“When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd [waiting], and He was moved with compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd [lacking guidance]; and He began to teach them many things. 35When the day was nearly gone, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is an isolated place, and it is already late; 36send the crowds away so that they may go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” 37But He replied, “You give them something to eat!” And they asked Him, “Shall we go and buy 200 denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” Mark 6:35-37 AMP

Here we have a clear picture of the responsibility of the disciple of Christ! Jesus seeing the crowd gathered was “moved with compassion” for them as they appeared as sheep without a shepherd! The response to this was to begin to teach them! If you read the preceding verses Jesus has just learned that His cousin John was executed by the authorities. He wanted and needed to go an find a place to grieve but instead He counts the needs of the lost ahead of His own comfort. 

The Greek word translated “moved to compassion” is the word meaning the “center of a person’s being; The place of action’s motivation; a place from which strength emanates.” Practically speaking it the place from which our motivation comes from. The Apostle Paul wrote the church at Philippi,

Have this same attitude in yourselves which was in Christ Jesus [look to Him as your example in selfless humility], Philippians 2:5 AMP

Jesus did not focus on His own need but rather the need of those who were lost in a “deserted place.” Living without God is living in a deserted place. These people desperately needed to hear the Word of the Lord and Jesus was not going to let His emotions get in the way of His mission! When the disciples realized that the people were hungry, the implored Jesus to meet there need. His response? “You feed them!” We all have a responsibility to “feed the hungry.” The great command of the Gospel is clear,

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16He who has believed [in Me] and has been baptized will be saved [from the penalty of God’s wrath and judgment]; but he who has not believed will be condemned. 17These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak in new tongues; 18they will pick up serpents, and if they drink anything deadly, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.” Matthew 16:15-18 AMP

Who me? Cast out demons? Lay hands on the sick? Speak in new tongues? Who am I Lord? Those are the things that only You can do! I am just a sinner saved by grace! In the book of Acts, Peter is recounting an experience of the work of the Holy Spirit among the Gentiles.

“After a long debate, Peter got up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the message of the gospel and believe. 8And God, who knows and understands the heart, testified to them, giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; 9and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith [in Jesus].”

It is not our great understanding or righteous living that brings about the power of God, it is the Holy Spirit who confirms the message by great displays of power! Of course, we are called to holiness and right living but we in and of ourselves do not possess this kind of power in and of ourselves. We do however have the Holy Spirit, Who, whenever possess all of us, can unleash the same power that raised Christ from the dead! 

Let me ask you, are you “moved to action” when you see the lost and sinners of this world? Have you come to the place to say to the Lord, “not my will but Thy will be done?” Are you working out your salvation with fear and trembling? The Master is calling “Who will go for Us? Will you answer be, “Here I am Lord, send me? Have a blessed day. Pastor Ken