Advent "The Weary World Rejoices" Pt 2 the promise of compassion

As we prepare for the birth of Jesus, we sing about the “Emmanuel,” but what is the significance of

God truly being with us? In becoming human, Jesus “became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood” (John 1:14, MSG). Jesus is God-with-us so he could be God’s compassion for us, in word and deed. Compassion, in Latin, means to suffer (passus) with (com). When Jesus

saw someone suffering, he wept with them (John 11:33) and came to their aid (Mark 10:51). He talked with the excluded and marginalized (John 4:7) and ate with the outcasts (Matthew 9:10). There

was no one whose illness or status rendered them unapproachable or untouchable (Matthew 8:3). This is the kind of radical compassion that says, I am not just helping you, I am with you. This week, we are going to dig into what it means to see the long arc of God’s work in the world, how we might recognize God’s compassion in our lives, and how we might participate in God’s work in the world.