There is something exciting about someone finding a previously undiscovered treasure. Last week we told about a U.S. Air Force veteran who bought a Rolex watch that turned out to be an astounding investment. Works of art can do the same thing.
In September of last year, a French woman took an old painting to an auction house to determine its worth. Previously, the woman had the painting hanging in her kitchen over a hotplate. However, an art evaluator visiting her home recognized the old painting and urged her to have it appraised.
The painting depicted Jesus being mocked before his crucifixion. In fact, the painting was titled simply, “Christ Mocked.” Turns out, it was painted in 1280 by an Italian painter named Cimabue [tʃimaˈbuːe]—a forefather of the Italian Renaissance. That painting that had previously hung above a hotplate in the elderly woman’s house sold last year at auction for $26.8 million—the most ever paid for a medieval painting. (1) That was a pretty nice find, I believe you will agree.
Not too long ago, another homeowner in Toulouse, France, opened up his leaky attic for repairs and discovered a painting by the Renaissance artist Caravaggio. This painting is also estimated to be worth millions.
However, I don’t want you to think that the French have a franchise on such discoveries. A brother and sister in the United Kingdom were cleaning out their parents’ house after their parents’ death. They took a few items to an auction house to be appraised. One item was a tall vase with a fish image on it. To their surprise, the vase was made for the family of a Chinese emperor in the 18th century. Recently this simple vase was auctioned off for $18 million. (2)
How can these amazing works of art go unnoticed for decades or centuries? It is because it takes someone with a special skill to see their worth. Everyone else looked at these paintings or ceramics and saw something pretty, something nice. A trained art appraiser looked at them and saw a masterpiece. Two different people looking at the exact same thing can see something vastly different. It’s all a matter of perspective.
A woman named Siobhan [Chev-ON] Kukolic tells about a friend of hers who teaches first grade in Toronto, Canada. This friend was teaching math to a class of six-year-olds, including a group of newly arrived refugee children. The lesson that day was on fractions. The teacher explained the difference between a quarter and a half in fractions. Then she asked the class to write down whether they would prefer to have a quarter of a chocolate bar or a half of a chocolate bar.
The teacher was surprised by the results of that little quiz. As she looked over their papers, she noticed that many of her refugee students wrote that they preferred the quarter of a chocolate bar instead of a half. The teacher was concerned that these students hadn’t understood the lesson. But before correcting their math, she asked them why they chose a quarter of the chocolate bar rather than a half. One little girl answered, “So that more people could have a piece of chocolate.” (3)
Two groups of children looked at the same thing—a chocolate bar—and one group saw a delicious snack while the other saw an opportunity to share something good with others. It’s all in what you see. Think about that very important difference as we deal with our Bible passage for today.
Jesus and his disciples had traveled to a remote place. Crowds of people followed them, perhaps as many as 10,000—all of them wanting to be close to Jesus. Obviously, they thought they would receive something from him.
As the day passed, the disciples got tired. They asked Jesus to send the people away. It wasn’t simply a matter of fatigue. They were concerned that the people wouldn’t find enough to eat in the surrounding countryside. But Jesus said the strangest thing: “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” “Say, what?” the disciples thought to themselves. Feed this mob of people? No way! We need to understand that Jesus often led his disciples into challenging situations—situations that required courage and insight and radical faith—situations that seemed too big for them. This was certainly no exception. Why would he do that? It was because he saw something they didn’t see. He saw the world with God’s eyes. He saw a world in which anything was possible if you were aligned with God.
Today’s story from Matthew’s Gospel gives us some of the basic ingredients for seeing the world as Jesus sees it. Listen to how the story begins: “When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick . . .”
Let’s begin here: Seeing the world as Jesus sees it begins with compassion. Is compassion your default setting when you look at the people around you? Jesus looked at everyone he met with eyes of compassion.
Football fans know the name Joe Burrow. Burrow led his team, the LSU Bengal Tigers, to last year’s national championship in football. He also won the 2019 Heisman trophy as the nation’s most outstanding player. At the ceremony in which he accepted that trophy he used his moment in the spotlight to speak some words of encouragement to the kids back in his hometown, Athens, Ohio.
You may know that Athens, Ohio is one of the poorest towns in the Appalachian region. Through tears, Burrow said, “. . . I'm up here for all those kids in Athens and Athens County that go home to not a lot of food on the table, hungry after school.” Then he added, “You guys can be up here, too.”
Within hours of Burrows’ words, a man in Athens County named Will Drabold set up a fundraising site to raise money for the Athens County Food Pantry. He was counting on Joe Burrow’s words of compassion to inspire others. And he was right. Curious fans began searching for information on Athens County, Ohio. Within two days, generous folks around the country donated $260,000 to the Athens County Food Pantry. All because they were moved by Burrows’ compassion for needy kids in his community. (4)
Compassion was Jesus’ default setting. Compassion was at the very core of Jesus’ nature. It’s the reason why he gave up his power and authority as part of the Godhead and took on human flesh and human weakness and walked among us. Jesus’ compassion for us is what led him to die for us on the cross. It was the only way to save us from our sins and restore us to God. You walk into almost any Christian gathering in any corner of the world and you’ll see a cross displayed there. Why? Because to followers of Jesus Christ, the cross is the greatest symbol of compassion in the world.
Notice again the opening words to this story: “When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. . .” What is Matthew referring to? What had just happened?
It’s important and tragic. Jesus had just found out that his cousin, John the Baptist, had been beheaded by King Herod. What a horrendous thing to happen to someone you love and admire. So, Jesus undoubtedly wanted some time alone to grieve his cousin’s death. But the needy crowds followed him to the lonely place he went to grieve. They were desperate to hear his teaching or receive a healing touch.
At this point, I would probably have gotten angry, annoyed at the very least. I would have asked the disciples to send these people away. I would need some me-time. But when Jesus looked at this crowd of thousands, he didn’t see a crowd. I heard a quote years ago that said, “There is one thing that God cannot do. God cannot see a crowd.”
And that was true with Jesus. He didn’t see a crowd. He saw individuals—made in the image of God, who were immensely precious in God’s sight. And he saw that they were hurting. And he had compassion on them—thousands of them.
When we operate from a place of compassion, we see others as God sees them. And suddenly, we want to help. We want to heal. We’ll do whatever it takes because these people are valuable to God—and that makes them valuable to us.
Seeing the world as Jesus sees the world inevitably leads to acts of compassion. Often, we have thoughts of compassion, but rarely do they lead to acts of compassion. Seeing the world through Jesus’ eyes inevitably leads to acts of love and compassion. Seeing the world through Jesus’ eyes involves us giving up some of our own rights and comforts and possessions to meet the needs of others. We may feel that we don’t have enough resources to make a dent in something we feel compassionate about. But it’s amazing what can happen when Jesus gets involved.
The crowd that day numbered close to ten thousand people. And Jesus told his disciples, “You give them something to eat.”
The disciples answered, “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish.”
And Jesus said, “Bring them here to me.”
Jesus used what was at hand to meet the people’s needs. It’s a simple principle, but it’s always the first step to a miracle.
We hold up our schedule and say, “Lord, I don’t have time to volunteer in my community.” And Jesus looks at our schedule and says, “Bring it here to me.”
We look at our bank account and say, “Lord, I don’t have any extra cash to give to the food pantry.”
And Jesus looks at our bank account and says, “Bring it here to me.”
We hold up our hearts and say, “Lord, I don’t have it in my heart to love that person. It’s impossible.” And Jesus looks at our heart and says, “Bring it here to me.”
When we look through Jesus’ eyes we say, “Lord, my life belongs to you. I may not have much, but whatever I am and whatever I have, use it for your kingdom.” And suddenly, we see a million needs all around us, and we find a way to meet some of those needs. When we care enough, we will sacrifice what we have to make a difference.
Seeing the world through Jesus’ eyes starts with compassion—both thoughts of compassion and acts of compassion. But here’s the beautiful thing. Seeing the world through Jesus’ eyes often leads to miracles being performed.
After the disciples gave all their food to Jesus, Jesus took the bread and fish, gave thanks, broke them and gave them back to the disciples. And then the disciples gave them to the people in the crowd. Verse 20 says, “They all ate and were satisfied . . .” Everyone—men, women and children—got more than enough to eat. And after they ate, the disciples collected what was left, and there were twelve basketfuls of leftovers. Everyone was satisfied and there was more than enough left over.
Seeing the world through Jesus’ eyes means being willing to share what we’ve got—our strength and time and intellect and love and money and resources with others. And we don’t have to start with a lot of resources. We start with a lot of compassion and faith. Then God will take our resources to satisfy whatever need has captured our heart. And miraculously we discover we have plenty of resources left over for our own needs.
I read a beautiful story recently of a little girl named Rachel Beckwith who wanted to do something for people in need. In 2011, Rachel decided to “donate” her ninth birthday to an organization called “Charity: Water.” Charity: Water is a non-profit that raises money to fund water projects around the world. Since 2006, they have funded 30,000 water projects in 26 countries and provided clean drinking water to over 8 million people. They have saved hundreds of thousands of people who would have suffered preventable diseases or even died from drinking unclean water.
One of the many ways that Charity: Water raises money for their projects is to convince celebrities to “donate” their birthday to the charity. Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Justin Bieber, Kristen Bell and Jessica Biel are just a few of the celebrities who have asked family, friends and fans to donate money to Charity: Water in honor of their birthday.
Rachel Beckwith isn’t a celebrity, but she decided to donate her birthday, with a goal of raising $300 for the charity. She raised $220. That’s a really impressive amount of money for a child to raise.
Just a few weeks after her ninth birthday, however, Rachel died in a car accident. News media across our country spread the story of this generous child and her tragic death, and strangers began making donations to Charity: Water in Rachel’s honor. To date, $1.3 million dollars has been donated in honor of Rachel—enough money to provide clean water to over 37,000 people. (5)
Rachel Beckwith saw the world with Jesus’ eyes. She looked at the world with compassion. Instead of asking for presents for her birthday, she “donated” her birthday for others. A radical act of love and faith. And her compassion inspired people all over the world to give to Charity: Water. Today 37,000 people around the world have clean water because of her act. If that is not a miracle like unto the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000, I would like to know what is.
We shut our eyes to the needs around us because we don’t think we can make a difference, or we don’t think it’s our responsibility. But Jesus is looking at us, just as he looked at his disciples, and saying, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat [or drink or something to wear or a house to live in].”
Jesus wasn’t planning a picnic that day; he was training his disciples in seeing the world through his eyes and thereby establishing the kingdom of God on earth. He is still doing that today. Whenever you or I see a need however large or small it may be or however small our resources are, we are to bring them to Jesus. Then we will see the miracle he can do through us and through all those who see the world through Jesus’ eyes.
1. “Woman discovers Renaissance masterpiece in her kitchen” Agence France-Presse in Paris, Sept. 24, 2019. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/24/woman-discovers-renaissance-masterpiece-in-her-kitchen.
2. “8 Multi-Million Dollar Masterpieces Found in Unexpected Places” by Stephanie Waldek, History, January 22, 2018, https://www.history.com/news/8-multi-million-dollar-masterpieces-found-in-unexpected-places.
3. “5 Stories of Compassion That Will Inspire You to Show Up for Others” by Marina Khidekel, Thrive Global, Sept. 9, 2019, https://thriveglobal.com/stories/compassion-empathy-emotional-intelligence-anecdotes-stories/.
4. “Heisman winner's speech leads to over $260,000 in donations for families in poverty” by Elizabeth Wolfe and Saeed Ahmed, with contributions from Phil Gast, CNN, December 16, 2019 https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/16/us/joe-burrow-heisman-speech-athens-county-fundraiser-trnd/index.html.
5. “How Charity: Water's founder went from hard-partying NYC club promoter to helping 8 million people around the world” by Catherine Clifford, March 22, 2018, CNBC, https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/22/how-scott-harrison-founded-charity-water.html.