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The Cost of Compassion 10/31/07 |
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But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had
compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. |
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The word sacrifice is the costliest
word in the biblical lexicon, especially when it comes to the price God
paid—allowing His Son to be sacrificed for our sins. Sacrifice means to
offer up something of one's own—to relinquish ownership, to give it up for a
higher purpose or calling. But there is another word that has a high price
attached to it, one that gets less attention than sacrifice. The cost of compassion, while perhaps not as high as sacrifice, is nonetheless high—as all compassionate people can attest. Take the father of the prodigal son in Jesus' parable, for instance (Luke 15:11-32). When the rebellious son returned home after a period of profligate living, the father welcomed him home with compassion. What price did he pay for his compassion? How about the sleepless nights that he agonized over the fate of his son? Or the forgiveness he extended? Or the large sum of money that the son wasted in riotous living? Compassion's price is the loss of whatever we could be doing for ourselves instead of spending ourselves on another. Keep your compassion account balanced, ready to spend when needed. Compassion will cure more sins than condemnation. Henry Ward Beecher |