What does it mean to have Godly compassion for others? What does it look like? How does one guard against getting caught up in "feeling sorry" for others and still demonstrate a loving Christ like heart for them?
God bless
mj

HI MJ, You will not always get it right, but it is good to err on the side of comapssion. An example for me is giving money to the homeless or pan handler. I have been critizised for doing it by brothers who plainly told me that they would never give money to these people as they will only buy drugs or booze with it. Now, that may be so, but the truth is I really dont know. A further truth is that the steps of a righteous man are ordered of God. So when I have these encounters, I know in my heart that there but for the grace of God am I. Its maybe only $5 or $10 but I probed my accusers a little further. They said " why should I give these people my hard earned money, they dont deserve it." I felt the Holy Spirit prod me to say " did you deserve your salvation?. Were you not still in your sins and did not Jesus take you just as you were, pursue you and woo you while you were like filthy rags?"
So, we got over the deserve question. I guess my point is that we never know if we entertain angels unawares. You can never love too much, stay in love and let the Lord lead us and guide us. He will direct us. God can use the loving heart, He can do nothing with the heart that will not love............bro Frank

Mary, I find your question to be such a coincidence because I've wrestled with this question much.

All I can relate it to is raising children. How it hurts the good parent's hearts to have to reprimand in any way, and that's because they love their children more than life itself.
I believe when we love with His love, that it's actually like physical pain. Pain to be away from them. Pain when concerned about them. Pain to not try to help in any way possible. Pain because we want the very best for them and when fear grips our hearts because we see them slipping off into dangerous territories, it's difficult to be gentle and that it literally hurts us more than it hurts them at times to have to confront them.
A "Christ like heart" is not always gentle and that's what bothers us the most. We want things to always be soft, but love looks beyond being loved in return, to what's best for the people that we truly love with His love. How we appear to them doesn't matter anymore, only that we know that what we need to do or say is in the will of GOD and His Word and may be the very actions that saves them from the dangerous direction that they're going in. But oh, how it hurts us. Having a parent's heart extends to all that we come in contact with, because we have prayed to have His Heart and His is a Father's heart and also a Mother's heart that wants to bring all under His wings as a mother hen gathers her chicks.
I watched as a mother cat had to wean her 8 week old kittens. When her kittens needed to be weaned by her, she had to bite them - as good as a mother as she was - to get them to not nurse anymore. My boy cat was so hurt by that one bite that he never snuggled up to her again. That broke her heart because she was one of the best mother cats I'd ever seen, but if she hadn't weaned him - what would have happened?
How it hurts GOD's heart as well when He must give a hard word to us or any type of pruning of our branches so that we'll produce even the more fruit or even when chastisement is necessary.
As parents, we may know that correction is and was needed, but how quickly do we want to go and comfort again - but we may do more harm than good, if we comfort before the lesson was learned by our child. Oh, to be fully led by His Spirit.
Loving with His love hurts us inside. It's almost more than we feel that our humanity can contain, but it doesn't leave us -- His fruit remains, if it is indeed 'His'.

The only answer that I know of on earth that helps us to have the discernment to know "human compassion" from His, is to be filled with His Word and laid prostrate in dependence upon His Spirit, begging for mercy that we may know the difference between that 'self' type of feeling sorry and His mercy for the person, given in the right timing and in a way that even we may not expect to give.
I believe within myself that the self-type of sympathy is just that ... 'self' not wanting to look bad and only His Word and Spirit can show us the difference, if we can walk in both.

Thank you for bringing this up. We're all facing these type issues daily and need prayer.

by Jesus-is-GOD on 2012/2/17 18:32:51

it's difficult to be gentle and that it literally hurts us more than it hurts them at times to have to confront them.
A "Christ like heart" is not always gentle and that's what bothers us the most. We want things to always be soft, but love looks beyond being loved in return, to what's best for the people that we truly love with His love. How we appear to them doesn't matter anymore, only that we know that what we need to do or say is in the will of GOD and His Word and may be the very actions that saves them from the dangerous direction that they're going in.

__________________

Thank you J.I.G. for sharing this. I am beginning to see and learn this truth myself. Sometimes having to speak truth to another is a greater demonstration of HIS love then saying nothing at all. I know that this is not something I can do on my own though. It is difficult as you have said to be sure one must be walking moment by moment with the LORD and seeking to hear HIS voice. I know on many occasions I have taken a cowardly way and am seeing that by saying nothing I have given the impression of approval instead of pointing them toward JESUS. IT weighs heavy on my heart...

God bless
mary