COMPASSION'S REACTION

Jesus allowed his heart to be the handle which the needs of others turned to open the door of healing.




Mark 1:41
καὶ σπλαγχνισθεὶς ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἥψατο καὶ λέγει• θέλω, καθαρίσθητι.
"And being filled with compassion, he (Jesus) wholly extended his arm touching him and said, 'I am willing - be healed.'"

There is much we can glean from this lone verse. We first realize that Jesus first saw the leper and then was filled with compassion.

σπλαγχνισθεὶς ("being filled with compassion") is in what is called the passive voice. This simply means that it was the physical state of the leper which filled Christ' heart with compassion.

APPLICATION
1 - If we have our eyes upon others and their needs, we will become burdened for them.
2 - Jesus opened his heart to the world allowing the needs of others to evoke him to take action and do something for them.
3 - Jesus moved moved toward this leper. The world promotes people coming to you, to serve you. Christ modeled going to others, to serve them.



Next, Jesus wholly extended (ἐκτείνας) his arm out to apply his healing touch to the leper. This word ἐκτείνας can literally mean to extend to full length. This says much of how we are to reach out to those around us. Jesus went against the norm in reaching out to someone who otherwise was overlooked and forgotten by society. Furthermore, he reached out all the way to this person!

APPLICATION
4 - Hold nothing back when it comes to serving others and may we not be afraid to go the extra step and do what we can, whether little or much for others, despite how we look in the eyes of modern culture.


Finally, through Jesus' touch, this man is healed. Today, we live as God's healing hand in the world, with him touching lives through us.

For Jesus, helping someone could mean, as it does here, healing them from their disease. God could still do this through someone today, but for the most part, helping others could be anything between faithfully praying for someone or going to help orphans in Africa. The needs of those around us are great and many. However, like Jesus, we must allow those needs to fill us with compassion which in turn, will lead us to do something.

Who is the friend you know who just found out they have cancer? Who do you know who just lost their job or is still looking for one? Who is the young person who is struggling in a home recently ransacked by divorce? A little encouragement, a meal offered, a listening ear, or even something as simple as faithfully praying for them may just be the healing touch of Jesus in their life.