It's Me Again God

74. The Good Samaritan

It's me again God,

Thank You for this time alone with You in Your Word. Bless me with understanding and speak to my heart so I can serve You faithfully each day of my life.

Continuing to look at the parables You spoke Jesus, I have come to a very familiar one:

"On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" He answered, " '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, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' " "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" 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 ‭10:25-37‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Lord this is such a powerful picture! The expert in the law asks a simple question but You reply with questions, a great teaching method aimed at getting him to realise he already knows the answer. The man answered correctly, according to the book of the law in Deuteronomy 6:5,"'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, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' " It's clear You are wanting the man to understand that relationship with You is what is important. Everything else grows from this relationship of love, trust and devotion. We were designed to love You and be in relationship with You!

The conversation could have been over but the man wanted clarification regarding the definition of neighbour and this is when You gave him the most amazing illustration! The product of our love is love for all You have made and placed alongside of us. The man really only wanted to understand the boundaries of who his neighbour is but he gets much more than he expected! He finds he must be ready to be a neighbour to everyone!

However we listen to this story, whether we see ourselves as an onlooker, or the injured man, it is always such a surprise that the one who showed love was the stranger, the foreigner, indeed the last person anyone at that time would have expected to help!

This road from Jerusalem to Jericho was the place of many highway robberies, so this situation was not an unusual one.  As the injured man lay there after being robbed and beaten, the priest, a man he thought would surely help, gets as far away as possible from him. The approaching Levite also proves to be a disappointment when he too wastes no time in crossing to the other side of the road! We can only guess as to their excuses for not helping. They probably ranged from not wanting to stop on a dangerous road to not having time.

The Samaritan's actions are quite a contrast. He goes over to the man, binds his wounds, anoints him with oil to comfort him, puts him on his donkey, takes him to an inn and cares for him. He leaves the inn keeper with enough money to cover a long stay there while he recuperates!

This story always leaves me with so much to think about! Loving You, is to live my life showing mercy to others. Lord fill me with Your compassion and direct me to where I can show love today. My desire is to serve You all the days of my life and to care for everyone. May Your Holy Spirit prompt me so I can be the neighbour You need me to be.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen.