Luke 10:25-37 NKJV — And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ” And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 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. “Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. “Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. “But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. “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. “On the next day, when he departed, 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.’ “So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
It seems to be difficult to find a helping hand. Society abandoned the “Golden Rule” and has embraced the “It’s All About Me” way of life. Have we really given up on being our “brother’s keeper?” In this day and age, it’s easier than ever to share anything and everything with friends, family, and strangers alike. However, there have been Black Mirror-like instances of people distributing violent and disturbing videos online. From fights, to sexual assaults, to murders, a wide range of crimes have gone “viral” on the internet.
The shocking aspect of these videos is the person video recording these disturbing acts offers no assistance in stopping the offender and lending aid to the victim. The person is more concerned about how quickly he or she can upload the video on their social media sites, so it may have the chance to go “viral” and give them their 15 minutes of fame.
In our present day society, people fail to understand where to draw the line when it comes to use of technology. They simply remain glued to it, even at the expense of another person’s safety. Not dealing with the reality being presented in front of them has caused a disturbing trend of voyeurism which contradicts the teaching Jesus was conveying to the scribes.
The parable of the Good Samaritan is a story to illustrate how we “love our neighbors as ourselves.” When other people need our help the most, like the man on the road, is when our love for neighbor is truly tested. Jesus tells us to be like the Good Samaritan, helping others in times of need, and not the Priest and Levite who ignored their neighbor. The reflection we see in our society is, we have become too self absorbed with our own selfishness. The love for our neighbor has grown cold and Jesus tells us we would experience this in these latter days;
Matthew 24:12 NKJV — “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
Compassion and chivalry has been lost, or so it would seem. The poor, the weak and the troubled are all around us. We cannot just pass them over because we are too busy achieving recognition and believing they are someone else’s problem to fix. We, personality, may not have the ability to stop the atrocity already committed upon another person, but when it happens in front of us, we should do all we can to stop the problem until the proper authorities arrive. Social Media will just have to wait.
The most important lesson of the parable is, we can sin without violating any commandment, we have to choose between righteousness and sin, between the spirit and the flesh, the parable is not a case of simple mercy, it’s about choice. Righteousness or unrighteousness, in more simpler terms, right or wrong. The teaching of the two paths is very clear. When a person is in need of help and mercy, we must pray and ask the Lord to guide us and give us the wisdom we need to comfort them.
Matthew 22:36-40 NKJV — “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ “This is the first and great commandment. “And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ “On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
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