He Was Moved With Compassion

‘But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.’

Matthew 9:36 (King James Version)

It’s awesome how five simple words of a language can change a person. Who ever thought that five words could articulate what it means to be human? What human is to look like on the Earth… pretty amazing right?

Over the past few months these five words have been laid on my heart. Whether I am walking down the street, socialising with family and friends, writing, eating, sleeping; whatever it is that I am doing, these five words whisper to my spirit and circulate my mind.

What captivates me about them is that Jesus was moved with compassion. He wasn’t moved BY it but He was moved WITH it. Compassion was Him, built in Him; innate. God has been challenging me to move with and not by compassion, and it is this which I would like to share with you today.

If you know me then you will know that I am a lover of words and meanings. The key word that sticks out to me within these five words is with, which simply means, ‘accompanied by, characterised by, or having’ (Dictionary.com). Jesus functioned with the power of perceiving by touch, His whole being (EVERYTHING in Him) was compassion – ‘a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering’ (Dictionary.com).

Jesus’ compassion moved beyond what we know as our human emotions. He perceived (to become aware, discern) and desired (to wish or long for, request) change for others with His whole being. It was this characteristic in Him that allowed Him to move from one place to another to bring change, to move from one person to another to bring change, to be the sacrifice and die for us to bring change; ultimately to bring reconciliation (to cause a person to accept or be resigned to something not desired, restore – Dictionary.com). WOW, what love is this?

Jesus wasn’t moved by compassion because to be moved by something is not merely enough to bring a consistent, everlasting, internal change for yourself or another. The word by means, ‘to the extent or amount of, within the extent or period of’ (Dictionary.com). This means that there is a limitation when we are moved by something or someone, rather than moved with something or someone. It will only last a certain amount of time because it is not something that is built within our nature.

As humans we all have moments where we operate in our own strength when it should be the Lord’s strength, grace, and mercy we walk and operate in (Matthew 10:8, 2Corinthians 12:9). Our own forgiveness, tolerance, and grace towards people and situations can run slim because we are limited, which is why it is by the Lord’s that we must go in (Zechariah 4:6).  

In Luke 6:36 it reads, ‘You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate’ (New Living Translation). We are commanded; it being an absolute, to be compassionate. As we are to be it, it must be built within us (our minds and hearts), as it must last and not tarry only for a season. We must allow the Holy Spirit to build compassion in our hearts and minds. We always talk about renewing our minds (Romans 12:2), but we forget that we also need God to work on our hearts (Luke 6:45, Proverbs 4:23, Proverbs 21:2). God said that He would give us a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26), but we must partner with the Holy Spirit to continually pursue and keep it renewed (Psalm 51:10, Romans 2:29). The heart is important, and before we can touch others we must be touched in heart too. 

So, considering all of this: Are you moved with or by compassion? What is the state of your heart today? Question yourself and invite God in… HE LONGS TO BRING YOU CHANGE; to restore you, to bring a better, everlasting change. It’s never too late, so let’s assess, change, and move forward in His grace together as one; the way we were created to.

BY STACEY SPENCER

Let Your Will Be Done

'I have glorified you on the Earth: I have finished the work which you gave me to do’ (John 17:4). This is the scripture I received after hearing myself pray, ‘Let your will be done in me as it was in Christ Jesus’.

For me, the best moments of prayer are hearing God speak through you in English, not knowing what’s coming but being blown away as it comes revealing that it hasn’t been pre-conceived by you; in fact, in that moment my mind was saying, ‘that’s not the scripture Riss!’ But when God speaks you feel the substance of His words and I am learning that when He speaks its always an invitation to walk into something new.

I was seeking simplicity and as always, God the Father points to His beloved Son. The beauty of their relationship wonderfully illustrated through love, sacrifice and dependency. Let Your will be done in me as it was in Christ Jesus. We have been endued with the power to choose and even when we try to seek an alternative way out, through Jesus we find the nevertheless grace.

Nevertheless, not my will but Your will be done. Nevertheless, my grace is sufficient for you because in your weakness I am strong. I am afraid; nevertheless, if I perish I perish. In the Son, all eventualities have been covered and every path He leads you on, He desires to walk with you. Choose to do nothing without Him, choose to wholly abide, choose to surrender your heart. Let the will of the Father be done in you as it was in Jesus.

What’s your something new in this season? What is God inviting you into? What word of His is He asking you to stand on?

BY LARISSA MATTHEWS

He Knows My Name

Hey guys, it’s Stephen… Yeah I know, it’s been a while!! I hope you’ve all been well.

Here at New Nation Destiny Centre church, we have some great revelatory truths and some equally challenging ones; but truths all the same. One Sunday, our Pastor, Apostle Michael DaCosta, spoke to us about the woman with the alabaster box (Luke 7:36-50), and although I’ve heard this story taught and preached hundreds of times, it was the way that our pastor pointed out something I hadn’t considered.

It wasn’t the obvious details that everyone knows about the story; you know, the example Jesus gave to Simon (the Pharisee), the anointing of Jesus’ feet, the woman being forgiven. No, it was the fact that what Simon was THINKING about that was wrong with this whole situation; verse 39 (KJV) says, “he spake within himself”, meaning he didn’t verbally say anything audible for anyone to hear. And yet, here comes Jesus and ANSWERS Simon’s thoughts! Wow!!

Put yourself in Simon’s shoes for a minute… What on Earth did he think Jesus wanted to say to him? Certainly not the very thing he was thinking about the woman who was a sinner!! But Jesus heard exactly what he was thinking and it needed to be addressed. This brings me to the title of this blog, “He Knows My Name”.

Now, I think I remember saying in a previous blog that God is omniscient, the all-knowing God! So, He doesn’t just know my name, He knows EVERYTHING about me, you and everyone else! So even when we choose not to talk to God, please know that He already knows all that we go through. I know… I hear you asking, “Stephen, if He already knows everything I’m going to say then why do I need to communicate with God?” That’s easy; God wants a relationship with us. He gave us free-will to do as we desire within the remit of His ultimate will for us. But He wants us to open up to Him willingly, to talk to Him like we would our friends and family. Not for His benefit, but ours! God is GOD!! There is nothing that we could ever give Him that He; in His infinite wisdom, power and authority, could gain from.

Hearing this word made me very uneasy at first, but I soon realised how important it is for me to keep a clear channel of communication with the Father. Having to hear, “Stephen, I have something to say to you…” has its pros and cons. It means that God is still speaking to me regardless but it also means that my thoughts can be heard as loud as thunder in a church hall. My thoughts have to be of a nature that is Christ-like, and not carnal. My thoughts; if misdirected, can turn into negative actions and manifest into undesirable behaviours. It’s only by His grace that we keep grounded but we cannot continue to operate from grace. Grace is the fail-safe, the “press button in case of emergency”, the back up plan, if you will. And with God, His grace is always there by the truckload. But in order to be who He called us to be, we have to walk in the same power and authority that Christ exuded every day.

Don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying this isn’t a hard lifestyle to keep up. Trust me, let me be the first to say I struggle a lot with speaking to God and having positive thoughts. With all of the curveballs that life throws at me, I often drop the bat, run and hide in the bleachers. But sometimes, not swinging is not the same as giving up; for some of us, it might mean that we need to take a time out to re-strategise, change the size of the bat or choose a more comfortable stance. And in our Christian walk, we need to do just that; change things up a bit: adjust our prayer life, tweak how we study God’s word or spend more time with our brothers and sisters in the faith. The more open we can be about our current state, the easier it is to begin the transformation process. And guess what? The best part is that God never changes; He will still be the God who knows your name, knows your past, present and future, knows when you cry, and knows when you need Him the most.

Truth be told, we won’t always get it right. But we should endeavour to try. That’s all the Father would have us do. And I hope that with the sincerity of our hearts, we give Him all we have. Peace be upon us all and the love of Christ to all who read this.

BY STEPHEN MCCORMACK