The Challenge of the Good Samaritan (contributed by Jan)
I don’t know about you, but I thought there was a heavy feeling in the air as we wrapped up our Bible study on the Good Samaritan last Saturday. Maybe it was the challenge that Joseph ended with – are we willing to do whatever it takes to reach out and help others in need – to be a neighbour to those around us? Are we willing to make that sacrifice in our time, energy and finances?
There was a long moment of silence after that challenging question. What was running though everyone’s mind? I’m curious to know. For me, it was the realization that this isn’t an easy thing to do. It really means SACRIFICE on my part.
But I really hope we won’t just leave that heaviness hanging over us and paralyzing us from doing anything. Because I believe it IS possible for us to love our neighbours as much as the good Samaritan loved that stranger. How? It may mean taking one small step at a time. We’re not being asked to become Mother Teresa overnight (or even over many years!)… but we can start giving of ourselves in small ways first. I think of Mother Teresa’s response to people saying how great the things she had done were: “We can do no great things, but only small things with great love.”
What could that mean, in practical terms for us? As a young adults group, what can we do? Are there needs in the church and outside that we can help to meet? Can we start making some small sacrifices to meet those needs? The church is looking for ways to reach out to the community around, maybe through a VWO (volunteer welfare organization) or getting involved in schools nearby… How can we do our part?
After the Bible study, I came across an article on the Good Samaritan that further challenged me… It further helped me realize that my neighbour is anyone who needs my help, even if I hate his guts. Check it out at http://www.anointedlinks.com/neighbor.html
It leaves me wondering, what if all Christians really started to obey the command to love our neighbours – and to love our enemies? I believe in that lies a key to tearing down walls of hostility and breaking cycles of revenge… It challenges us to not only sacrifice time, effort or money, but also to lay aside any notion of whether someone ‘deserves’ our help or not. We can’t pick and choose who our neighbours are, but we can choose to be a neighbour to those around us.
(Simon playing the wounded man in our re-enactment of the BS passage)
There was a long moment of silence after that challenging question. What was running though everyone’s mind? I’m curious to know. For me, it was the realization that this isn’t an easy thing to do. It really means SACRIFICE on my part.
But I really hope we won’t just leave that heaviness hanging over us and paralyzing us from doing anything. Because I believe it IS possible for us to love our neighbours as much as the good Samaritan loved that stranger. How? It may mean taking one small step at a time. We’re not being asked to become Mother Teresa overnight (or even over many years!)… but we can start giving of ourselves in small ways first. I think of Mother Teresa’s response to people saying how great the things she had done were: “We can do no great things, but only small things with great love.”
What could that mean, in practical terms for us? As a young adults group, what can we do? Are there needs in the church and outside that we can help to meet? Can we start making some small sacrifices to meet those needs? The church is looking for ways to reach out to the community around, maybe through a VWO (volunteer welfare organization) or getting involved in schools nearby… How can we do our part?
After the Bible study, I came across an article on the Good Samaritan that further challenged me… It further helped me realize that my neighbour is anyone who needs my help, even if I hate his guts. Check it out at http://www.anointedlinks.com/neighbor.html
It leaves me wondering, what if all Christians really started to obey the command to love our neighbours – and to love our enemies? I believe in that lies a key to tearing down walls of hostility and breaking cycles of revenge… It challenges us to not only sacrifice time, effort or money, but also to lay aside any notion of whether someone ‘deserves’ our help or not. We can’t pick and choose who our neighbours are, but we can choose to be a neighbour to those around us.
Jan
(Simon playing the wounded man in our re-enactment of the BS passage)posted by Ocean Deep at
9:04 pm
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