Genuine Sorrow

"And when he (Jesus) drew near and saw the city (Jerusalem), he wept over it"  Luke 19:41

I read where a pastor and author described this verse by saying "Jesus wept over his zip code." He certainly possesses great compassion because of his nature as God, but I believe it was more than that too. Jesus was filled with sorrow over the plight of this city, the lost people, and the pain of their decisions. He recognized their problem and knew that He was going to be their only real solution.

Do we identify with Jesus' level of compassion? Are we genuinely sorrowful over the conditions in our own community? Are we truly heartbroken over dysfunctional homes, abuse, poverty, ignorance, and sin? Genuine concern is more than an emotional response that leads to philosophical discussions. If we truly care we have to ask: what are we doing about it?

• Pray: nothing can be done without this
• Repent: realize that we have ignored our community's problems for too long & resolve to change
• Invest: use our resources (time, energy, money, abilities) to help address some of the physical problems our community faces
• Share the good news: while we have a responsibility to help with physical needs, the church's greatest calling is to share a life-changing relationship through Jesus Christ. Without this transformation we are merely providing superficial patches to deeply ingrained wounds.

We will either be part of the solution for our community or we are contributing to the problem. If we claim to care about our people we have to take a risk and do something to make a difference.