Tag: compassion
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He Wept Because They Still Feared Him – Genesis 50:16-17
Genesis 50:16-17 And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of…
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Strength for the Visit – Genesis 48:1-2
Genesis 48:1-2And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed. There is something sweet…
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The God Who Sees – Genesis 16:13-14
Genesis 16:13, 14 And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me? Wherefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. What a beautiful moment this is. Hagar calls the Lord…
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Compassion and Urgency – Jude 22-23
Jude 22-23 And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. After all the warnings about false teachers and drifting souls, Jude now asks the question that naturally follows: What do we do with people who have…
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Love With Shoes On – 1 John 3:17-18
1 John 3:17-18 But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. John brings love down out of…
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Mercy Comes Back Around – James 2:12–13
James 2:12–13 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment. James says your mouth and your life should both remember one thing: you are going to be measured by a…
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Stop Chasing the Shiny People – James 2:1–4
James 2:1–4 My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment;And ye have respect to him that weareth the…
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Religion That Gets Its Hands Dirty – James 1:27
James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. A lot of people think religion lives in words. In what you say.In how long you pray.In how much you know.In how spiritual you sound.…
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Feeling Their Chains – Hebrews 13:3
Hebrews 13:3 Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body. Brotherly love does more than speak kindly. It feels deeply. The writer tells believers to remember those who are in bonds—as though we were chained beside them. In the early church…
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Still Wearing the Hospital Gown — Hebrews 5:2–4
Hebrews 5:2–4 Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity.And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins.And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is…
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Rich in the Right Things — 1 Timothy 6:18
1 Timothy 6:18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate. Paul now shows what wealth should actually produce in a believer’s life. Not pride. Not hoarding. Generosity. If God entrusts someone with financial resources, the goal is not to pile them higher but to let…
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Start at Home — 1 Timothy 5:15–16
1 Timothy 5:15–16 For some are already turned aside after Satan.If any man or woman that believeth have widows, let them relieve them, and let not the church be charged; that it may relieve them that are widows indeed. Paul says something here that almost sounds abrupt. Some, he says, had already turned aside. They…
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A Life That Speaks for Itself — 1 Timothy 5:9–10
1 Timothy 5:9–10 Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore years old, having been the wife of one man,Well reported of for good works; if she have brought up children, if she have lodged strangers, if she have washed the saints’ feet, if she have relieved the afflicted, if she have…
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Piety Begins at Home — 1 Timothy 5:4
1 Timothy 5:4 But if any widow have children or nephews, let them learn first to shew piety at home, and to requite their parents: for that is good and acceptable before God. Paul makes something very clear here. The church is called to care for widows, but the first responsibility belongs to the family.…
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Honoring the Forgotten — 1 Timothy 5:3
1 Timothy 5:3 Honour widows that are widows indeed. Paul now turns to a very practical issue inside the church. Widows. In the ancient world, a widow often stood on very fragile ground. There were no retirement accounts, no life insurance policies, no government programs waiting to step in. If a woman lost her husband…
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What God Desires — 1 Timothy 2:3–4
1 Timothy 2:3–4 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. Paul has just urged the church to pray for everyone, even rulers. Now he tells us why. Because this is good in the…
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Will Not, Not Cannot — 2 Thessalonians 3:10
2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat. That verse gets quoted with a certain tone sometimes. You can almost hear the gavel hit the bench. “If any would not work, neither should he eat.” But slow down. Paul…
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Look Into, Not Down – Philippians 2:4–6
Philippians 2:4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. This is the doorway to humility. You cannot esteem someone better than yourself if you never look closely enough to see them. Most of us glance. We size people up in seconds. We file them into…