Are you willing to do likewise?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. `Look after him,’ he said, `and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
(Luke 10:30-37 (NIV))

I experienced something over the weekend that brings this parable to light in today’s world.

I had pulled into a McDonalds to get something to drink and I noticed a car that was in a very precarious predicament. The front tires had gone over a poorly marked construction barricade and had dropped off the edge until the only thing touching the concrete was about 1/4” of the frame leaving the driver side rear tire about a foot off of the ground. The occupants of the car were okay, but there was no way that they could get the vehicle out of the construction ditch.

During this time, I saw countless people drive by and look, but only two fifty-three year old men even thought of coming to help. They looked and drove on by. Many even actually hung out of the passenger windows to get a better look. Still, no one bothered to offer assistance.

It is a sad commentary on society and on the hearts of people when they see someone in need and only think of it as a situation to be gawked at. Thankfully, the other fifty-three year old lived nearby and he was willing to make several trips to his house to get additional tools as they were needed. Some people simply looked and drove right on by. This man went out of his way to offer assistance. He was inconvenienced. He offered to do things that were not in his plans. He went the extra mile to do what was right.

Thousands of people go by this place every single day. In the two hours that it took to get the car out of the ditch, there were probably hundreds of people who went by. What does that say about our society? What does that say about our priorities?

With the assistance of a young police officer, we finally got the car out and I drove it around the parking lot to make sure that everything was okay. The lady and her 8 year old grand daughter were very happy to be rescued from their predicament. After she thanked us, I got in my car and drove the last hour to get home.

I am not relaying these events to draw attention to myself, Rather, to point out the way in which most of the people simply ignored the situation, or they looked and went on about their business. It was a bother to them. It was inconvenient for them to help.

We are to be neighbors to those in need. We cannot have a society that turns a blind eye to those in need. We must be good neighbors to all. We must be the hands and feet of Jesus to all who are in need.

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
(Luke 10:37b (NIV))

Are you willing to do likewise?

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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