Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 On the next day, when he departed,[j] he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ 36 So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”
37 And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.”
Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
The story of the Good Samaritan is a story on how to help the wounded. Interestingly enough the first person to pass by the wounded man was a priest. A priest is symbolic of someone who intercedes on behalf of someone else. A mediator. You may not feel qualified to help the wounded people of this world but at the very least be that mediator and pray! Your prayers may never be known to anyone but God but they are powerful in delivering the captive! Be an intercessor!
The second person to pass by the wounded man was Levite. A Levite is symbolic of someone with temple duties. A lay minister, pastor, worship leader and etc. Sometimes we are so busy doing church that we don't take the time to be "the church" and love those we see in everyday life. Jesus made it clear that showing love and mercy was far more important than taking care of church obligations. In the long run, putting a bulletin together will be of no consequence compared to reaching out to a wounded soul. Be a minister who stops for the one!
The best part of the Good Samaritan was seeing how a regular person took the time to follow through with the care of this wounded man. We may not have all the answers or resources but we can at least take the wounded to a place of recovery or to someone who can help. We might not have all the tools but we know who does. Jesus! Notice that the good Samaritan took the man to an inn and made sure the man was taken care of. We must be willing to break the barriers and limitations to help those who are hurting. Let us stop being afraid to reach out. Let us love to the point that fear no longer controls whether we reach out or not. We will never bring change to this world if we stay behind our four walls and refuse to get out of our comfort zone. We must be willing to jump into the trenches with humanity. We can't forget that Jesus lives in us and if we ask, He will know what to do and empower us to do it. Amen
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