One day an expert lawyer of the Torah, or the “Bible” for the Old Testament, stood to ask Jesus a question…he has already been put on the spot by Jesus…so he gets a little testy and then follows up with technical question, “Who is my neighbor?”. What happens next is something that turns the lawyers understanding upside down and all those around who were listening…Jesus shares a parable to Jews around him that no doubt caused them to squirm and become very uncomfortable…truth was being sent to the core of their heart and more than their thinking. Jesus uses an ordinary “anybody” man, just an unknown,that was robbed, beat up and left for dead as his central figure. Then he talks about how a supposedly well respected, “top” of the Jewish culture, wealthy, “spiritual” leader, a priest…comes upon this “unknown”…the unknown could have been another priest…but he had been stripped and you could not tell who he was. There may have been reasons, but the priest does not stop to help…he just takes a wide swath so he does not come close and goes on his way. Next a Levite comes upon the “unknown” man…the Levite is also a respected person who assists with the spiritual work of the priest…he’s lesser on the check list than the priest who had first passed this way but still looked up to. He also takes a wide swath away from the beat up, left-for-dead man, and goes on his way. But…along comes a Samaritan…(this really gets their attention because Samaritans were despised enemies of the Jews)…and where they would have expected a Jew to be the hero…the despised Samaritan has compassion on the “unknown”, left-for-dead nobody and becomes the hero of the parable. The lawyer, his cronies and all those that heard Jesus, could not have missed what Jesus was saying…even your enemies may prove to be your neighbor…the “Samaritan” may be your neighbor…the “down and out”…the forgotten…the very quiet…the convict…anyone that crosses your path…you are to “love your neighbor as yourself…if you love the Lord God with all your heart, strength and mind, the natural God thing living through you is to love your “Samaritan” – the “Left-For Dead” as yourself. Really convicting isn’t it? Who is your neighbor? A family member that is on your bad list? Someone you cannot get along with…even across a fence…or at another work station…or at school sitting in the next desk? Find someone to reach out to now…start today. Luke 10:25-37New American Standard Bible (NASB) 25 And a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 And He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And He said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.” 29 But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. 31 And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, 34 and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’ 36 Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” 37 And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.”
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AuthorThe Pastors of Cornerstone Wesleyan Church Archives
July 2017
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