Tables of Compassion

How is the church compassionate? How can it improve and be more compassionate?

One element that should be present when believers gather around a table is compassion. Jesus illustrated this reality in Luke 14:12-14 (see also 2 Sam 9). As Christians, the invitation to sit at our tables must be extended to those who cannot repay us. Our tables must be open to "the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind" (Luke 14:13). As disciples of Jesus, we must learn to open our tables and our times of fellowship to those who cannot offer us anything in return. As disciples, we must sit around tables of compassion.

This illustration from Luke 14 is a depiction of our own status as we sit around Christ’s table. We sit at the royal table although we have nothing to offer the King. His table is one of compassion and he invites those who cannot repay him. God has not invited the religious elite and the powerful in society to sit at his table. He has no need for repayment. Instead, he invites those who are broken and sinful. For it is at the table of the King where we receive healing and forgiveness. And when you eat with the King you can’t help but rejoice!