For Compassion & Against Judgmentalism
Let’s be real: we’ve all been on the receiving end of harsh judgment. You know, those moments where it feels like someone took one look at your mess and decided you weren’t worth the time of day. It stings, doesn’t it?
Now, flip it.
Think about a time when someone saw past all that—past the rough edges, the mistakes, and really showed up for you. There’s nothing quite like feeling truly seen and loved, especially when you know you didn’t earn it.
Jesus was for Compassion, and against judgmentalism.
Let’s take a closer look at compassion together…
Jesus was for Compassion
Alright… so I’m going to get a little nerdy for about 2 paragraphs to help us see something really cool.
When we read the Christian Scripture, we have to keep in mind that the words we read were not originally written in English. If you’re someone who speaks a second language, you’ve likely experienced that not every word has a perfect translation that can capture the true essence of a word, an important example of this is the word splagchnizomai.
This is one of the words that shows up in our bibles as “compassion.”
2 things we need to know about this Greek word.
It’s a verb (compassion in English is typically used as a Noun.) Compassion is an action.
The root of the word has to do with your internal organs- your “inward parts.” The most fundamental parts of yourself.
A great definition is: to be moved in the inward parts.
This word only show up in the gospels, and is always connected to Jesus.
So, what does compassion LOOK like?
We find a beautiful example in the Gospel of Matthew immediately after Jesus has just found out his cousin has been executed.
Matthew 14:13-14
As soon as Jesus heard the news, he left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot from many towns. Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
Compassion is not sitting on the sidelines feeling sorry for someone, compassion requires action.
Jesus shows his compassion even though…
He wanted to be alone
He was tired
He was mourning.
True compassion is rooted in your inner parts, not in external circumstances.
Throughout Jesus life and ministry we see his compassion extend beyond:
Convenience
Prejudice
Invitation
Grudges
Disagreement
Public Opinion
Self Preservation
Jesus was FOR compassion.
We’ll take a look at what this looks like for each of us down further, but first, let’s look at something Jesus was against.
Jesus was Against Judgmentalism
Okay, let’s get real….
Being judgemental feels way too satisfying.
If you don’t have anything nice to say, come sit by me!
-Clairee Belcher
Let’s be clear, judgment and judgmentalism are different things all together.
Judgement —— Judgmentalism
Objective —— Subjective
Sets a Standard —— Critical and Unhelpful
Considers the Sum —— Jumps to Conclusions
Corrects + Redeems + Lifts Up —— Pushes Down
Requires Wisdom + Discernment —— Unreflective and Impulsive
Righteous —— Self Righteous
Jesus didn’t mince words when it comes to judgmentalism:
Matthew 7:2
“For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.”
It’s like He’s holding up a mirror and asking, “Are you really ready to be measured by the same standard you’re using on everyone else?”
Most days, I’d rather pass on that.
In the story of the woman caught in adultery, we see a powerful example of this when religious leaders bring her before Jesus, demanding that she be stoned to death.This is Jesus response:
John 8:7
…“All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”
Not a single stone was thrown. Jesus holds up a mirror to these men who flexed their status at every opportunity and they had no legs to stand on. One by one those who had brought her left.
John 8:10
Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”
“No, Lord,” she said.
And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”
If we can get really honest with ourselves… we have all picked up stones. We have all condemned people in our hearts and minds.
Judgmentalism makes us feel like we have the right to pick up a stone.
We don’t.
Followers of Jesus, we need to put our stones down.
It’s the Holy Spirit’s job to convict, God’s job to Judge and my Job to Love.
-Billy Graham
Final application
So how do we live this out today? Let’s start with compassion.
I know for certain compassion isn’t my factory default setting— I’m much better at standing on the sidelines feeling sorry for someone than I am stepping in and taking action- but I also know that I’m called to be like Jesus to the best of my ability.
So maybe today our first step is to get off the sidelines. When Jesus showed compassion it was almost always to someone standing right in front of him. We all have people right in front of us each day— let’s start there.
When you feel the tug of compassion, take action.
Now let’s think about judgmentalism- and consider Jesus words to the judgmental:
John 8:7
…“All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”
Put your stone down.
Jesus was For Compassion and Against Judgmentalism- let’s follow his lead.
Next week
Next week we’re digging into Truth and Deception - it’s a good one!
See you next week!
Examples of Jesus Showing Compassion:
The lost (Matthew 9:36)
The Hungry (Matthew 15:32)
The Blind (Matthew 20:34)
The Ill (Mark 1:41)
The spiritually opressed (Matthew 9:22)
The mourning (Luke 7:13)
The abused (Luke 10:33)
The rebellious (Luke 15:20)
