Does Anybody Care?

Luke 10:29-37 - 29But he, wanting to justify himself, said

to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30Then 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, 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?” 37And he

said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to

him, “Go and do likewise.”

We can, so easily, miss the point of this parable because we

think in the macro, not the micro.

A. We think on a too grand scale.

1. This guy’s head is bashed in...he’s

bleeding...lying on his side...next

to the road.

a. Have you ever seen anyone

like that?

1.) We say, “If I ever did I wouldn’t be

like those two hypocritical,

religious men!!”

2.) We all can...and do...

identify with the

Samaritan.

In truth, we are safe...we will probably never be put to the

test...as this Samaritan was.

A. We will probably never see such a critical need...

right in front of our faces.

We look at this parable, and then we search through life for

a corresponding need.

A. In the “real world”, we probably will never see a

corresponding need.

1. While we are gazing across the horizon of life,

this parable can and does unfold before our

eyes...but on a lesser scale.

a. Every day...every week...every month...

we are faced with the opportunity of

doing good for others...for treating others

with respect who may not, naturally have

our respect.

God puts people in our lives to test our proclaimed

“Christianity”.

A. People who may be repulsive...for one reason or

another.

1. To this Samaritan...this Jew was repulsive...he

was the symbol of all the Jews that looked

down their noses at people like him.......They

were not shy in speech or manners in

criticizing and condemning Samaritans.......

To the average Jew...Samaritans were dirty...

filthy...creatures. Jews treated their dogs

better than Samaritans.

a. You see, then, part of the point of this

parable...we help others...even if the

natural man in us wants to despise them.

God places people in our path who may not be socially

acceptable.

A. Are these people our neighbor?

1. Perhaps they are not mentally “all there”.

2. Perhaps they talk too much.

3. Maybe they are reclusive...they don’t talk at

all.

4. Perhaps they have dirty clothes.

5. Maybe they stink.

6. Perhaps they are of the “wrong color”...the

color that we have been brought up to hate.

We may not actually say it, but often we show by our

actions that we think as has been described in James

2:14-16.

James 2:14-16 - 14What does it profit, my brethren, if

someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can

faith save him? 15If a brother or sister is naked and

destitute of daily food, 16and one of you says to them,

“Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not

give them the things which are needed for the body, what

does it profit?

Or we view these people whom God has caused to cross

our paths in the way described in James 2:1-9:

James 2:1-9 - 1My brethren, do not hold the faith of our

Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. 2For if

there should come into your assembly a man with gold

rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor

man in filthy clothes, 3and you pay attention to the one

wearing the fine clothes and say to him, “You sit here in a

good place,” and say to the poor man, “You stand there,”

or, “Sit here at my footstool,” 4have you not shown

partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil

thoughts? 5Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not

chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of

the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?