This blog was originally posted on Aug. 22.
In Sunday’s sermon (Aug. 21), Dr. Randy Wallace, pastor of FBC Killeen, preached on “Who Cares?” from Matthew 16:15-19. Without compassion we as a church are not relevant to those who pass by. He quoted our youth minister Matt Cornelius, who had said last year at D-Now, “God doesn’t need you. You need God.”
What is interesting about that is that it is true God doesn’t
need us in order to show God’s compassion. But the fact that he does use us may
be is even more profound! He doesn’t NEED us, but He chooses us to be His
instruments of compassion.
As we prepare for BELIEVE, we will see in week 8, Oct 30,
that our LifeGroups are the mobilization, organization and functioning of the
church in action. When we do OCLOC (Our Church Loves Our Community) at our Trunk or Treat on Monday, Oct. 31, we are
proving our relevance to our community by reaching out and being a blessing of God to our community.
One final nugget from Sunday’s sermon: Randy asked, “If you neighbor walked into the church,
would you be surprised to see him/her?” But also, based on how you have
shown compassion to your community, my question would also be, “Would your neighbor be surprised to see you?”
The following devotional
is from Zondervan for BELIEVE.
KEY
QUESTION: What is my responsibility to other people?
Compassion literally means “suffer with.” God calls us to
come alongside of people who are suffering and suffer with them so they are not
alone. It doesn’t mean we can fix the problem, but it does mean we can enter
into their pain. Before we act on or practice this belief, we must believe it
is God’s call on the life of all Christ followers. When we believe this in our
heart, we will show compassion to all people, especially to those in need.
Throughout history God has graciously shown compassion for
his people, with the ultimate demonstration being the sacrifice of his only
Son, Jesus Christ. Because the only just response to the sins of humankind was
death, our just God, according to his righteousness, issued the death penalty
on us. Then, out of his grand compassion, he offered Jesus as a
“substitutionary atonement” — that is, Jesus took humanity’s place. Through
this one act God demonstrated his complete compassion without budging an inch
on his complete justice. We who are guilty are made just by the sacrifice of
the only person who was completely righteous.
Jesus: Model of Compassion – Read Luke 10:25-37.
KEY
VERSE
Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the
poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the
hand of the wicked. (Psalm 82:3–4)
KEY
IDEA
I believe God calls all Christians to show compassion to people
in need.
KEY
APPLICATION: What difference does this make in the
way I live?
If we choose to show compassion to people as God does, then
...
• we will
change our priorities and how we use our time
• we are
set free to give, because we trust God for our needs
• people
who have been forgotten by society will be cared for and restored
• we will
truly reach our neighborhoods and our cities
• the
Spirit of Christ will be alive and well in our lives
The oft-quoted phrase “people don’t care how much you know
until they know how much you care” will come to life. As people see how much we
care and ask us what we know, we may respond with, “It’s not what we know, but
who we know. His name is Jesus, and he would love to meet you.”
