The Good Samaritan
Recently, I was thinking about many of the things I value in my life. I thought about my family, my parenting, my church life, and I kept coming back to the value of “Love Thy Neighbor.” If you know me, you know this value is very important to me. It’s a sticker on my car, it was imprinted on my heart long before I knew I was created for it, and it’s something I just can’t help but to be passionate about daily.
Once I became a Christian, I realized that loving thy neighbor is actually a command for all of us. It’s a crucial part of God’s plan on earth. Some may even know it as the “Greatest Commandment.”
Many of you may be familiar with this Bible Scripture:
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law of the Prophets.”
Matthew 22:37-40 ESV
You see, this commandment to love is vital for us in order to be transformed into who God originally created us to be. We were created for love before we took on the influences of the world or the traditions passed down to us through our families. Love makes us more like God, which is the whole point...to resemble Jesus.
But why is loving thy neighbor so important? Here’s a few reasons:
It reveals God’s love to others.
It reminds those who know Him to be interruptible.
It refreshes the weary.
It restores hope to humanity.
It revives our purpose.
In Scripture, Jesus delivers the parable of the Good Samaritan:
In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
Luke 10:30-37 NIV
This story shows us that the instructions of Jesus are about more than just loving those similar to you in nature or the person right next door. It’s a picture of how the rest of our lives with Jesus will be when He puts people in our direct path and invites us into the process of filling needs, expressing unconditional love with no strings attached, and pointing them to Him with no other motive.
It’s not always convenient. It requires our entire self to be selfless. It often demands us to lay down our traditions, our strong opinions, and our previous judgements.
Let’s break down what the Good Samaritan really does.
He stops (this models being interruptible)
Nurses the man’s wounds (fills the current need with his own resources, not just what’s left over)
Takes him to a location to get off the street (releases compassion)
Leaves money to provide for the man (providing next steps)
It’s about a lot more than being “nice” or simply tolerating someone you don’t typically connect with. It’s more than waving hello to a neighbor that you know has different political views than you or professes a different faith. Sure, it begins there. But, the invite is so much bigger. With the Holy Spirit leading you, it’s a wild adventure that is always about Jesus and never about us.
But, when we are not empowered by the Holy Spirit, we enter into those places of service with our baggage. We find offense, we get weary when the outcome doesn’t match our expectations, and we begin to check a box for Jesus. Or worse, we do good deeds for the accolades of others. That’s not what God intended for us. We must learn that love always costs us something...money, time, resources, and more. But, when we love well, it’s transformational for both the giver and the recipient.
It’s fascinating to look back at my family and I’s journey and see that everything we’ve said “yes” to was a result of loving God as much as possible as well as being willing to love who God puts in our path. Some parts of our journey were simple acts of service, some required extreme sacrifice, some were emotional, aggravating, painful, and some didn’t make sense to us or others.
But, every opportunity made us more like Jesus, being able to truly receive the depth of what grace actually means. Each opportunity walked us through fears, exposed our idols, brought healing, and strengthened our faith. Each moment drew us closer to the Giver of all good things and helped us have a greater understanding of mankind and our Creator. We have stepped outside of ourselves, our comforts, and our own way of doing things for one beautiful purpose. Because only when you do for those who can give you nothing in return can you grasp the radical reality of grace.