The person who stands with a sign on the street corner,
The co-worker who overshares about her stresses at work,
The peer who always sits by himself, looking lonely…
How o we typically respond to the hurting people we encounter in our world?
If we’re honest, sometimes we struggle to know how to respond.
Yet in Matthew 9:36-38, Jesus gives us an example and guidance we can follow.
But when he saw the multitude, he was moved with compassion for them because they were harassed and scattered like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the labourers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out labourers into his harvest.”
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When we are confronted with the brokenness of others, this passage reminds us to do two things: see the hurt and seek the harvest.
See the hurt.
In verse 36, Matthew says of Jesus, “when he saw the multitude, he was moved with compassion for them because they were harassed and scattered like sheep without a shepherd.”
And it makes me wonder: does Jesus look at the people we encounter today in a similar way? Does He look at the person on the street corner or the student sitting alone and well up with compassion because He knows how deeply they are hurting?
I believe He does. The truth is, everyone we encounter in this life has struggles. But those who don’t know Jesus have double the struggle. Like this passage reminds us, they are sheep without a Shepherd. They are walking through this life alone—without Someone to care for them, defend them or guide them.
It’s really no wonder that people in our unbelieving world feel lost and aimless, at times. It’s no wonder they feel harassed by the parts of life that are too much for them to handle alone. Like sheep, they were never meant to be shepherdless. They were meant to have a Guide and Defender in God.
So, when Jesus looks at the lost people around us, I believe He looks at them with compassionate eyes. To Him, they are precious sheep in need of His saving and shepherding.
May the Holy Spirit teach us to see people with the compassionate eyes of Christ.
Seek the harvest.
In verse 36, Matthew tells us what Jesus’ compassion moved him to do. “Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the labourers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out labourers into his harvest.”
When Jesus saw that the people’s need for Him was great, His compassion drove Him to pursue a “harvest” of salvation. He wanted to see broken souls like these brought into God’s Kingdom, where He could be their all-sufficient Shepherd King.
And yet, I think his directions to the disciples, here, are interesting. He doesn’t immediately tell them to “go, get busy making disciples.” The first thing he tells them to do is pray: “Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out labourers into his harvest.”
When we look at the all the lost people around us, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the enormity of the need. The people in our neighborhoods, workplaces and schools need Jesus. The people we pass on our daily commutes need Jesus. The people in our families and friend circles need Jesus.
It may be impossible for us—as individuals—to minister to all these people fully, the way they need to be ministered to. But there is still something we can do. We can pray that God will send His workers into His harvest—that God will send believers of His choosing and fitting into the lives of the unbelievers we know.
It’s important to remember: Every lost person we encounter is a mission field. And we partner with God when we ask Him to send the right person into their lives, to witness and to minister in ways they can hear.
This is a prayer we can pray for people we see every day and people we’ll never see again. Maybe, we’ll whisper this prayer and forget all about it ‘til heaven, where we’ll hear how God moved in response to our asking. Or maybe, we’ll pray this prayer and find that the person God wants to send is you or me.
You know, in the verses right after these, Jesus sent His disciples into the very fields He’d told them to pray for. So, we shouldn’t be surprised if, as we pray for that struggling coworker, Christ’s compassion moves us toward him or her.
We may not feel like the “right person.” We may feel underqualified and ill-equipped for such a mission field, but we can know: if the “Lord of the harvest” is sending us, He will equip us. And ultimately, salvation is His to bring about. We are just called to be dependently obedient in going where He sends.
So, when we are confronted with the brokenness of others, may we learn to see them the way Jesus sees them. And may we respond with loving prayers for their eternal good.
This devotion is based on one of the Scriptures from my 2025 reading plan: “A Year in the Gospels” To receive a copy of the reading plan (and future reading plans), sign up for the email list below. Hope you’ll follow along! You can also learn more about my Scripture over Screentime experiment here.
Written by Paige K. Burhans
©2024 Paige K. Burhans
Scriptures taken from the World English Bible British Edition. Public Domain.
