Lent – Day 21
Lent 2010: A Season for Listening
3/12/10 – Day 21
Listening to The Teachings of Jesus: Part 10
Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 27He 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.” 28And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” 29But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. 31Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ 36Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” 37He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise. – Luke 10:25-37
The first question that we ever asked God was the evasive, “Am I my brothers keeper?”. Since then we have continued to respond to God in similar ways. Knowing that we are to love our neighbors we always then try to offer a narrow and constrictive definition of neighbor. We always seek to exclude others to justify our prejudice and lack of compassion.
In this story Jesus uses as the hero someone that the lawyer would never consider to be a neighbor (and never a brother) to illustrate the radical and barrier breaking power of the gospel. It seems that situations and not preference make people our neighbors and birth into our human family makes us all brothers and sisters. Regardless of the excuses that we make; business, fear, mistrust, culture, or religion… the responsibility remains.
Today we are provoked and prodded by the teachings of Jesus into a radical rethinking of neighbor and kin. As Christians we are bond by love to all those who are beloved by God, everyone. As Jesus received all who came to him, so we are challenged to go into the world and do likewise. – Rev. John Mattox
Let us pray,
Lord,
Sometimes it is difficult to see our neighbors
as people you love.
Help us not to seek for the easy way,
but show your extravagant love
to everyone.
Amen.
-Rev. Katie Mattox
