Real Compassion

The dictionary defines compassion as “feelings of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.” However, the biblical idea of compassion is much broader. It is a compassion that extends to everyone, including sinners. In 1 Thessalonians 5:13f we find the Apostle Paul giving instructions to the Thessalonian congregation on how to deal compassionately towards the unruly, the fainthearted (feebleminded), the weak, wearisome and even the wicked.