Title: The Compassion and Sorrow of Jesus (Part 3) Meta: Jesus' sorrow and compassion spring from His observation of the effects of man's fall. As believers we must imitate the emotional life of Jesus and his sorrowful compassion. The only way that we can be like Jesus is to cultivate our own relationship with Christ. Tags: sorrow,compassion,joy,Jesus Christ,emotions 1 00:00:00,613 --> 00:00:04,320 We have surveyed the emotional life of Jesus. 2 00:00:04,320 --> 00:00:06,227 And for these next two messages, 3 00:00:06,227 --> 00:00:08,254 my plan is to cover two 4 00:00:08,254 --> 00:00:10,026 of the emotions of Jesus tonight, 5 00:00:10,026 --> 00:00:11,820 and God willing, tomorrow afternoon, 6 00:00:11,820 --> 00:00:15,239 two additional emotions of Jesus. 7 00:00:15,239 --> 00:00:17,408 And men, what I believe we're going to find 8 00:00:17,408 --> 00:00:19,899 is that the emotional life of Jesus 9 00:00:19,899 --> 00:00:23,237 has everything to do with theology. 10 00:00:23,237 --> 00:00:26,017 Some of us brothers were just talking here 11 00:00:26,017 --> 00:00:28,145 a common conversation about some churches 12 00:00:28,145 --> 00:00:30,232 that are very theological, 13 00:00:30,232 --> 00:00:31,798 but not very practical; 14 00:00:31,798 --> 00:00:33,983 not very given to outreach. 15 00:00:33,983 --> 00:00:37,030 Other churches are more given to outreach, 16 00:00:37,030 --> 00:00:40,480 but not very theologically deep. 17 00:00:40,480 --> 00:00:42,086 As I've studied this subject, 18 00:00:42,086 --> 00:00:44,028 I find that the emotions of Jesus 19 00:00:44,028 --> 00:00:47,073 have everything to do with theology. 20 00:00:47,073 --> 00:00:48,481 Let me show you what I mean. 21 00:00:48,481 --> 00:00:50,376 In particular, the emotions of Jesus 22 00:00:50,376 --> 00:00:53,365 have everything to do with biblical theology. 23 00:00:53,365 --> 00:00:55,460 Now you know that biblical theology 24 00:00:55,460 --> 00:00:58,296 has to do with the chronological unfolding 25 00:00:58,296 --> 00:01:01,981 of God's plan of redemption through history. 26 00:01:01,981 --> 00:01:04,311 And the emotions of Jesus 27 00:01:04,311 --> 00:01:05,919 have everything to do 28 00:01:05,919 --> 00:01:08,535 with the great plan of God the Father 29 00:01:08,535 --> 00:01:10,206 for the ages. 30 00:01:10,206 --> 00:01:13,394 His plan and purpose to create; 31 00:01:13,394 --> 00:01:17,009 His plan to allow the fall into sin; 32 00:01:17,009 --> 00:01:19,008 and His plan to bring about 33 00:01:19,008 --> 00:01:21,204 a wonderful and complete redemption 34 00:01:21,204 --> 00:01:23,680 in His Son, Jesus Christ. 35 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:26,427 How are emotions - something very practical - 36 00:01:26,427 --> 00:01:28,845 related to this grand scheme 37 00:01:28,845 --> 00:01:30,162 of Biblical theology. 38 00:01:30,162 --> 00:01:31,991 Well, let me make several statements. 39 00:01:31,991 --> 00:01:34,411 And then in this message and the following message 40 00:01:34,411 --> 00:01:38,351 I hope to demonstrate the truth of these statements. 41 00:01:38,351 --> 00:01:41,804 Jesus' sorrow and compassion 42 00:01:41,804 --> 00:01:46,148 spring from His observations of the effects 43 00:01:46,148 --> 00:01:48,940 of man's fall into sin. 44 00:01:48,940 --> 00:01:51,340 His sorrow and compassion 45 00:01:51,340 --> 00:01:53,007 are born of his observation 46 00:01:53,007 --> 00:01:55,898 of the effects of man's fall into sin. 47 00:01:55,898 --> 00:01:59,229 What is, in light of what was. 48 00:01:59,229 --> 00:02:00,617 Tomorrow, we're going to see 49 00:02:00,617 --> 00:02:03,471 that Jesus' anger springs largely from 50 00:02:03,471 --> 00:02:05,667 His recognition of the source 51 00:02:05,667 --> 00:02:07,833 of man's fall into sin - 52 00:02:07,833 --> 00:02:12,044 Satan and sin. 53 00:02:12,044 --> 00:02:13,885 Why it is. 54 00:02:13,885 --> 00:02:15,646 And the joy of Jesus 55 00:02:15,646 --> 00:02:17,706 springs from His contemplation 56 00:02:17,706 --> 00:02:20,671 and anticipation of the solution 57 00:02:20,671 --> 00:02:23,909 to man's fall that He came to bring - 58 00:02:23,909 --> 00:02:26,554 namely, what will be. 59 00:02:26,554 --> 00:02:28,328 In this message, I want to deal 60 00:02:28,328 --> 00:02:31,303 with the sorrow and the compassion of Jesus. 61 00:02:31,303 --> 00:02:34,007 And as I studied these two, 62 00:02:34,007 --> 00:02:36,504 I found that they were very much connected 63 00:02:36,504 --> 00:02:38,486 and so I'm going to connect them 64 00:02:38,486 --> 00:02:41,629 and call it the sorrowful compassion of Jesus. 65 00:02:41,629 --> 00:02:43,517 Why? Because I found that 66 00:02:43,517 --> 00:02:45,566 the things that brought sorrow 67 00:02:45,566 --> 00:02:47,004 to the heart of our Lord, 68 00:02:47,004 --> 00:02:49,073 were the very things that called forth 69 00:02:49,073 --> 00:02:52,185 His heart of compassion. 70 00:02:52,185 --> 00:02:54,081 Now, when we think of sorrow, 71 00:02:54,081 --> 00:02:55,278 we know what that is. 72 00:02:55,278 --> 00:02:57,369 That's grief; that's sadness. 73 00:02:57,369 --> 00:02:59,664 The biblical idea of compassion - 74 00:02:59,664 --> 00:03:01,689 when the Bible uses the word, 75 00:03:01,689 --> 00:03:04,401 one Greek word "moved with compassion," 76 00:03:04,401 --> 00:03:07,654 it actually has to do with the bowels. 77 00:03:07,654 --> 00:03:11,600 The Greek idea has to do with the intestines. 78 00:03:11,600 --> 00:03:15,552 The Greek's associated the really fervent, 79 00:03:15,552 --> 00:03:18,575 strong emotions with the intestines, 80 00:03:18,575 --> 00:03:19,819 with the bowels. 81 00:03:19,819 --> 00:03:21,470 And that makes sense, doesn't it? 82 00:03:21,470 --> 00:03:22,802 Even in the way we talk. 83 00:03:22,802 --> 00:03:24,845 We talk about a visceral response. 84 00:03:24,845 --> 00:03:26,540 Some things so move us 85 00:03:26,540 --> 00:03:29,096 that they make us sick to our stomach. 86 00:03:29,096 --> 00:03:30,474 We get nauseated. 87 00:03:30,474 --> 00:03:31,758 Or sometimes we talk about 88 00:03:31,758 --> 00:03:33,383 having butterflies in our stomach. 89 00:03:33,383 --> 00:03:36,985 Things affect us in our digestive tract. 90 00:03:36,985 --> 00:03:38,471 And to be moved with compassion 91 00:03:38,471 --> 00:03:41,293 is to be moved in the bowels. 92 00:03:41,293 --> 00:03:43,518 So we want to begin by considering 93 00:03:43,518 --> 00:03:46,098 the emotions of sorrow and compassion 94 00:03:46,098 --> 00:03:47,932 in Jesus. 95 00:03:47,932 --> 00:03:49,574 And the one thing that we note 96 00:03:49,574 --> 00:03:50,996 as we study this, 97 00:03:50,996 --> 00:03:55,081 is the very objects of His compassion. 98 00:03:55,081 --> 00:03:58,202 What was it that drew forth 99 00:03:58,202 --> 00:04:00,432 the sorrowful compassion of Jesus? 100 00:04:00,432 --> 00:04:04,703 First, we note that Jesus' sorrowful compassion 101 00:04:04,703 --> 00:04:07,307 was for physical misery. 102 00:04:07,307 --> 00:04:09,063 When He encountered hunger, 103 00:04:09,063 --> 00:04:10,914 sickness, and disease 104 00:04:10,914 --> 00:04:12,765 He was moved with compassion. 105 00:04:12,765 --> 00:04:15,368 In Matthew 15, "Jesus called 106 00:04:15,368 --> 00:04:17,560 His disciples to Him and said, 107 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:19,838 'I feel compassion for the people, 108 00:04:19,838 --> 00:04:21,764 because they've remained with Me now 109 00:04:21,764 --> 00:04:24,239 three days and have nothing to eat. 110 00:04:24,239 --> 00:04:27,184 I do not want to send them away hungry.'" 111 00:04:27,184 --> 00:04:28,862 And of course, then, He fed them. 112 00:04:28,862 --> 00:04:30,219 So He felt compassion. 113 00:04:30,219 --> 00:04:31,688 They'd stayed with Him. 114 00:04:31,688 --> 00:04:32,901 He was teaching them. 115 00:04:32,901 --> 00:04:35,697 He was alert to the fact that they were hungry. 116 00:04:35,697 --> 00:04:39,129 And He felt compassion for them in their hunger. 117 00:04:39,129 --> 00:04:41,601 As I suppose I should feel compassion for you. 118 00:04:41,601 --> 00:04:43,570 As you're hungry and cold, 119 00:04:43,570 --> 00:04:45,483 waiting here listening to this message. 120 00:04:45,483 --> 00:04:46,905 But I'm going to be heartless 121 00:04:46,905 --> 00:04:50,859 and just continue on without compassion. 122 00:04:50,859 --> 00:04:52,577 Matthew 14, "When He went ashore, 123 00:04:52,577 --> 00:04:54,513 He saw a large crowd and felt compassion 124 00:04:54,513 --> 00:04:57,445 for them and healed their sick." 125 00:04:57,445 --> 00:04:59,615 In Matthew 20, and I've got to read this one, 126 00:04:59,615 --> 00:05:01,390 because - I don't know about you, 127 00:05:01,390 --> 00:05:03,262 but this is one of the most poignant, 128 00:05:03,262 --> 00:05:07,753 moving scenarios I find in all the Gospels. 129 00:05:07,753 --> 00:05:10,577 In Matthew 20:29-34, I'm just going to 130 00:05:10,577 --> 00:05:13,679 take a moment and read that. 131 00:05:13,679 --> 00:05:15,188 "As they were leaving Jericho, 132 00:05:15,188 --> 00:05:16,847 a large crowd followed Him. 133 00:05:16,847 --> 00:05:19,114 And two blind men sitting by the road 134 00:05:19,114 --> 00:05:21,251 hearing that Jesus was passing by 135 00:05:21,251 --> 00:05:24,273 cried out, 'Lord, have mercy on us! 136 00:05:24,273 --> 00:05:25,843 Son of David!' 137 00:05:25,843 --> 00:05:28,159 The crowd sternly told them to be quiet. 138 00:05:28,159 --> 00:05:29,967 But they cried out all the more, 139 00:05:29,967 --> 00:05:33,322 'Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!' 140 00:05:33,322 --> 00:05:35,390 And Jesus stopped 141 00:05:35,390 --> 00:05:37,088 and called them and said, 142 00:05:37,088 --> 00:05:39,390 'What do you want Me to do for you?' 143 00:05:39,390 --> 00:05:40,990 They said to Him, 'Lord, we want 144 00:05:40,990 --> 00:05:42,766 our eyes to be opened.' 145 00:05:42,766 --> 00:05:44,453 Moved with compassion, 146 00:05:44,453 --> 00:05:45,701 Jesus touched their eyes 147 00:05:45,701 --> 00:05:48,342 and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him." 148 00:05:48,342 --> 00:05:49,406 Get the picture. 149 00:05:49,406 --> 00:05:52,038 Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem 150 00:05:52,038 --> 00:05:54,619 to die for the sins of the world. 151 00:05:54,619 --> 00:05:57,545 Do you think He's got some things on His mind? 152 00:05:57,545 --> 00:05:59,819 There's a whole entourage of people 153 00:05:59,819 --> 00:06:00,827 following Him. 154 00:06:00,827 --> 00:06:02,754 He's approaching the apex of His 155 00:06:02,754 --> 00:06:04,331 redemptive work on earth 156 00:06:04,331 --> 00:06:06,614 when He will suffer in agony in the garden, 157 00:06:06,614 --> 00:06:08,135 give Himself up on the cross 158 00:06:08,135 --> 00:06:10,281 for the sins of God's elect for all time. 159 00:06:10,281 --> 00:06:12,700 And here are two blind nobodies, 160 00:06:12,700 --> 00:06:14,856 marginalized beggars, in the gutter, 161 00:06:14,856 --> 00:06:17,073 can't even see Him, but hear Him coming, 162 00:06:17,073 --> 00:06:18,778 and cry out for mercy. 163 00:06:18,778 --> 00:06:20,103 And the Son of God, 164 00:06:20,103 --> 00:06:21,951 to the chagrin of His entourage, 165 00:06:21,951 --> 00:06:24,237 stops dead in His tracks 166 00:06:24,237 --> 00:06:27,131 and He pays attention to two blind nobody, 167 00:06:27,131 --> 00:06:29,000 marginalized beggars. 168 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:30,438 And moved with compassion, 169 00:06:30,438 --> 00:06:32,511 He heals them. 170 00:06:32,511 --> 00:06:34,737 Oh, that's so glorious. 171 00:06:34,737 --> 00:06:37,121 In Mark 1:40-41, "A leper came to Jesus, 172 00:06:37,121 --> 00:06:39,030 beseeching Him and falling on his knees 173 00:06:39,030 --> 00:06:40,066 before Him, saying, 174 00:06:40,066 --> 00:06:41,118 'If You are willing, 175 00:06:41,118 --> 00:06:42,981 You can make me clean.' 176 00:06:42,981 --> 00:06:44,079 Moved with compassion, 177 00:06:44,079 --> 00:06:45,921 Jesus stretched out His hand and touched Him 178 00:06:45,921 --> 00:06:47,996 and said to Him, 'I am willing.'" 179 00:06:47,996 --> 00:06:50,419 I am willing. Be cleansed. 180 00:06:50,419 --> 00:06:52,753 Matthew 8 - A centurion's paralyzed servant. 181 00:06:52,753 --> 00:06:55,729 "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, 182 00:06:55,729 --> 00:06:57,262 fearfully tormented. 183 00:06:57,262 --> 00:07:00,136 Jesus said to him, 'I will come and heal him.'" 184 00:07:00,136 --> 00:07:02,852 What impressed me as I worked through the Gospels, 185 00:07:02,852 --> 00:07:05,714 was the eagerness of Jesus 186 00:07:05,714 --> 00:07:08,319 to heal and to help. 187 00:07:08,319 --> 00:07:09,544 He wasn't reluctant. 188 00:07:09,544 --> 00:07:11,561 Well, yeah, I guess I've got some time. 189 00:07:11,561 --> 00:07:12,864 I guess I can fit that in. 190 00:07:12,864 --> 00:07:13,689 Do you see? 191 00:07:13,689 --> 00:07:14,786 I am willing. 192 00:07:14,786 --> 00:07:16,129 I will come and heal him. 193 00:07:16,129 --> 00:07:17,647 You see the eagerness of Jesus. 194 00:07:17,647 --> 00:07:19,294 No reluctance. 195 00:07:19,294 --> 00:07:22,159 In Matthew 9, there's the hemorrhaging woman. 196 00:07:22,159 --> 00:07:23,925 If only I touch His garment, 197 00:07:23,925 --> 00:07:25,635 I will get well. 198 00:07:25,635 --> 00:07:26,896 Daughter, take courage, 199 00:07:26,896 --> 00:07:29,502 your faith has made you well. 200 00:07:29,502 --> 00:07:30,966 In Matthew 12, a man was there 201 00:07:30,966 --> 00:07:32,598 whose hand was withered. 202 00:07:32,598 --> 00:07:33,823 "Then He said to the man, 203 00:07:33,823 --> 00:07:34,964 'stretch out your hand.' 204 00:07:34,964 --> 00:07:35,868 He stretched it out 205 00:07:35,868 --> 00:07:37,306 and it was restored to normal 206 00:07:37,306 --> 00:07:38,234 like the other." 207 00:07:38,234 --> 00:07:39,710 And large crowds, Matthew 15, 208 00:07:39,710 --> 00:07:41,310 came to Him, bringing with them 209 00:07:41,310 --> 00:07:43,042 lame, crippled, blind, mute 210 00:07:43,042 --> 00:07:44,105 and many others, 211 00:07:44,105 --> 00:07:45,913 and they laid them down at His feet, 212 00:07:45,913 --> 00:07:48,737 and He healed them. 213 00:07:48,737 --> 00:07:52,779 Other occasions, Jesus moved with pity, 214 00:07:52,779 --> 00:07:54,576 with compassion for the hungry, 215 00:07:54,576 --> 00:07:55,875 for the sick, 216 00:07:55,875 --> 00:07:58,148 for the diseased. 217 00:07:58,148 --> 00:08:01,329 Jesus also had sorrowful compassion 218 00:08:01,329 --> 00:08:05,639 for mental and emotional anguish. 219 00:08:05,639 --> 00:08:08,769 Luke 7, and I'll read that too. 220 00:08:08,769 --> 00:08:12,057 V. 11-14 221 00:08:12,057 --> 00:08:16,155 Luke 7:11-14 222 00:08:16,155 --> 00:08:18,570 "Soon afterwards, He went to a city called Nain 223 00:08:18,570 --> 00:08:20,672 and His disciples were going along with Him 224 00:08:20,672 --> 00:08:22,165 accompanied by a large crowd. 225 00:08:22,165 --> 00:08:24,194 Now, as He approached the gate of the city 226 00:08:24,194 --> 00:08:26,341 a dead man was being carried out. 227 00:08:26,341 --> 00:08:28,687 The only son of his mother. 228 00:08:28,687 --> 00:08:29,951 And she was a widow. 229 00:08:29,951 --> 00:08:32,464 And a sizable crowd from the city was with her. 230 00:08:32,464 --> 00:08:34,412 When the Lord saw her, 231 00:08:34,412 --> 00:08:36,665 He felt compassion for her. 232 00:08:36,665 --> 00:08:37,740 And He said to her, 233 00:08:37,740 --> 00:08:39,498 'Do not weep.' 234 00:08:39,498 --> 00:08:41,365 And He came up and touched the coffin 235 00:08:41,365 --> 00:08:42,981 and the bearers came to a halt. 236 00:08:42,981 --> 00:08:44,156 And He said, 'young man, 237 00:08:44,156 --> 00:08:45,555 I say to you arise.' 238 00:08:45,555 --> 00:08:48,380 And the dead man sat up and began to speak." 239 00:08:48,380 --> 00:08:51,127 Moved not so much for physical misery 240 00:08:51,127 --> 00:08:52,760 but for the mental anguish 241 00:08:52,760 --> 00:08:55,051 of this now bereft widow. 242 00:08:55,051 --> 00:08:56,923 And by the way, that's what widow means 243 00:08:56,923 --> 00:08:58,501 in the Greek - one who is bereft. 244 00:08:58,501 --> 00:09:00,612 It's someone who has no one to care for her. 245 00:09:00,612 --> 00:09:02,761 She didn't have a husband. Now her only son is dead. 246 00:09:02,761 --> 00:09:04,176 How's she going to fend for herself? 247 00:09:04,176 --> 00:09:05,594 How's she going to make it? 248 00:09:05,594 --> 00:09:07,338 Jesus, moved with compassion, 249 00:09:07,338 --> 00:09:10,629 raises him from the dead. 250 00:09:10,629 --> 00:09:12,748 And then, of course, 251 00:09:12,748 --> 00:09:15,691 in John 11. 252 00:09:15,691 --> 00:09:18,033 I'll turn to that passage as well. 253 00:09:18,033 --> 00:09:19,924 Jesus comes to Bethany 254 00:09:19,924 --> 00:09:24,328 after Lazarus has died. 255 00:09:24,328 --> 00:09:26,527 We are told in 11:3 that He is told, 256 00:09:26,527 --> 00:09:29,252 "He whom You love is sick." 257 00:09:29,252 --> 00:09:30,737 And then in v. 5, 258 00:09:30,737 --> 00:09:34,558 "Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus." 259 00:09:34,558 --> 00:09:36,531 The compassion of Jesus flows 260 00:09:36,531 --> 00:09:39,327 from the love of Jesus. 261 00:09:39,327 --> 00:09:42,189 He first comes to Martha, 262 00:09:42,189 --> 00:09:44,870 of "Martha, Martha," fame. 263 00:09:44,870 --> 00:09:47,943 And He interacts with her. 264 00:09:47,943 --> 00:09:50,295 But then He gets to Mary. 265 00:09:50,295 --> 00:09:52,544 And you remember that Mary was the one - 266 00:09:52,544 --> 00:09:53,658 He loved them both, 267 00:09:53,658 --> 00:09:55,085 He loved them all. 268 00:09:55,085 --> 00:09:56,395 He had to chide Martha, 269 00:09:56,395 --> 00:09:58,530 "Martha, Martha, you're worried and bothered 270 00:09:58,530 --> 00:09:59,884 about so many things." 271 00:09:59,884 --> 00:10:02,552 But Mary must have held a special place 272 00:10:02,552 --> 00:10:03,471 in His heart, 273 00:10:03,471 --> 00:10:06,121 because she sat at His feet. 274 00:10:06,121 --> 00:10:07,839 And then we read in John 11, 275 00:10:07,839 --> 00:10:09,353 beginning in v. 30, 276 00:10:09,353 --> 00:10:11,938 "Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, 277 00:10:11,938 --> 00:10:13,284 but was still in the place 278 00:10:13,284 --> 00:10:14,942 where Martha met Him. 279 00:10:14,942 --> 00:10:19,190 Then the Jews who were with her 280 00:10:19,190 --> 00:10:20,847 in the house and consoling her, 281 00:10:20,847 --> 00:10:23,388 when they saw that Mary got up quickly 282 00:10:23,388 --> 00:10:24,311 and went out, 283 00:10:24,311 --> 00:10:26,011 they followed her, supposing that 284 00:10:26,011 --> 00:10:27,957 she was going to the tomb to weep there. 285 00:10:27,957 --> 00:10:31,799 Therefore, when Mary came where Jesus was, 286 00:10:31,799 --> 00:10:34,399 she saw Him and fell at His feet, 287 00:10:34,399 --> 00:10:37,288 saying to Him, 'Lord, if you'd been here 288 00:10:37,288 --> 00:10:39,551 my brother would not have died.' 289 00:10:39,551 --> 00:10:41,756 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, 290 00:10:41,756 --> 00:10:43,211 and the Jews who came with her 291 00:10:43,211 --> 00:10:44,047 also weeping, 292 00:10:44,047 --> 00:10:45,602 He was deeply moved in spirit 293 00:10:45,602 --> 00:10:47,043 and was troubled. 294 00:10:47,043 --> 00:10:49,735 And He said, 'where have you laid him?' 295 00:10:49,735 --> 00:10:51,210 (He's going to fix it.) 296 00:10:51,210 --> 00:10:52,090 They said to Him, 297 00:10:52,090 --> 00:10:53,726 'Lord, come and see.' 298 00:10:53,726 --> 00:10:55,612 And Jesus wept." 299 00:10:55,612 --> 00:10:58,307 Martha was one thing, 300 00:10:58,307 --> 00:11:00,228 but when He saw Mary, 301 00:11:00,228 --> 00:11:02,232 the one who had sat at His feet, 302 00:11:02,232 --> 00:11:04,075 it just broke Him. 303 00:11:04,075 --> 00:11:07,049 And He wept with compassion. 304 00:11:07,049 --> 00:11:10,752 And then Jesus had sorrowful compassion 305 00:11:10,752 --> 00:11:13,197 for spiritual misery. 306 00:11:13,197 --> 00:11:16,409 Remember in Matthew 9:36. 307 00:11:16,409 --> 00:11:19,081 "Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, 308 00:11:19,081 --> 00:11:21,241 because they were distressed and dispirited, 309 00:11:21,241 --> 00:11:23,629 like sheep without a shepherd." 310 00:11:23,629 --> 00:11:25,401 Who were their pastors? 311 00:11:25,401 --> 00:11:26,899 The Pharisees. 312 00:11:26,899 --> 00:11:28,717 What kind of pastors were they? 313 00:11:28,717 --> 00:11:32,303 Self-centered, proud, self-righteous oppressors. 314 00:11:32,303 --> 00:11:33,975 They weren't shepherds. 315 00:11:33,975 --> 00:11:37,341 And Jesus saw these sheep without a shepherd, 316 00:11:37,341 --> 00:11:39,719 and it says He was distressed. 317 00:11:39,719 --> 00:11:42,028 That word literally means skinned, flayed, 318 00:11:42,028 --> 00:11:43,898 troubled, annoyed. 319 00:11:43,898 --> 00:11:45,005 They were dispirited. 320 00:11:45,005 --> 00:11:47,136 That means literally thrown to the ground, 321 00:11:47,136 --> 00:11:48,655 prostrate. 322 00:11:48,655 --> 00:11:52,029 It's the picture of deserted, neglected sheep. 323 00:11:52,029 --> 00:11:53,592 People who have no shepherd. 324 00:11:53,592 --> 00:11:55,401 They're unfed. They're uncared for. 325 00:11:55,401 --> 00:11:57,585 They're exposed to all kinds of dangers, 326 00:11:57,585 --> 00:11:59,322 elements, wolves. 327 00:11:59,322 --> 00:12:01,541 They're untaught, unfed, uncared for. 328 00:12:01,541 --> 00:12:04,112 And the great heart of the good and great Shepherd 329 00:12:04,112 --> 00:12:05,999 was moved with compassion 330 00:12:05,999 --> 00:12:09,859 for these compassionless sheep. 331 00:12:09,859 --> 00:12:12,285 He was also moved with sorrowful compassion 332 00:12:12,285 --> 00:12:14,344 for the spiritually lost. 333 00:12:14,344 --> 00:12:16,660 And probably the strongest record of that 334 00:12:16,660 --> 00:12:19,344 is in Luke 19. 335 00:12:19,344 --> 00:12:21,680 We saw, I think, earlier 336 00:12:21,680 --> 00:12:23,341 that with the rich, young ruler - 337 00:12:23,341 --> 00:12:25,677 when the rich, young ruler walked away, 338 00:12:25,677 --> 00:12:26,855 Jesus let him go. 339 00:12:26,855 --> 00:12:28,593 He wasn't going to lower the terms. 340 00:12:28,593 --> 00:12:30,229 There's only one set of terms 341 00:12:30,229 --> 00:12:31,223 for discipleship. 342 00:12:31,223 --> 00:12:32,773 There's no plan B. 343 00:12:32,773 --> 00:12:34,689 There's no "well, take Me as Savior now, 344 00:12:34,689 --> 00:12:36,606 we'll negotiate Lord later." 345 00:12:36,606 --> 00:12:39,024 No. It's Savior and Lord or nothing. 346 00:12:39,024 --> 00:12:40,417 But it says He looked at him 347 00:12:40,417 --> 00:12:42,033 and He felt love for him. 348 00:12:42,033 --> 00:12:44,096 But He had to watch him go away. 349 00:12:44,096 --> 00:12:46,842 And so we see His love for a lost sinner there. 350 00:12:46,842 --> 00:12:48,710 But surely Luke 19 351 00:12:48,710 --> 00:12:50,417 is the most poignant, 352 00:12:50,417 --> 00:12:53,864 beginning at v. 41, 353 00:12:53,864 --> 00:12:55,800 "When He approached Jerusalem, 354 00:12:55,800 --> 00:12:58,177 He saw the city and wept over it, 355 00:12:58,177 --> 00:13:00,418 saying, 'if you had known in this day, 356 00:13:00,418 --> 00:13:02,441 even you, the things which make for peace. 357 00:13:02,441 --> 00:13:04,202 But now they have been hidden 358 00:13:04,202 --> 00:13:05,032 from your eyes. 359 00:13:05,032 --> 00:13:06,536 For the days will come upon you 360 00:13:06,536 --> 00:13:09,156 when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, 361 00:13:09,156 --> 00:13:10,648 and surround you and hem you in 362 00:13:10,648 --> 00:13:11,591 on every side, 363 00:13:11,591 --> 00:13:13,416 and they will level you to the ground 364 00:13:13,416 --> 00:13:14,847 and your children within you, 365 00:13:14,847 --> 00:13:17,321 and they will not leave in you one stone upon another 366 00:13:17,321 --> 00:13:18,717 because you did not recognize 367 00:13:18,717 --> 00:13:20,204 the time of your visitation.'" 368 00:13:20,204 --> 00:13:21,646 And the word here is different 369 00:13:21,646 --> 00:13:23,373 from the word in John 11. 370 00:13:23,373 --> 00:13:25,281 In John 11, it's dakruo, 371 00:13:25,281 --> 00:13:27,377 and it means to weep silently. 372 00:13:27,377 --> 00:13:28,945 Here's it's klaio, which means 373 00:13:28,945 --> 00:13:30,753 to cry like a child. 374 00:13:30,753 --> 00:13:33,461 He just wailed openly 375 00:13:33,461 --> 00:13:34,958 for the lost people 376 00:13:34,958 --> 00:13:37,076 that would not come to Him 377 00:13:37,076 --> 00:13:38,550 and be gathered. 378 00:13:38,550 --> 00:13:41,232 And so Jesus' sorrowful compassion 379 00:13:41,232 --> 00:13:44,478 for physical, mental, emotional, 380 00:13:44,478 --> 00:13:46,345 and spiritual misery. 381 00:13:46,345 --> 00:13:47,714 But I want us to see next 382 00:13:47,714 --> 00:13:53,387 the actions born from His sorrowful compassion. 383 00:13:53,387 --> 00:13:56,608 He felt this deep compassion, 384 00:13:56,608 --> 00:14:00,448 but it was not a compassion in word only. 385 00:14:00,448 --> 00:14:02,340 Jesus didn't merely say, 386 00:14:02,340 --> 00:14:04,829 I feel your pain. 387 00:14:04,829 --> 00:14:06,791 Rather, His feelings of sorrow 388 00:14:06,791 --> 00:14:10,568 compelled Him to act to relieve the suffering. 389 00:14:10,568 --> 00:14:13,211 I like what Pastor Al Martin says 390 00:14:13,211 --> 00:14:14,844 in one of his messages, 391 00:14:14,844 --> 00:14:17,864 "Jesus never sat in a hot tub 392 00:14:17,864 --> 00:14:20,064 of internal emotions, 393 00:14:20,064 --> 00:14:22,120 but let it become the steam 394 00:14:22,120 --> 00:14:25,231 to drive the wheels of appropriate action." 395 00:14:25,231 --> 00:14:26,337 Isn't that good? 396 00:14:26,337 --> 00:14:27,307 I'll read it again: 397 00:14:27,307 --> 00:14:28,678 "[He] never sat in a hot tub 398 00:14:28,678 --> 00:14:30,346 of internal emotions, 399 00:14:30,346 --> 00:14:31,870 but let it become the steam 400 00:14:31,870 --> 00:14:32,971 to drive the wheels 401 00:14:32,971 --> 00:14:34,527 of appropriate action." 402 00:14:34,527 --> 00:14:36,345 And if you review all of those cases 403 00:14:36,345 --> 00:14:38,069 where He felt compassion, 404 00:14:38,069 --> 00:14:39,872 He didn't just say I feel your pain; 405 00:14:39,872 --> 00:14:41,493 He didn't just say to the hungry, 406 00:14:41,493 --> 00:14:43,453 go be warmed and filled - 407 00:14:43,453 --> 00:14:44,768 He fed them - 408 00:14:44,768 --> 00:14:46,787 albeit miraculously. 409 00:14:46,787 --> 00:14:48,956 He didn't just say I feel your pain 410 00:14:48,956 --> 00:14:51,269 blind people, crippled people, deaf people. 411 00:14:51,269 --> 00:14:52,723 He opened their blind eyes. 412 00:14:52,723 --> 00:14:55,124 He loosened their tongues. 413 00:14:55,124 --> 00:14:56,943 He healed the crippled limbs. 414 00:14:56,943 --> 00:14:58,558 He cleaned the leprosy. 415 00:14:58,558 --> 00:15:00,762 He did something about it. 416 00:15:00,762 --> 00:15:02,341 And with the widow's only son, 417 00:15:02,341 --> 00:15:03,810 He raised him from the dead. 418 00:15:03,810 --> 00:15:05,163 And at the tomb of Lazarus, 419 00:15:05,163 --> 00:15:07,275 He not only wept, 420 00:15:07,275 --> 00:15:09,347 but He went to that tomb 421 00:15:09,347 --> 00:15:11,217 and we'll see later - tomorrow - 422 00:15:11,217 --> 00:15:12,949 He went with rage. 423 00:15:12,949 --> 00:15:14,396 There's the other word there, 424 00:15:14,396 --> 00:15:15,793 we'll deal with tomorrow. 425 00:15:15,793 --> 00:15:17,280 There wasn't only deep sorrow, 426 00:15:17,280 --> 00:15:18,786 there was anger. 427 00:15:18,786 --> 00:15:20,455 Anger at the death 428 00:15:20,455 --> 00:15:22,426 that had taken the life of His friend. 429 00:15:22,426 --> 00:15:25,244 And He said, "Lazarus, come forth." 430 00:15:25,244 --> 00:15:27,466 He did something about it. 431 00:15:27,466 --> 00:15:31,376 Octavius Winslow says of the sigh of Jesus 432 00:15:31,376 --> 00:15:34,254 that led Him to heal the deaf and dumb man, 433 00:15:34,254 --> 00:15:37,181 "it was a sigh of practical benevolence. 434 00:15:37,181 --> 00:15:39,147 I have remarked upon the hollow, 435 00:15:39,147 --> 00:15:41,718 vapid nature of human pity and compassion. 436 00:15:41,718 --> 00:15:44,415 How much of it evaporates in thin air. 437 00:15:44,415 --> 00:15:45,343 It is needless. 438 00:15:45,343 --> 00:15:46,106 It is heartless. 439 00:15:46,106 --> 00:15:47,407 Nay, it is criminal to say, 440 00:15:47,407 --> 00:15:50,128 'be ye warmed; be ye filled, be ye fed, 441 00:15:50,128 --> 00:15:51,350 be ye healed,' 442 00:15:51,350 --> 00:15:52,822 and yet extend not a hand, 443 00:15:52,822 --> 00:15:55,106 and stir not a foot to help. 444 00:15:55,106 --> 00:15:57,623 Not so was the emotion of Christ. 445 00:15:57,623 --> 00:16:01,070 His was a real, tangible, practical principle. 446 00:16:01,070 --> 00:16:02,392 It was always connected 447 00:16:02,392 --> 00:16:03,907 with some sorrow comforted, 448 00:16:03,907 --> 00:16:04,944 some want supplied, 449 00:16:04,944 --> 00:16:06,701 some burden unclasped, 450 00:16:06,701 --> 00:16:07,731 some help needed, 451 00:16:07,731 --> 00:16:09,158 some blessing bestowed. 452 00:16:09,158 --> 00:16:11,551 Oh, we deal with Christ 453 00:16:11,551 --> 00:16:13,078 with compassion and sympathy, 454 00:16:13,078 --> 00:16:14,892 robed with the beautiful garment 455 00:16:14,892 --> 00:16:17,723 of real, practical charity." 456 00:16:17,723 --> 00:16:22,674 Jesus felt deeply and He acted upon it. 457 00:16:22,674 --> 00:16:25,381 So we see the emotion of compassion. 458 00:16:25,381 --> 00:16:27,311 We see the action born of it. 459 00:16:27,311 --> 00:16:29,301 But then, know with me, 460 00:16:29,301 --> 00:16:31,504 the motivation behind 461 00:16:31,504 --> 00:16:36,029 the sorrowful compassion of Jesus. 462 00:16:36,029 --> 00:16:37,778 What moved Him 463 00:16:37,778 --> 00:16:41,143 to this sorrowful compassion? 464 00:16:41,143 --> 00:16:42,858 As I put it at the outset, 465 00:16:42,858 --> 00:16:44,377 let me repeat, 466 00:16:44,377 --> 00:16:46,910 Jesus' sorrowful compassion 467 00:16:46,910 --> 00:16:49,952 sprang from His observation 468 00:16:49,952 --> 00:16:53,693 of the effects of man's fall. 469 00:16:53,693 --> 00:16:57,584 What is in light of what was. 470 00:16:57,584 --> 00:16:59,686 And brothers, we have some 471 00:16:59,686 --> 00:17:01,991 notable illustrations of that 472 00:17:01,991 --> 00:17:04,051 in our recent history. 473 00:17:04,051 --> 00:17:06,086 We have been - your own state 474 00:17:06,086 --> 00:17:08,294 of Texas here in Houston - 475 00:17:08,294 --> 00:17:11,358 hit by Hurricane Harvey. 476 00:17:11,358 --> 00:17:14,139 And then Florida and the Caribbean 477 00:17:14,139 --> 00:17:17,141 hit by Hurricane Irma. 478 00:17:17,141 --> 00:17:19,369 Puerto Rico - some of your relatives there 479 00:17:19,369 --> 00:17:22,654 slammed by Hurricane Maria, 480 00:17:22,654 --> 00:17:24,589 up to category 4's. 481 00:17:24,589 --> 00:17:28,449 Mexico City hit with 6.1, 7.1, 8.1 482 00:17:28,449 --> 00:17:32,001 on the Richter Scale earthquakes. 483 00:17:32,001 --> 00:17:34,574 The fires that have devastated 484 00:17:34,574 --> 00:17:36,873 the forests of Northern California. 485 00:17:36,873 --> 00:17:38,667 2,000 homes destroyed. 486 00:17:38,667 --> 00:17:40,799 Imagine what, for some people, 487 00:17:40,799 --> 00:17:42,518 they don't have to imagine - 488 00:17:42,518 --> 00:17:44,444 returning to your town 489 00:17:44,444 --> 00:17:46,039 after you've had to vacate to another 490 00:17:46,039 --> 00:17:47,187 city or state, 491 00:17:47,187 --> 00:17:49,556 after a category 4 hurricane, 492 00:17:49,556 --> 00:17:51,141 and you come back 493 00:17:51,141 --> 00:17:52,445 and what do you find? 494 00:17:52,445 --> 00:17:54,934 You find the topography has changed 495 00:17:54,934 --> 00:17:57,275 in some places where there's mud 496 00:17:57,275 --> 00:17:59,827 and the roads aren't even visible. 497 00:17:59,827 --> 00:18:01,414 Trees are knocked down. 498 00:18:01,414 --> 00:18:03,174 One person from the Caribbean said 499 00:18:03,174 --> 00:18:04,697 it's like being on the moon. 500 00:18:04,697 --> 00:18:06,703 There are no trees. 501 00:18:06,703 --> 00:18:08,673 Telephone poles are knocked over. 502 00:18:08,673 --> 00:18:12,337 You come to what was your comfortable home 503 00:18:12,337 --> 00:18:15,115 and the roof has blown away, 504 00:18:15,115 --> 00:18:17,495 and the walls are caved in, 505 00:18:17,495 --> 00:18:19,419 and a tree has fallen upon your car 506 00:18:19,419 --> 00:18:20,289 and crushed it. 507 00:18:20,289 --> 00:18:22,257 And you say, yeah, I think it's our home. 508 00:18:22,257 --> 00:18:23,818 Yeah, that's our sofa. 509 00:18:23,818 --> 00:18:25,521 And there's our kitchen table. 510 00:18:25,521 --> 00:18:28,119 And there's a baby's toy. 511 00:18:28,119 --> 00:18:31,199 It's our home, but it's not what it was. 512 00:18:31,199 --> 00:18:33,313 It is a ravaged ruin. 513 00:18:33,313 --> 00:18:36,637 It's a wrecked remnant of what was. 514 00:18:36,637 --> 00:18:38,981 Well, brothers, this is a faint picture 515 00:18:38,981 --> 00:18:41,134 of what it was like for Jesus 516 00:18:41,134 --> 00:18:43,541 coming to earth. 517 00:18:43,541 --> 00:18:45,716 These people are traumatized 518 00:18:45,716 --> 00:18:47,536 by the effect - the ravages - 519 00:18:47,536 --> 00:18:49,850 of the hurricane. 520 00:18:49,850 --> 00:18:51,913 Well, Jesus was the co-creator 521 00:18:51,913 --> 00:18:54,627 of the world with His Father, wasn't He. 522 00:18:54,627 --> 00:18:57,768 It says all things came into being by Him, 523 00:18:57,768 --> 00:19:00,139 and without Him, nothing came into being 524 00:19:00,139 --> 00:19:02,206 that has come into being. 525 00:19:02,206 --> 00:19:05,891 The original creation was pristine and pure. 526 00:19:05,891 --> 00:19:06,952 It was a paradise. 527 00:19:06,952 --> 00:19:08,830 It was a realm of righteousness. 528 00:19:08,830 --> 00:19:10,843 There was no sorrow, no tears, 529 00:19:10,843 --> 00:19:13,709 no grieving, no harm, no death. 530 00:19:13,709 --> 00:19:16,429 But the fall of man changed all that. 531 00:19:16,429 --> 00:19:18,905 And now Jesus is coming 532 00:19:18,905 --> 00:19:21,141 and witnessing first hand a creation 533 00:19:21,141 --> 00:19:24,118 that is marred by sin. 534 00:19:24,118 --> 00:19:26,065 There's sickness and disease 535 00:19:26,065 --> 00:19:27,941 and blindness and deafness 536 00:19:27,941 --> 00:19:29,267 and paralysis. 537 00:19:29,267 --> 00:19:31,430 Oppression by the god of this world 538 00:19:31,430 --> 00:19:32,649 and his demons. 539 00:19:32,649 --> 00:19:36,799 The forces of nature, yes, under His permission ultimately, 540 00:19:36,799 --> 00:19:39,159 but being used by the devil. 541 00:19:39,159 --> 00:19:40,919 Destructive winds and storms 542 00:19:40,919 --> 00:19:42,544 and earthquakes and fires 543 00:19:42,544 --> 00:19:44,957 ravaging the physical landscape. 544 00:19:44,957 --> 00:19:47,597 And there's wickedness in the hearts 545 00:19:47,597 --> 00:19:49,454 of the children of disobedience. 546 00:19:49,454 --> 00:19:51,068 Their hearts are continually 547 00:19:51,068 --> 00:19:52,919 belching forth evil thoughts 548 00:19:52,919 --> 00:19:55,157 and fornication's and thefts and murders 549 00:19:55,157 --> 00:19:57,436 and adulteries and deceit and sensuality, 550 00:19:57,436 --> 00:19:59,286 envy, slander, pride, foolishness - 551 00:19:59,286 --> 00:20:00,780 to quote Jesus. 552 00:20:00,780 --> 00:20:02,403 And the Son of God 553 00:20:02,403 --> 00:20:05,155 coming from the pristine realm 554 00:20:05,155 --> 00:20:06,461 of His Father's Heaven 555 00:20:06,461 --> 00:20:09,297 where only righteousness reigns, 556 00:20:09,297 --> 00:20:11,764 where everything is pure and perfect, 557 00:20:11,764 --> 00:20:15,359 is hit in the face with the wreckage 558 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:22,241 and the ravages of the effects of man's sin. 559 00:20:22,241 --> 00:20:24,508 And the response is He's filled 560 00:20:24,508 --> 00:20:28,054 with grief and compassion. 561 00:20:28,054 --> 00:20:30,832 And so, the sorrowful compassion of Jesus 562 00:20:30,832 --> 00:20:32,724 is the result, isn't it, 563 00:20:32,724 --> 00:20:37,047 of Him observing the effects of the fall. 564 00:20:37,047 --> 00:20:45,625 (Incomplete thought) 565 00:20:45,625 --> 00:20:48,825 What is, in light of what was. 566 00:20:48,825 --> 00:20:50,973 But brothers, before I make application 567 00:20:50,973 --> 00:20:53,745 of the sorrowful compassion 568 00:20:53,745 --> 00:20:55,775 of Jesus to us, 569 00:20:55,775 --> 00:20:57,924 I need to point us 570 00:20:57,924 --> 00:21:00,204 to what was the greatest experience 571 00:21:00,204 --> 00:21:02,789 of Jesus' sorrow 572 00:21:02,789 --> 00:21:05,120 that gave rise to the greatest display 573 00:21:05,120 --> 00:21:08,125 of His compassion. 574 00:21:08,125 --> 00:21:10,290 As you know, He is called 575 00:21:10,290 --> 00:21:12,861 the Man of Sorrows. 576 00:21:12,861 --> 00:21:15,246 Tell me where that comes from. 577 00:21:15,246 --> 00:21:17,339 Isaiah 53. 578 00:21:17,339 --> 00:21:19,258 And to understand what was 579 00:21:19,258 --> 00:21:21,527 the greatest source of grief 580 00:21:21,527 --> 00:21:23,389 and heartache and sorrow 581 00:21:23,389 --> 00:21:25,530 to our Lord Jesus, 582 00:21:25,530 --> 00:21:27,061 we need to look at that passage. 583 00:21:27,061 --> 00:21:32,968 And I'm just going to read Isaiah 53:3-6. 584 00:21:32,968 --> 00:21:36,155 "He was despised and forsaken of men. 585 00:21:36,155 --> 00:21:39,965 A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, 586 00:21:39,965 --> 00:21:42,577 and like one from whom men hide their face, 587 00:21:42,577 --> 00:21:46,731 He was despised and we did not esteem Him. 588 00:21:46,731 --> 00:21:50,140 Surely, our griefs He himself bore, 589 00:21:50,140 --> 00:21:52,633 and our sorrows He carried. 590 00:21:52,633 --> 00:21:54,568 We ourselves esteemed Him stricken, 591 00:21:54,568 --> 00:21:56,628 smitten of God and afflicted. 592 00:21:56,628 --> 00:22:00,275 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, 593 00:22:00,275 --> 00:22:02,834 He was crushed for our iniquities. 594 00:22:02,834 --> 00:22:04,566 The chastening for our well-being 595 00:22:04,566 --> 00:22:05,522 fell upon Him 596 00:22:05,522 --> 00:22:07,886 and by His scourging, we are healed. 597 00:22:07,886 --> 00:22:10,727 All of us, like sheep, have gone astray. 598 00:22:10,727 --> 00:22:13,743 Each of us has turned to his own way. 599 00:22:13,743 --> 00:22:17,545 The Lord has caused the iniquity of us all 600 00:22:17,545 --> 00:22:21,530 to fall on Him." 601 00:22:21,530 --> 00:22:23,104 Here was the greatest source 602 00:22:23,104 --> 00:22:25,165 of our Lord's sorrow. 603 00:22:25,165 --> 00:22:27,125 This is why He got the label 604 00:22:27,125 --> 00:22:29,665 Man of Sorrows. 605 00:22:29,665 --> 00:22:32,208 And what caused His sorrow? 606 00:22:32,208 --> 00:22:34,747 It was that He was the suffering servant 607 00:22:34,747 --> 00:22:36,018 of Jehovah. 608 00:22:36,018 --> 00:22:38,938 He was the sin-bearer. 609 00:22:38,938 --> 00:22:41,037 Why was He suffering that sorrow? 610 00:22:41,037 --> 00:22:42,874 To bring physical healing to us? 611 00:22:42,874 --> 00:22:44,745 Yes. The New Testament quotes this 612 00:22:44,745 --> 00:22:46,915 in connection with physical healing. 613 00:22:46,915 --> 00:22:48,727 And ultimately, all of our bodies 614 00:22:48,727 --> 00:22:51,891 will be physically healed. 615 00:22:51,891 --> 00:22:53,599 But His sorrow was mainly 616 00:22:53,599 --> 00:22:58,450 to bear our iniquities, our transgressions. 617 00:22:58,450 --> 00:23:00,254 He suffered that sorrow 618 00:23:00,254 --> 00:23:02,830 so that we would not have to suffer 619 00:23:02,830 --> 00:23:04,803 an eternity of sorrow 620 00:23:04,803 --> 00:23:06,919 away from the presence of the Lord 621 00:23:06,919 --> 00:23:09,992 in a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, 622 00:23:09,992 --> 00:23:11,140 outer darkness, 623 00:23:11,140 --> 00:23:15,935 which the Bible calls gehenna or hell. 624 00:23:15,935 --> 00:23:17,379 That was the deepest source 625 00:23:17,379 --> 00:23:18,843 of His grief. 626 00:23:18,843 --> 00:23:21,248 There was the anticipation of it, 627 00:23:21,248 --> 00:23:23,105 as He anticipated the cross. 628 00:23:23,105 --> 00:23:25,113 Now My soul has become troubled. 629 00:23:25,113 --> 00:23:26,012 What shall I say? 630 00:23:26,012 --> 00:23:28,047 Father, save Me from this hour? 631 00:23:28,047 --> 00:23:30,278 No, for this purpose I've come to this hour. 632 00:23:30,278 --> 00:23:32,172 Father, glorify Your name. 633 00:23:32,172 --> 00:23:33,600 As He comes to the garden, 634 00:23:33,600 --> 00:23:35,760 He is praying very fervently. 635 00:23:35,760 --> 00:23:37,197 Luke says His sweat became 636 00:23:37,197 --> 00:23:39,050 like drops of blood 637 00:23:39,050 --> 00:23:41,562 falling down upon the ground. 638 00:23:41,562 --> 00:23:43,698 And the apex of His suffering, 639 00:23:43,698 --> 00:23:46,034 which we cannot begin to imagine, 640 00:23:46,034 --> 00:23:47,834 is when He cries from the cross, 641 00:23:47,834 --> 00:23:52,631 "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" 642 00:23:52,631 --> 00:23:54,738 He was the One in Whom the Father 643 00:23:54,738 --> 00:23:56,030 was well pleased. 644 00:23:56,030 --> 00:23:57,556 He only did what was pleasing 645 00:23:57,556 --> 00:23:58,412 to the Father. 646 00:23:58,412 --> 00:24:00,406 He had enjoyed fellowship with the Father 647 00:24:00,406 --> 00:24:03,624 in all eternity and throughout His ministry on earth. 648 00:24:03,624 --> 00:24:07,185 And now, in an inky blackness 649 00:24:07,185 --> 00:24:08,896 we cannot begin [to understand]. 650 00:24:08,896 --> 00:24:10,124 You've been lonely? 651 00:24:10,124 --> 00:24:11,936 You've had times of loneliness. 652 00:24:11,936 --> 00:24:16,041 Nothing in our imagination can conceive 653 00:24:16,041 --> 00:24:17,716 of the loneliness of Jesus. 654 00:24:17,716 --> 00:24:19,821 I mean, His friends had fled from Him. 655 00:24:19,821 --> 00:24:22,865 His enemies were breathing fire against Him. 656 00:24:22,865 --> 00:24:25,692 Now, His Father - His only comfort - 657 00:24:25,692 --> 00:24:28,362 was turning away in revulsion. 658 00:24:28,362 --> 00:24:29,426 Why? 659 00:24:29,426 --> 00:24:31,876 Because my sins and your sins, 660 00:24:31,876 --> 00:24:33,005 if you're a believer, 661 00:24:33,005 --> 00:24:35,814 we're being heaped upon Him. 662 00:24:35,814 --> 00:24:38,753 It was intense sorrow 663 00:24:38,753 --> 00:24:40,929 born of His greatest compassion 664 00:24:40,929 --> 00:24:43,177 for sinners. 665 00:24:43,177 --> 00:24:45,567 Brothers, let me turn now, 666 00:24:45,567 --> 00:24:47,757 and make application 667 00:24:47,757 --> 00:24:50,157 of the sorrowful compassion of Jesus. 668 00:24:50,157 --> 00:24:51,684 Because I trust you're convinced 669 00:24:51,684 --> 00:24:53,346 we're called to be like Jesus 670 00:24:53,346 --> 00:24:54,974 in His emotional life. 671 00:24:54,974 --> 00:24:56,752 Right? Are you convinced of that? 672 00:24:56,752 --> 00:24:58,379 He is our pattern in all things, 673 00:24:58,379 --> 00:24:59,626 including emotions. 674 00:24:59,626 --> 00:25:02,248 We want to feel as Jesus felt. 675 00:25:02,248 --> 00:25:06,198 So, how do we apply this? 676 00:25:06,198 --> 00:25:09,284 First of all, if you are an unbeliever 677 00:25:09,284 --> 00:25:11,823 in Jesus - some of you kids, 678 00:25:11,823 --> 00:25:12,974 some of you children, 679 00:25:12,974 --> 00:25:14,384 listen to me. 680 00:25:14,384 --> 00:25:17,788 Have you not put your trust in Jesus yet? 681 00:25:17,788 --> 00:25:20,803 Do you see what Jesus went through 682 00:25:20,803 --> 00:25:23,221 to pay for sins like yours? 683 00:25:23,221 --> 00:25:24,690 Do you see the deep sorrow 684 00:25:24,690 --> 00:25:26,045 that Jesus went through; 685 00:25:26,045 --> 00:25:28,041 the deep sadness that Jesus suffered, 686 00:25:28,041 --> 00:25:31,256 so that you could be forgiven? 687 00:25:31,256 --> 00:25:33,532 So that you could live with God now 688 00:25:33,532 --> 00:25:35,584 and have God as your God now 689 00:25:35,584 --> 00:25:36,941 and Jesus as your Savior 690 00:25:36,941 --> 00:25:38,084 to take away your sins? 691 00:25:38,084 --> 00:25:39,090 So that when you die, 692 00:25:39,090 --> 00:25:42,328 you can go live with God in heaven? 693 00:25:42,328 --> 00:25:43,982 Children and all adults, 694 00:25:43,982 --> 00:25:46,117 we have two choices. 695 00:25:46,117 --> 00:25:47,762 The choice is either, 696 00:25:47,762 --> 00:25:51,938 we endure sorrow forever 697 00:25:51,938 --> 00:25:54,779 in a place of torment in hell, 698 00:25:54,779 --> 00:25:57,941 and once you go to hell, you never get out. 699 00:25:57,941 --> 00:25:59,235 I was taught as a Catholic 700 00:25:59,235 --> 00:26:00,772 there's a middle ground place 701 00:26:00,772 --> 00:26:02,164 where your sins are purged. 702 00:26:02,164 --> 00:26:03,183 That's a lie. 703 00:26:03,183 --> 00:26:04,798 There's only heaven and hell. 704 00:26:04,798 --> 00:26:06,737 And once you die, you're fixed. 705 00:26:06,737 --> 00:26:08,152 And if you go to that place, 706 00:26:08,152 --> 00:26:10,261 you will suffer sorrow forever. 707 00:26:10,261 --> 00:26:11,679 Either you do that, 708 00:26:11,679 --> 00:26:14,280 or you let Jesus take your sorrow 709 00:26:14,280 --> 00:26:15,859 and take your sins 710 00:26:15,859 --> 00:26:18,134 by putting your trust in Him. 711 00:26:18,134 --> 00:26:19,996 And saying Jesus, I am a sinner. 712 00:26:19,996 --> 00:26:21,091 I do bad things. 713 00:26:21,091 --> 00:26:23,083 I don't obey mom and dad all the time 714 00:26:23,083 --> 00:26:23,996 as I should. 715 00:26:23,996 --> 00:26:27,830 I hurt and hate my brother and sister sometimes. 716 00:26:27,830 --> 00:26:29,571 And I have feelings inside me 717 00:26:29,571 --> 00:26:30,865 that I know are not good 718 00:26:30,865 --> 00:26:32,475 and they're not pleasing to You. 719 00:26:32,475 --> 00:26:34,493 Jesus, I do wrong. I'm a sinner. 720 00:26:34,493 --> 00:26:35,662 But I can't change. 721 00:26:35,662 --> 00:26:39,372 Jesus, forgive me. And Jesus, change me. 722 00:26:39,372 --> 00:26:41,317 And then, all your sorrow 723 00:26:41,317 --> 00:26:43,973 and all your suffering will be taken by Him. 724 00:26:43,973 --> 00:26:45,241 He will become your Father 725 00:26:45,241 --> 00:26:46,645 and your Savior. 726 00:26:46,645 --> 00:26:48,056 He will forgive you. 727 00:26:48,056 --> 00:26:49,516 You will become His child. 728 00:26:49,516 --> 00:26:50,944 And when you die, 729 00:26:50,944 --> 00:26:52,747 whether now, whether you're young 730 00:26:52,747 --> 00:26:53,890 or whether you're old, 731 00:26:53,890 --> 00:26:58,129 you'll live with Jesus forever in Heaven. 732 00:26:58,129 --> 00:27:00,772 If you're a believer, as most of us are, 733 00:27:00,772 --> 00:27:03,564 please understand that the same Jesus 734 00:27:03,564 --> 00:27:04,523 Who walked on earth 735 00:27:04,523 --> 00:27:05,946 with that heart of compassion 736 00:27:05,946 --> 00:27:07,658 is the Jesus in Heaven 737 00:27:07,658 --> 00:27:09,588 with that same heart of compassion. 738 00:27:09,588 --> 00:27:12,303 And remember how He looked upon 739 00:27:12,303 --> 00:27:13,791 those shepherdless sheep? 740 00:27:13,791 --> 00:27:15,474 And He was moved with compassion? 741 00:27:15,474 --> 00:27:17,465 They don't have a shepherd! 742 00:27:17,465 --> 00:27:20,257 And the great heart of our Chief Shepherd 743 00:27:20,257 --> 00:27:22,118 said pray to the Lord of the Harvest 744 00:27:22,118 --> 00:27:24,552 to send forth laborers. 745 00:27:24,552 --> 00:27:26,794 If you're a Christian, 746 00:27:26,794 --> 00:27:30,445 but you're not in a flock of God's people, 747 00:27:30,445 --> 00:27:32,508 and you have not joined a church 748 00:27:32,508 --> 00:27:35,150 where you have put yourself under 749 00:27:35,150 --> 00:27:38,235 God-sent, God-equipped, God-called 750 00:27:38,235 --> 00:27:41,425 shepherds, pastors... 751 00:27:41,425 --> 00:27:45,686 Jesus' heart is out towards you with compassion. 752 00:27:45,686 --> 00:27:48,878 He wants you to be in a flock of God's people, 753 00:27:48,878 --> 00:27:52,174 under shepherds who will care for you. 754 00:27:52,174 --> 00:27:54,000 That was His heart then 755 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:55,669 when there were shepherdless sheep. 756 00:27:55,669 --> 00:27:58,141 And if you're a shepherdless sheep now, 757 00:27:58,141 --> 00:28:00,357 that's His heart for you now. 758 00:28:00,357 --> 00:28:02,135 You see, it's a fair question to ask 759 00:28:02,135 --> 00:28:03,714 any Christian, 760 00:28:03,714 --> 00:28:08,134 what pastors are responsible for your soul? 761 00:28:08,134 --> 00:28:10,447 You say, well, Jesus is my shepherd. 762 00:28:10,447 --> 00:28:11,817 I hope so. 763 00:28:11,817 --> 00:28:14,587 But Jesus has appointed under-shepherds 764 00:28:14,587 --> 00:28:15,680 to care for you, 765 00:28:15,680 --> 00:28:17,057 and Hebrews 13:17 says 766 00:28:17,057 --> 00:28:18,702 obey your leaders, submit to them. 767 00:28:18,702 --> 00:28:21,292 They keep watch over your soul. 768 00:28:21,292 --> 00:28:23,104 And if you can't answer that question 769 00:28:23,104 --> 00:28:24,524 and say "pastor so-and-so," 770 00:28:24,524 --> 00:28:26,183 "pastors so-and-so," 771 00:28:26,183 --> 00:28:27,790 "elder so-and-so," 772 00:28:27,790 --> 00:28:29,445 then you need to get into a flock 773 00:28:29,445 --> 00:28:30,600 of God's people, 774 00:28:30,600 --> 00:28:32,683 put yourself under worthy, 775 00:28:32,683 --> 00:28:35,501 God-sent shepherds. 776 00:28:35,501 --> 00:28:37,395 Jesus wants you to do that. 777 00:28:37,395 --> 00:28:39,109 We know it's His will. 778 00:28:39,109 --> 00:28:40,355 It was His will then. 779 00:28:40,355 --> 00:28:42,961 It's His will for you now. 780 00:28:42,961 --> 00:28:44,314 My fellow believer, 781 00:28:44,314 --> 00:28:47,568 if you're suffering from sickness and disease, 782 00:28:47,568 --> 00:28:48,990 or some handicap, 783 00:28:48,990 --> 00:28:51,090 or some grievous loss, 784 00:28:51,090 --> 00:28:52,869 know that the great heart 785 00:28:52,869 --> 00:28:54,515 of your compassionate Savior 786 00:28:54,515 --> 00:28:56,917 feels with you 787 00:28:56,917 --> 00:29:01,179 and wants to be the God of all comfort to you. 788 00:29:01,179 --> 00:29:05,574 And notice that He wants to not only 789 00:29:05,574 --> 00:29:06,736 feel with you, 790 00:29:06,736 --> 00:29:08,524 but He wants to give you the comfort 791 00:29:08,524 --> 00:29:10,355 that only He can give. 792 00:29:10,355 --> 00:29:12,337 You know, we try to comfort one another. 793 00:29:12,337 --> 00:29:13,974 We encourage one another. 794 00:29:13,974 --> 00:29:18,023 But only Jesus can comfort us deep down 795 00:29:18,023 --> 00:29:20,675 in those hurts and those losses. 796 00:29:20,675 --> 00:29:24,495 If you're a believer who's facing strong temptation - 797 00:29:24,495 --> 00:29:26,663 and which of us is not? - 798 00:29:26,663 --> 00:29:28,238 What do we learn from Hebrews 4? 799 00:29:28,238 --> 00:29:31,541 That we have a Savior Who 800 00:29:31,541 --> 00:29:34,886 can sympathize with us. 801 00:29:34,886 --> 00:29:36,901 I'll read Hebrews 4:15. 802 00:29:36,901 --> 00:29:42,047 He's the same Savior then as He is now. 803 00:29:42,047 --> 00:29:44,134 The Savior about Whom it says, 804 00:29:44,134 --> 00:29:45,515 "We do not have a high priest 805 00:29:45,515 --> 00:29:47,540 who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, 806 00:29:47,540 --> 00:29:48,919 but One Who has been tempted 807 00:29:48,919 --> 00:29:50,094 in all things as we are, 808 00:29:50,094 --> 00:29:51,010 yet without sin. 809 00:29:51,010 --> 00:29:52,303 Therefore, let us draw near 810 00:29:52,303 --> 00:29:53,089 with confidence 811 00:29:53,089 --> 00:29:54,643 to the throne of grace, 812 00:29:54,643 --> 00:29:56,632 so that we may receive mercy 813 00:29:56,632 --> 00:29:58,306 and find grace to help 814 00:29:58,306 --> 00:29:59,241 in time of need." 815 00:29:59,241 --> 00:30:00,453 Jesus is not only there 816 00:30:00,453 --> 00:30:02,373 to give you sympathy and compassion, 817 00:30:02,373 --> 00:30:04,451 but to give you real help. 818 00:30:04,451 --> 00:30:06,429 And to deliver you from that temptation 819 00:30:06,429 --> 00:30:10,098 and to keep you from falling into it. 820 00:30:10,098 --> 00:30:13,076 So again, receive and embrace 821 00:30:13,076 --> 00:30:16,597 the compassion of Jesus extended to you. 822 00:30:16,597 --> 00:30:18,236 But not only do we need to receive 823 00:30:18,236 --> 00:30:20,578 His compassion toward us, 824 00:30:20,578 --> 00:30:22,592 but as He is our example 825 00:30:22,592 --> 00:30:24,662 in the emotional life, 826 00:30:24,662 --> 00:30:26,544 we need to imitate the emotional life 827 00:30:26,544 --> 00:30:27,947 of Jesus here. 828 00:30:27,947 --> 00:30:31,977 We need to imitate His sorrowful compassion. 829 00:30:31,977 --> 00:30:34,658 Men, we are dealing here 830 00:30:34,658 --> 00:30:38,837 with the more tender emotions, aren't we? 831 00:30:38,837 --> 00:30:40,383 Compassion. 832 00:30:40,383 --> 00:30:42,069 Sensitivity. 833 00:30:42,069 --> 00:30:44,756 The ability to weep with sorrow 834 00:30:44,756 --> 00:30:46,429 over the effects of the fall. 835 00:30:46,429 --> 00:30:47,904 Let me ask you, 836 00:30:47,904 --> 00:30:50,851 does this tender compassion 837 00:30:50,851 --> 00:30:53,820 have a place in your profile 838 00:30:53,820 --> 00:30:55,254 of manhood? 839 00:30:55,254 --> 00:30:58,468 Does it have a place there? 840 00:30:58,468 --> 00:31:02,970 Or, in your mind, is that effeminate stuff? 841 00:31:02,970 --> 00:31:04,423 Real men are tough. 842 00:31:04,423 --> 00:31:06,651 Real men don't feel compassion. 843 00:31:06,651 --> 00:31:08,711 Real men aren't tender. 844 00:31:08,711 --> 00:31:11,673 Real men don't cry. 845 00:31:11,673 --> 00:31:16,129 The real Man - the God-man cried. 846 00:31:16,129 --> 00:31:19,263 He wept quietly. He wailed out loud 847 00:31:19,263 --> 00:31:23,081 in public so other people could see. 848 00:31:23,081 --> 00:31:24,920 And so is that part of your profile 849 00:31:24,920 --> 00:31:26,558 of manhood? 850 00:31:26,558 --> 00:31:29,517 Or do you have some macho idea of manhood 851 00:31:29,517 --> 00:31:31,310 that's drawn not from Jesus, 852 00:31:31,310 --> 00:31:33,088 but from the world? 853 00:31:33,088 --> 00:31:35,602 And if so, I call you to 854 00:31:35,602 --> 00:31:37,395 put to death by crucifixion 855 00:31:37,395 --> 00:31:39,748 that macho view of manhood 856 00:31:39,748 --> 00:31:42,321 under the gaze of the one true Man 857 00:31:42,321 --> 00:31:45,911 Who alone tells us what a true man is. 858 00:31:45,911 --> 00:31:47,474 And Jesus wept. 859 00:31:47,474 --> 00:31:49,644 And Jesus was moved with compassion. 860 00:31:49,644 --> 00:31:52,310 And Jesus had a tender heart 861 00:31:52,310 --> 00:31:54,712 for those who suffer. 862 00:31:54,712 --> 00:31:56,499 Do you look at physical suffering 863 00:31:56,499 --> 00:31:58,179 with sorrow and compassion? 864 00:31:58,179 --> 00:32:00,019 And are you moved to relieve it 865 00:32:00,019 --> 00:32:02,075 in practical ways? 866 00:32:02,075 --> 00:32:03,310 Do you look at mental 867 00:32:03,310 --> 00:32:04,734 and emotional anguish 868 00:32:04,734 --> 00:32:06,315 with sorrow and compassion? 869 00:32:06,315 --> 00:32:08,781 Are you moved to come alongside 870 00:32:08,781 --> 00:32:09,984 to comfort? 871 00:32:09,984 --> 00:32:11,529 Are you concerned as Jesus was 872 00:32:11,529 --> 00:32:13,336 for shepherdless sheep? 873 00:32:13,336 --> 00:32:15,008 When you see Christians 874 00:32:15,008 --> 00:32:17,628 that aren't being shepherded and cared for; 875 00:32:17,628 --> 00:32:19,147 they're not in a good church. 876 00:32:19,147 --> 00:32:21,341 They're not under godly pastors and shepherds 877 00:32:21,341 --> 00:32:22,487 Do you care about them? 878 00:32:22,487 --> 00:32:24,430 You say, well, that's the pastor's job. 879 00:32:24,430 --> 00:32:27,372 Well, yeah, it is the pastor's job, but it's your job as well. 880 00:32:27,372 --> 00:32:29,601 To be concerned and to help 881 00:32:29,601 --> 00:32:31,305 bring these people into your flock 882 00:32:31,305 --> 00:32:32,669 because you're in the church 883 00:32:32,669 --> 00:32:33,994 because it's a good church. 884 00:32:33,994 --> 00:32:35,991 Otherwise, you shouldn't be there, right? 885 00:32:35,991 --> 00:32:37,414 And you've got good pastors. 886 00:32:37,414 --> 00:32:39,713 Are you out looking for others who aren't shepherded? 887 00:32:39,713 --> 00:32:41,125 And bring those unshepherded sheep 888 00:32:41,125 --> 00:32:43,333 in under the care of your godly pastors 889 00:32:43,333 --> 00:32:45,183 and in the safety of your flock? 890 00:32:45,183 --> 00:32:46,950 We need to have the same compassion 891 00:32:46,950 --> 00:32:49,929 of Jesus for unshepherded sheep. 892 00:32:49,929 --> 00:32:51,946 And of course, we need to grow 893 00:32:51,946 --> 00:32:55,020 in our compassion for the lost. 894 00:32:55,020 --> 00:32:57,040 Right? We read Romans 9. 895 00:32:57,040 --> 00:32:59,388 And we read how Paul would rather 896 00:32:59,388 --> 00:33:01,582 be accursed for the sake of his brethren, 897 00:33:01,582 --> 00:33:03,397 and we say, man, I don't get that. 898 00:33:03,397 --> 00:33:04,555 I'm not there yet. 899 00:33:04,555 --> 00:33:06,689 But we want to be moving in that direction 900 00:33:06,689 --> 00:33:08,713 and we want to have hearts that are broken 901 00:33:08,713 --> 00:33:11,261 and grieved over the lost around us 902 00:33:11,261 --> 00:33:14,081 and that weep inwardly if not outwardly 903 00:33:14,081 --> 00:33:15,227 for those who are lost. 904 00:33:15,227 --> 00:33:16,600 And then, take measures 905 00:33:16,600 --> 00:33:18,086 to do something about it 906 00:33:18,086 --> 00:33:20,687 by telling them the Gospel. 907 00:33:20,687 --> 00:33:23,379 Jesus didn't just weep over them, 908 00:33:23,379 --> 00:33:25,536 He presented Himself and offered Himself 909 00:33:25,536 --> 00:33:27,530 as the Good Shepherd. 910 00:33:27,530 --> 00:33:29,790 Some came and some would not. 911 00:33:29,790 --> 00:33:31,983 And we need to offer the Good Shepherd. 912 00:33:31,983 --> 00:33:33,181 Some will refuse, 913 00:33:33,181 --> 00:33:34,386 but some will come. 914 00:33:34,386 --> 00:33:38,859 Don't stop sowing the seed very broadly. 915 00:33:38,859 --> 00:33:43,714 Well, again these are the tender emotions, men. 916 00:33:43,714 --> 00:33:46,402 How are you doing with these as a man 917 00:33:46,402 --> 00:33:48,010 or as a boy? 918 00:33:48,010 --> 00:33:50,380 Are you not ashamed to cry out loud 919 00:33:50,380 --> 00:33:54,368 or the weep silently even in public? 920 00:33:54,368 --> 00:33:56,279 It may be that you need more 921 00:33:56,279 --> 00:33:58,131 of the sorrowful compassion 922 00:33:58,131 --> 00:33:59,287 of your Lord Jesus. 923 00:33:59,287 --> 00:34:01,079 Now you may need more of His anger. 924 00:34:01,079 --> 00:34:03,141 We're going to deal with that tomorrow. 925 00:34:03,141 --> 00:34:04,409 Perfect symmetry in Jesus. 926 00:34:04,409 --> 00:34:06,347 We're going to get to that. 927 00:34:06,347 --> 00:34:07,870 But right now, we're on 928 00:34:07,870 --> 00:34:09,997 the compassion of Jesus. 929 00:34:09,997 --> 00:34:11,479 Do you need more 930 00:34:11,479 --> 00:34:14,092 of the sorrowful compassion of the Lord Jesus? 931 00:34:14,092 --> 00:34:17,614 More tenderness? 932 00:34:17,614 --> 00:34:20,226 It will help you as a husband. 933 00:34:20,226 --> 00:34:22,895 You're called to live in an understanding way. 934 00:34:22,895 --> 00:34:24,738 1 Peter 3:7 kata gnosin - 935 00:34:24,738 --> 00:34:27,333 according to knowledge with your wife. 936 00:34:27,333 --> 00:34:29,889 Men, are you aware 937 00:34:29,889 --> 00:34:33,261 that your wife is not nearly as impressed 938 00:34:33,261 --> 00:34:36,461 with your biceps and your broad shoulders 939 00:34:36,461 --> 00:34:38,776 and your six-pack abs, 940 00:34:38,776 --> 00:34:40,809 if anybody has them, 941 00:34:40,809 --> 00:34:43,322 as you are with her feminine curves. 942 00:34:43,322 --> 00:34:44,700 I mean, that's marriage 101. 943 00:34:44,700 --> 00:34:46,981 Do you know that? Do you get that? 944 00:34:46,981 --> 00:34:48,185 I've been working out 945 00:34:48,185 --> 00:34:51,411 for my whole married life and before 946 00:34:51,411 --> 00:34:53,754 to keep my body hard. 947 00:34:53,754 --> 00:34:55,920 Now, at this age, it's just maintenance. 948 00:34:55,920 --> 00:34:57,787 I'm not gaining anything. 949 00:34:57,787 --> 00:35:00,196 I don't think there's once 950 00:35:00,196 --> 00:35:03,410 in 35 years that my wife has said, 951 00:35:03,410 --> 00:35:06,688 boy, I like those biceps. 952 00:35:06,688 --> 00:35:10,003 Boy, I like those abs. 953 00:35:10,003 --> 00:35:12,214 I think she appreciates the fact 954 00:35:12,214 --> 00:35:13,583 that I'm keeping in shape. 955 00:35:13,583 --> 00:35:14,955 She wants to keep me around. 956 00:35:14,955 --> 00:35:16,283 She wants to keep me alive. 957 00:35:16,283 --> 00:35:17,811 But sometimes it frustrates me. 958 00:35:17,811 --> 00:35:18,611 Like I work out. 959 00:35:18,611 --> 00:35:20,597 Honey, don't you appreciate that? 960 00:35:20,597 --> 00:35:22,665 But what does she want? 961 00:35:22,665 --> 00:35:27,177 What turns her on is not your Greek god body, 962 00:35:27,177 --> 00:35:29,179 it's your tender heart. 963 00:35:29,179 --> 00:35:31,815 And if it's not going so good in the bedroom, men, 964 00:35:31,815 --> 00:35:33,940 I speak discreetly for the mixed audience, 965 00:35:33,940 --> 00:35:36,103 that's the first place to ask. 966 00:35:36,103 --> 00:35:37,746 How am I treating her? 967 00:35:37,746 --> 00:35:40,093 Am I being tender and sensitive? 968 00:35:40,093 --> 00:35:42,288 It begins at the breakfast table. 969 00:35:42,288 --> 00:35:44,612 Not in the bedroom at night, right? 970 00:35:44,612 --> 00:35:47,096 So, I tell you, to help your marriage 971 00:35:47,096 --> 00:35:50,408 to have more of the compassion of Jesus. 972 00:35:50,408 --> 00:35:53,085 It will help you as a father as well. 973 00:35:53,085 --> 00:35:54,621 You are told not to provoke 974 00:35:54,621 --> 00:35:56,743 your children to anger. 975 00:35:56,743 --> 00:35:59,441 Colossians says don't exasperate them. 976 00:35:59,441 --> 00:36:01,083 I work to evangelize the Amish, 977 00:36:01,083 --> 00:36:03,350 and I've done that for twelve years. 978 00:36:03,350 --> 00:36:05,413 Right now, on Monday nights, 979 00:36:05,413 --> 00:36:09,672 I'm in a study - a DVD series - 980 00:36:09,672 --> 00:36:11,216 I'm not showing it, 981 00:36:11,216 --> 00:36:15,946 but it's on the quest for authentic manhood. 982 00:36:15,946 --> 00:36:17,553 The last two years, 983 00:36:17,553 --> 00:36:20,746 we have gotten over a hundred Amish men 984 00:36:20,746 --> 00:36:22,464 to show up for this thing. 985 00:36:22,464 --> 00:36:24,391 And they're getting the Gospel. 986 00:36:24,391 --> 00:36:25,657 And I'm privileged to lead 987 00:36:25,657 --> 00:36:27,215 a little small discussion group. 988 00:36:27,215 --> 00:36:29,260 We break into groups after showing it. 989 00:36:29,260 --> 00:36:30,218 And you know what? 990 00:36:30,218 --> 00:36:33,076 Those Amish young men are starved 991 00:36:33,076 --> 00:36:35,572 for their father's attention. 992 00:36:35,572 --> 00:36:37,153 A typical phrase is, 993 00:36:37,153 --> 00:36:40,431 "My dad is there, but he's not there." 994 00:36:40,431 --> 00:36:42,076 The Amish are great role models 995 00:36:42,076 --> 00:36:43,288 when it comes to work. 996 00:36:43,288 --> 00:36:44,536 They are workaholics. 997 00:36:44,536 --> 00:36:46,205 Your barn burns down, 998 00:36:46,205 --> 00:36:49,185 they'll rebuild it in three days. 999 00:36:49,185 --> 00:36:51,466 And they're good at apprenticing. 1000 00:36:51,466 --> 00:36:54,149 But they are so unconnected to their sons. 1001 00:36:54,149 --> 00:36:56,461 And that's why a hundred Amish men 1002 00:36:56,461 --> 00:36:58,567 are coming out to learn what is a true man. 1003 00:36:58,567 --> 00:37:00,046 Because they haven't learned it 1004 00:37:00,046 --> 00:37:01,278 from their father. 1005 00:37:01,278 --> 00:37:02,720 They learn how to work. 1006 00:37:02,720 --> 00:37:04,250 But they don't know how to live. 1007 00:37:04,250 --> 00:37:05,676 They don't know how to relate, 1008 00:37:05,676 --> 00:37:07,200 because their fathers are so 1009 00:37:07,200 --> 00:37:09,843 emotionally disconnected from them. 1010 00:37:09,843 --> 00:37:12,690 And some of them are provoked to anger. 1011 00:37:12,690 --> 00:37:14,550 And others are exasperated. 1012 00:37:14,550 --> 00:37:16,355 The wind has been taken out 1013 00:37:16,355 --> 00:37:17,887 of their sails. 1014 00:37:17,887 --> 00:37:20,324 And for you and I to become 1015 00:37:20,324 --> 00:37:24,449 a more compassionate man as Jesus, 1016 00:37:24,449 --> 00:37:28,035 I believe it will help you as a father 1017 00:37:28,035 --> 00:37:29,933 relating to your sons. 1018 00:37:29,933 --> 00:37:32,251 So men, let us look to grow 1019 00:37:32,251 --> 00:37:34,768 in our heart of compassion 1020 00:37:34,768 --> 00:37:36,699 for the hurts we see around us - 1021 00:37:36,699 --> 00:37:39,549 to weep inwardly and at times outwardly; 1022 00:37:39,549 --> 00:37:43,073 to learn to manifest what we feel 1023 00:37:43,073 --> 00:37:46,209 outwardly as Jesus did. 1024 00:37:46,209 --> 00:37:47,814 How is this going to come about? 1025 00:37:47,814 --> 00:37:50,347 Again, men, in all of this, 1026 00:37:50,347 --> 00:37:52,642 there is no silver bullet. 1027 00:37:52,642 --> 00:37:54,499 There is no formula. 1028 00:37:54,499 --> 00:37:58,028 It's again the usual means of grace. 1029 00:37:58,028 --> 00:38:00,044 As we feed upon the Word of God, 1030 00:38:00,044 --> 00:38:02,804 take a lot of good looks at Jesus. 1031 00:38:02,804 --> 00:38:06,133 Don't stray too far from the Gospels 1032 00:38:06,133 --> 00:38:07,906 where you're reading about Jesus 1033 00:38:07,906 --> 00:38:10,201 and seeing His great heart manifested. 1034 00:38:10,201 --> 00:38:12,441 I just combed the Gospels 1035 00:38:12,441 --> 00:38:14,274 looking for the emotions of Jesus, 1036 00:38:14,274 --> 00:38:16,743 and it had a good impact on me. 1037 00:38:16,743 --> 00:38:18,835 And the compassion of Jesus 1038 00:38:18,835 --> 00:38:20,974 is the most oft mentioned emotion. 1039 00:38:20,974 --> 00:38:22,732 And theologians will tell you that. 1040 00:38:22,732 --> 00:38:24,592 It is the most frequently mentioned 1041 00:38:24,592 --> 00:38:26,209 emotion of Jesus. 1042 00:38:26,209 --> 00:38:27,793 And it just hits you when you see 1043 00:38:27,793 --> 00:38:29,315 page after page, 1044 00:38:29,315 --> 00:38:30,593 Jesus being moved, 1045 00:38:30,593 --> 00:38:31,790 and willingly going out 1046 00:38:31,790 --> 00:38:33,912 and tending to people's needs. 1047 00:38:33,912 --> 00:38:35,396 Moved with compassion. 1048 00:38:35,396 --> 00:38:37,024 Feed yourself on Jesus. 1049 00:38:37,024 --> 00:38:38,662 Behold Jesus 1050 00:38:38,662 --> 00:38:40,871 with a view to becoming like Him. 1051 00:38:40,871 --> 00:38:42,993 And then give yourself to prayer. 1052 00:38:42,993 --> 00:38:44,690 Pray asking God to make you more 1053 00:38:44,690 --> 00:38:46,403 like His compassionate Son 1054 00:38:46,403 --> 00:38:47,573 in your emotions. 1055 00:38:47,573 --> 00:38:50,190 Confess to God your coldness of heart, 1056 00:38:50,190 --> 00:38:52,021 your unlikeness to your Savior 1057 00:38:52,021 --> 00:38:53,549 in this area of compassion. 1058 00:38:53,549 --> 00:38:57,119 Repent of that emotional disobedience. 1059 00:38:57,119 --> 00:38:58,417 Ask God to give you 1060 00:38:58,417 --> 00:38:59,999 more of a godly sorrow 1061 00:38:59,999 --> 00:39:01,377 and compassion for the things 1062 00:39:01,377 --> 00:39:03,497 that move His heart. 1063 00:39:03,497 --> 00:39:06,357 Ask Him to break up the stony ground 1064 00:39:06,357 --> 00:39:08,397 of an uncompassionate heart 1065 00:39:08,397 --> 00:39:11,461 that you might feel as He feels. 1066 00:39:11,461 --> 00:39:13,845 Let's pray. 1067 00:39:13,845 --> 00:39:19,278 Lord Jesus, again, we marvel at Your beauty. 1068 00:39:19,278 --> 00:39:20,485 And how we thank You 1069 00:39:20,485 --> 00:39:24,863 for Your heart of tender compassion. 1070 00:39:24,863 --> 00:39:27,928 And we thank You for the greatest manifestation of it. 1071 00:39:27,928 --> 00:39:30,020 That You went through the agony 1072 00:39:30,020 --> 00:39:33,397 of the cross to bear in Your own body 1073 00:39:33,397 --> 00:39:36,318 our sins and our sorrows, 1074 00:39:36,318 --> 00:39:37,858 that we might be spared 1075 00:39:37,858 --> 00:39:40,087 everlasting sorrow in hell, 1076 00:39:40,087 --> 00:39:43,594 and know only everlasting happiness. 1077 00:39:43,594 --> 00:39:46,908 Jesus, help everyone here to receive 1078 00:39:46,908 --> 00:39:49,434 Your compassionate care for them, 1079 00:39:49,434 --> 00:39:51,588 but then help us who are Yours 1080 00:39:51,588 --> 00:39:53,196 to imitate You; 1081 00:39:53,196 --> 00:39:55,443 to grow into Your likeness 1082 00:39:55,443 --> 00:39:59,205 in this area of compassion. 1083 00:39:59,205 --> 00:40:01,674 We pray for Your glory's sake, 1084 00:40:01,674 --> 00:40:02,946 and in Your name, 1085 00:40:02,946 --> 00:40:04,622 Amen.