Mercy, Compassion and Fellowship

Loving others unconditionally is the goal of every Christian who lives what they believe. Jesus, our supreme example, taught us to love our neighbors as ourselves. He ate with tax collectors, spoke with Samaritan women of ill repute, and touched those who others had deemed unclean. He reached out and saved me when I was completely unworthy. His compassion for the lost and mercy shown to those who repent is enough to send me to my knees in praise whenever I think about it. As His redeemed, we are called to show that same compassion and mercy to others.

Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and clothe thee? And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.' - Matthew 25:37-40

I have encountered many well-meaning brothers and sisters in Christ recently who are striving to do just that: to show love to those the world sees as unlovable, to reach out to those in need. I deeply respect their efforts and am convicted to reach out more personally. However, many of these blessed people are falling into a common trap: fellowshipping with unbelievers. They reach out, meet basic needs and, hopefully, have the opportunity - in word or deed- to share the love of Christ with those who are lost without Him. Then they take it a step further. They spend more and more time with people who are rejecting Christ, but still wanting the help that is offered. Pretty soon, they are emotionally entangled in problems that won't be solved by meeting physical needs, or those physical needs continue to pile up so high that no one could meet all of them. Having such involved relationships with people who are interested in material help but not spiritual healing takes its toll. Some Christians will reach a point that they think ministry is fruitless, others can become jaded and suspicious of all people in need, and some may even feel like they are failing God.

I am absolutely not an expert in this matter, but there is a passage in scripture that seems to apply in this circumstance:

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? - 2 Corinthians 6:14

The key here is fellowship. I did a bit of research using a lexicon and Bible dictionary. I can certainly give all the references here, but it would make this blog entry obnoxiously long. You can look it up for yourself at crosswalk.com, using KJV with Strong's as your reference point.In short, to fellowship with someone is to partake with someone. It comes from a root word that means "to have (hold) in the hand, in the sense of wearing, to have (hold) possession of the mind (refers to alarm, agitating emotions, etc.)." It means allowing their problems to have a priority spot in your mind.

Yes, we need to hear their needs, meet them when we can and pray about them when we can't. We need to show mercy and compassion towards those in need. As the song says, we need to be Jesus to the world. We are not to get entrenched in their junk, though. Much of what ails them will only be healed when they turn their lives over to God. Until they do that, we can only do so much. Bearing one another's burdens is reserved for burdens of fellow believers.

"Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ." - Gal. 6:1-2.

We need to set loving boundaries when we are reaching out to others. It is difficult to figure out when compassion and mercy crosses the line into fellowship, though. If your study of the Bible could shed some light on this issue, I'd love to hear what you have to say.