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22 August 2017
ENCOURAGEMENT
Good News - Broward Edition
Cosmic Compassion
Tommy Boland
Good News
“Record my misery; list my
tears on your scroll – are they
not in your record?” (Psalm
56:8).
How do you see God? Sad-
ly, far too many of us see Him
as some distant deity, a “blind
watchmaker,” disengaged from
His creation and uninterested in
them individually. Yet this verse
makes it crystal clear that noth-
ing could be further from the
truth. Several of the best Bible
translations render the middle
section of Psalm 56:8, “Put my
tears in your bottle.” Now, how is
that for cosmic compassion?!
How blessed we are to have
a God who is not like some cos-
mic computer that cannot relate
to us personally, emotionally
and spiritually. Sure, a cosmic
computer could provide us with
some incredible information,
but it would be completely in-
capable of connecting with us
at a heart level, which is the lev-
el where we need connection
most.
Sympathetic
The author of the letter to
the Hebrews offers us this won-
derful encouragement: “We
do not have a high priest who
is unable to sympathize with
our weaknesses, but we have
one who has been tempted in
every way, just as we are — yet
was without sin. Let us then ap-
proach the throne of grace with
confidence, so that we may re-
ceive mercy and find grace to
help us in our time of need” (He-
brews 4:15-16).
David knew this truth. He
knew it when he was facing the
giant Goliath; he knew it when
he was hounded by the ungod-
ly king Saul. David also knew
God’s cosmic compassion when
he was confronted by the proph-
et Nathan. To be sure, God sent
Nathan to rebuke David for his
terrible sin with Bathsheba and
against her husband. But that
conviction did not come with-
out God’s love; in fact, it was
God’s compassion, mercy and
grace that would not leave Da-
vid in his sin, but sent Nathan to
prompt David’s repentance and
to deliver him from himself.
Shepherd
There is a brief passage in
Matthew’s gospel that we might
read through quickly and miss
its significance. “Jesus went
through all the towns and villag-
es, teaching in their synagogues,
preaching the good news of the
kingdom and healing every dis-
ease and sickness. When he saw
the crowds, he had compassion
on them, because they were ha-
rassed and helpless, like sheep
without a shepherd” (Matthew
9:35-36).
Have you ever felt “harassed
and helpless,” buffeted by cir-
cumstances beyond your con-
trol, with no shepherd to guide
you? And did you perhaps be-
lieve that God took no notice or
that He was displeased with you
and was standing aloof, allowing
you to sink beneath the waves
of adversity? Look at Matthew’s
account again; he observed that
Jesus had compassion on the
people. The Greek word that the
Holy Spirit inspired Matthew to
use means far more than that Je-
sus simply “felt sorry” for them.
It describes a deep, visceral feel-
ing of pity and sorrow; quite lit-
erally, Jesus was so moved by the
plight of humanity that He felt it
in the pit of His stomach! An un-
interested deity? A blind watch-
maker? Hardly!
Collecting tears
Think about all of the tears
you have shed during your life.
God has collected every one of
them in His bottle. He is keep-
ing a record of every tear in His
scroll, which means your pain
is NOT unnoticed and NOT
without purpose. Every tear you
shed is being used by God in the
process of your sanctification —
growing you up into Christ. Not
a single tear falls to the ground
because your loving heavenly
Father is standing by your side,
collecting each and every one of
them.
Here is what I believe will
take place on that great and fi-
nal day: Jesus will hand you the
bottle He collected, filled with
all your tears, and you, like the
sinful woman who anointed
the feet of Jesus in Luke 7:38,
will worship your loving Lord
by pouring your bottle of tears
out over His nail-scarred feet,
knowing that these will be the
last tears you will ever see.
Remember, we have been
given the promise that Jesus will
wipe away every tear, and we will
live in a place where there will be
no more sorrow, no more pain
and no more death. We will have
finally entered into our eternal
rest, where Jesus, who is seated
on the throne, has made every-
thing new, and that includes you.
This is the Gospel. This is
grace for your race. Never forget
that…Amen!
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