A funeral procession was coming out as Jesus approached the village gate. The young man who had died was a widow’s only son, and a large crowd from the village was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart overflowed with compassion. -Luke 7:12-13 NLT
I love, love, LOVE this view of Jesus. During hard times, it is always a tremendous encouragement.
For me, I just love the language and visual that “his heart overflowed with compassion” brings to mind. I think it’s probably safe to say that Jesus’ heart could easily be filled with a ton of compassion at any time, but I love that in this instance, his heart just overflowed. He had so much love and compassion for this woman that his heart couldn’t even contain it, it overflowed. What an incredible picture of God’s great love for us.
I just love that we get the opportunity to have a relationship with the sustainer of the universe. That he isn’t a selfish tyrant, or some terrible bully. But that he stepped off the throne, came down to earth to live among us. To experience life exactly as we experience it. To know the joys, and the pains. To have friends and to lose them. To love us so much, that when sad things happen, his heart overflows with compassion towards us.
There is no need to worry. No need to be fearful for what tomorrow brings. It could be utter calamity. But Christ’s heart will still overflow with compassion. Oh, how he loves us!