Human Bankruptcy
O Lord, I beseech You, may Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and the prayer of Your servants who delight to revere Your name, and make Your servant successful today and grant him compassion before this man. Nehemiah 1:11
Compassion – Have you prayed like Nehemiah? Or did you think that the stirrings of your heart toward others meant you were compassionate? Did you imagine that you could truly express raham without the heart of God flowing through you? Is being good to others good enough?
Human beings have the capacity and the proclivity to copy the work of the Spirit. But they cannot reproduce what is essentially divine. That rule applies to compassion as well. The human version of compassion is nothing but altruistic cubic zirconium. Under the microscope, it shows its flawed character. That’s why Nehemiah (and Daniel – see Daniel 1:9) specifically acknowledges that compassion is a gift from God. It is not a naturally grown human product. Human beings may be altruistic, but they do not demonstrate raham unless God is actively involved.
There are hundreds of compassionate organizations and movements around the world. Humanitarian efforts are humanly noble causes. They do great good – from our perspective. But that does not make them participants in God’s raham (compassion). In fact, according to the Bible, unless compassion comes directly from God, all this humanitarian camouflage is ultimately worthless. It will be burned away with the chaff. The only compassion that counts is the compassion that comes right from the heart of the Lord of creation as a gift to the giver, without expectation of gain and without merit to the provider. God alone is the source of true compassion.
Now ask yourself what that means for you? Are you praying with Nehemiah? “Lord, grant me compassion.” Or are you seduced into thinking that compassion is a natural part of the moral life? Do you put your effort behind humanitarian works because they do good, or are you looking for that place where God’s heart is being revealed in action toward others? Can you sit with Mother Teresa and put your arms around the leper just because God loves or do you seek the more “practical” solutions?
If compassion is a gift from God, have you asked Him to give it to you? Are you ready to “listen attentively” (remember qashav) when He gives you the gift and tells you how to use it? Or are you waiting for the right campaign that tugs on your heart to come along and motivate you?
