In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus tells of a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho. I can tell you that it is downhill all the way. The distance between Jerusalem and Jericho is 17 miles - and the drop in elevation is 3900 feet. It was (and is) an easy walk downhill, but a dangerous road. Robbers would hide in the rocky crags. No one traveled it alone if they could help it. But this man did. Also the Jericho Road was the route from worship (at the temple in Jerusalem) to the world. Jericho was a place of trade, of commerce - of daily existence. You may have never traveled to the Holy Land, but I can tell you this: the Jericho Road runs right through your life. You go to Jerusalemﾗchurchﾗand then you go home to Jericho. For some it may even be close to a 17 mile drive. But in that 17 miles (or whatever the distance is) you and I can become as blind as the priest and as hardened as the Levite. We can go past people who are hurting and never look twice. We can close our eyes to the pain and suffering and lost-ness and heartache of our world while we hum our favorite hymn. And many times, we do just that because the Jericho road can break your heart. It can tug at your heart until you feel compassion - and then what? It might require that we love our neighbor. You see, a right relationship with Jesus Christ should overflow to those around us, especially on the Jericho Road. Luke 10:25-37 HCSB Just then an expert in the law stood up to test Him, saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? ” “What is written in the law? ” He asked him. “How do you read it? ” He answered: 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. “You’ve answered correctly,” He told him. “Do this and you will live.” But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor? ” Jesus took up the question and said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him up, and fled, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down that road. When he saw him, he passed by on the other side. In the same way, a Levite, when he arrived at the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan on his journey came up to him, and when he saw the man, he had compassion. He went over to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on olive oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him. When I come back I’ll reimburse you for whatever extra you spend.’ “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers? ” “The one who showed mercy to him,” he said. Then Jesus told him, “Go and do the same.”
Posted on: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 12:35:41 +0000