Matthew 13-20: Kingdoms in ConflictНамуна

Through the Keyhole

By Pastor Dan Hickling

“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.”—Matthew 14:13–14 (NIV)

Throughout the Scriptures, we’re given glimpses into the heart of God. These instances are somewhat incomplete as they cannot fully capture the depths of God’s nature. They’re like looking at the Grand Canyon through a keyhole. The subject is far greater, infinitely greater, than the opening it’s being seen through. Despite this limitation, the view we’re given is something more wonderful than anything of this world, including the Grand Canyon. One of these precious glimpses is given to us in the brief passage above.

To set the scene, John the Baptist had just been cruelly and unjustly executed by Herod. John’s disciples make their way to Jesus and share the sad news with Him. Now notice this news prompts a reaction in Jesus. Usually, we see Jesus going towards the crowds of people. But here, we see Him withdrawing and moving away from the masses.

If you’ve ever lost a loved one you can understand what’s happening here. Jesus loved John. They were related to each other as cousins, and they were connected by a common call to fulfill God’s purposes. There was a bond between them as real as any bond that every existed between two people. The reality that this earthly bond was now broken produced real grief in the Son of God. So much so that He did what every one of us would want to do, which is to process our mourning in quiet privacy. And in an effort to do so, Jesus retreats to a peaceful place.

At this point, we can all relate to Jesus. We see our own emotional instincts echoed in His humanity. But it’s what happens next that reminds us of why He’s so above this world and worthy of worship. The crowds, unaware and unsympathetic of His grief, track Jesus down and rush upon Him with their flood of needs. If there was ever a time where Jesus would be justified in taking some time off for Himself, this would be it! “Sorry everyone. There’s been a horrible tragedy in the family and I’m closed for the rest of the day.”

And yet, Matthew tells us that even in this valley of grief, Jesus “had compassion” on the crowds with all of their sickness, dysfunction, and brokenness. The actual words used here to describe His reaction are very descriptive. It literally means to have your insides turned out. It speaks of a deep and undeniable visceral reaction. In other words, Jesus was shook with love for these people, despite the legitimacy of His own personal plight.

Again, this is one of those glimpses into the heart of God. What’s He like? How does He feel about us? What would He do in this or that scenario? We see here that He’s moved with love towards people, needy people, and this love moves Him to act on their behalf, regardless of circumstances.

If you see anything through the keyhole of this passage, let it be this: You can trust the Lord’s love for you, and His heavenly love runs deeper than any earthly canyon.

Pause: What does this passage reveal to you about the heart of God?

Practice: Ask the Lord to show you how you can increasingly build your life on this truth.

Pray: Lord, helps us to see more and more of You. Limited as we are in this life by the constraints of this world, open our field of view when it comes to You. Amen.