When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things. (Mark 6:34)
I was exhorted by this account. Note the order in this passage: The compassion of Christ precedes his desire to teach. There is a great difference between loving teaching for teaching's sake and loving people. The former finds his happiness in a well-formed discourse. If the content is delivered smoothly in a well-order homily, he feels he has been successful. Not so with Christ. He is constrained by the burden of love to shepherd souls. He sees the people being "destroyed because of a lack of knowledge." Delivering a "good" sermon is the last thing on His mind. He is after souls, and He refuses to rest or relent until all of the sheep are safe in the fold. Paul sums this up in Colossians 1:28. "We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ" (emphasis mine). I'm praying for more reality in this.
Thoughts on the Way Home
