Jesus and What?

Splagchnizomai…

Maybe you've never seen or heard this word before and are wondering how to pronounce it (just google it). A great word for playing hangman. But also, a word with a deep meaning.

Spagchnizomai is a Greek word that appears a number of times in the Bible. For example, in the story of the Good Samaritan we read today. Luke 10:33 (NLT) says, "Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him." The word splagchnizomai here is translated as "moved with compassion."

That word splagchnizomai is a special word. It basically means that you are so touched by something that you feel it deep inside. We have expressions for it like: “It breaks my heart”, “It makes me sick to my stomach”, “It makes me feel really sick”. The Greeks believed that compassion, mercy and love ‘lived’ in your intestines, in your gut or belly actually. When you say splagchnizomai it almost sounds like something is splitting or tearing, which actually describes exactly what you feel inside.

Spagchnizomai is a word that hurts. We’ve learned that pain is something that we must either avoid or resolve as quickly as possible. But splagchnizomai is a different kind of pain. It's a pain you can choose to feel. That you can embrace. That sets you in motion. That changes your life. Or maybe that you put aside. That’s your own choice.

Jesus felt splagchnizomai. In the New Testament, we read a number of stories that describe how Jesus felt this, why, and what happened next. In completely different situations, locations and moments, but always when meeting someone or a group of people, Jesus feels splagchnizomai. And then something always happens!

Over the next six days, we’ll read these stories together and discover what splagchnizomai is and how it worked in and through Jesus. Will you join us on the journey?