The Closeness of Compassion

Love will cost you compassion.

I know, pretty straightforward, but it’s true. This is fascinating; the latin root for compassion is pati, which means to suffer. The prefix, com, means with. So compassion can be literally translated as one who suffers with.

Compassion moves us from empathy—which is the ability to relate to another person’s pain as if it’s your own—to action.

Compassion is the movement of the heart from static to dynamic. It moves us from word to deed. 

The Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10 shows us this.

A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side (Luke 10:31-32).

The priest came, he saw and he moved away to the other side of the road. The levite came, he saw and he moved away to the other side of the road.

“Compassion is the movement of the heart from static to dynamic. It moves us from word to deed.”

But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him (Luke 10:33-34, emphasis mine).

This is so important to catch.

This Samaritan is doing what the Levite and Priest wouldn’t do. He’s showing compassion. He doesn’t pass on the other side, he moves towards the beaten man.

This is our call, friends. This is our role. To step out of our comfort zones and with compassion, move toward others who the world perceives to be different than us, beneath us, foreign to us, a threat to us.

Compassion is the gateway to creating authentic community. You cannot know and love, you cannot be known and be loved until compassion makes its entrance. This is the great lie of our individualistic, I-get-what-I-want-when-I-want, instantaneous society.

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But community, friendship, relationship, compassion is not formed in this way. It doesn’t just happen and it isn’t convenient. It’s scary, it’s unpredictable—you’ll risk being rejected or hurt—but to build authentic relationship is worth it all.

A love that costs everything is the most liberating kind of love. It’s agape or unconditional love.

So, how do we do it? Get curious. Ask questions, get interested in what is happening around you and who is around you.

Get curious and compassion will make itself known. 

Love will also cost you care.

Your action must be meaningful. Care contains our attitude and our posture. When my wife asks me to do something, I may do it—but if I don’t care, there’s no love present in that action.

Care is the essence of humility.

We must value the other person—their needs, their wants, their desires—above ourselves if we are to act with genuine care.

“A love that costs everything is the most liberating kind of love. It’s agape or unconditional love.”

The Samaritan poured oil and wine on the man’s wounds. He bandaged him up. He saddled him on his own donkey—perceivably giving up his on seat on the journey. He took him to an inn, paid for his care, went out of his way, gave up his time, and went above and beyond to ensure this man’s recovery. 

Understand that the Samaritan was able to do this because he was unhurried and present enough to notice—and to not just notice—but to count the cost and choose to step out of his comfort zone and move towards compassion anyway.

In what ways is God seeking to disrupt your rhythm, your pace, your efficiency so that you can love others?

Admittedly, this is something I’m so awful at. But I’m getting better. I remember receiving a call from a 77-year-old widow who was trapped in her house because her driveway was snowed in. I typically field these calls because High School guys are cheap labor. But, in that moment, I felt the Holy Spirit prompting me to offer my services and so I did. Now, I don’t want to embellish myself as some hero because when I called her back, she had already found somebody. But the sheer desire to give up time in my day, to disrupt my rhythm and to go do this is something I would not have given thought to a year ago. I would have written her off because I was too busy or had more “important” things to do.

In my apprenticeship to Jesus, I’m learning that the closer I walk to him, the slower I’ll walk as well. And when I walk slow and I’m present, care makes itself known.

This week, slow down. Be present. Care for those who have less—less power, less influence, less clout, less popularity, less money or less strength—than you do.

Do one thing that uplifts someone who has less than you.

Care well for those around you and LOVE will make itself known.

Peace to you.