The Weary and Lost, the harvest, compassion

 DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW

THE WEARY AND LOST

OR

THE HARVEST

OR

COMPASSION

Matt 9:35-38

35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." 

NIV

It is time to ponder the compassion Jesus had on the crowd that follow him. We are told it was because they were harassed and helpless. It is interesting how other translations translate the Greek words here. The wooden or original words mean flay, as in the skin, and to fling as in thrown down. This translation uses harassed and helpless, others use weary and scattered, distressed, and dispirited, fainted and scattered abroad, distressed and scattered, distressed and downcast, because their problems were great and did not know where to go for help. Al those translations pretty much convey the same idea, just a little differently. The people in this crowd were the average run-of-the-mill Jews who lived during hard times, having the Roman Government controlling their country. Even their own culture may not have been easy on them, as their ruler, their king was working with the Romans, in order to keep his title and remain wealthy. The Sanhedrin would have also made life difficult enforcing so many extra rules and regulations on the common people. In addition, perhaps because of their living conditions, plus factors we may not know, many were sick or had various diseases. In general, life was difficult, and they were distressed, downcast, dispirited, weary, and living without real guidance, like sheep without a shepherd, lost and unable to find their way home. Of course, we know the home is the kingdom of God, and Jesus is the way home. He told his disciples to look at that crowd of people and see them as a field ripe for the harvest, ready to be gathered up into the kingdom of God. He said it would take a lot of workers to gather the full amount of the harvest, and although his disciples did eventually go out and begin the harvest, the field has continued to become bigger there will always be workers needed to help those who are weary, distressed, dispirited and lost and have one to help them find their way home. If we are going to be Christlike, if our goal is to become more like Jesus, then we must understand and feel this compassion Jesus felt. This Greek word translated as compassion is to be moved in the bowels, that is moved within our being, actually feeling, not just working out of obedience, or for a show of our spirituality, but to be moved within, feeling compassion and showing them a way home.