compassion from duty to delight and brings with it a special joy that only true compassion can bring to our hearts.
It is this awesome compassion that moved God to send His only begotten Son to earth, to save us from eternal death. And it is this same compassion that motivated our Lord and Savior to willingly go to the cross.
As Christians demonstrating compassion is not automatic. You see we are capable of both great compassion and great indifference. The question for all Christians is how can compassion win out over indifference. May I share two important ways compassion in action can become a way of life for those of us who call Jesus our Lord.
Make (Colossians 3:12) a life verse
(Colossians 3:12) is a critical verse for all Christians to memorize and to constantly put into action. It reads: “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” When we submit our wills to Jesus and allow the Holy Spirit to run our lives we generate a great capacity to demonstrate compassion in action. And when we do kindness, humility, gentleness and patience will accompany our acts of compassion. And when this happens our attitude and action become one and not only does the person we are helping get blessed, but we get blessed too. For the more we give of our time, talent, and treasury the more riches we will accrue in heaven, the more joy we will experience on earth, and the bigger the smile we will put on God’s face.
Fall more in love with Jesus
The more time we spend in private prayer and Bible study, and the more we meditate on just what Jesus has done for us, I believe we will fall more in love with our Savior. Worship, praise, and thanksgiving to God will become a way of life and our perspective on living will slowly begin to change. We will begin to see things as Jesus saw them. We will view problems as opportunities to bring glory to God. We will begin to see that the joy we receive by giving of ourselves to others is far greater than mere happiness. And we will exchange Christian duty for divine delight. For you see the more we fall in love with Jesus the more we will want to please Him and that simply means demonstrating compassion in action.
[1] Mother Teresa: On Love and the Purpose of Life – Excellence Reporter
[2] Mother Teresa: On Love and the Purpose of Life – Excellence Reporter
Great post and a timely reminder for Advent.