Sunday Readings: Exodus 19.2-6; Romans 5.6-11; Matthew 9.36-10.8
Jesus sent the twelve disciples out with the following instructions: “Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. The gift you have received, give as a gift” (Matthew 10.5-8).
In giving the gift they have received, Christians of every generation have stories to tell both of God’s compassion and of the surprising and life-giving understanding of others who follow Jesus’ way. The word compassion takes its root meaning from the Hebrew word for womb (rhm). Compassion grows out of the inseparable belonging that parents feel for their children. To act with compassion is to regard others as one’s own.
Jesus’ sending disciples forth to touch more people provides a good model for the Church today. Without new laborers to gather in the plentiful harvest, it can be lost. Disciples with compassionate hearts bring God near in every age.
Jesus calls us to use our leadership and authority with compassion. The table at which we gather is a table of communion where Christ himself is the shepherd who feeds, who leads, and who feels compassion for people tired and bewildered.
Who stirs compassion in you? What is the mission you go forth to live each day?