The Good Samaritan: Empathy That Acts

But don't really miss a shocking part of the story, which I think I've I've already emphasized enough, but the hero is the outsider. The Samaritan helps a Jewish man who probably would not have helped him. If the roles were reversed, he probably, you know, would not have, which means Jesus is making a very radical point. And it's this that love crosses lines. Love crosses ethnic lines. Love crosses political lines. Love crosses religious lines. Compassion refuses to ask, is this person one of my people in my tribe? Instead, it ask, is this person hurting? [01:01:01] (52 seconds)  #LoveCrossesLines

The Samaritan approaches the wounded man. He bandages his wounds, pours oil and wine on them, places them on his animal, takes into the inn, you know, pays for his care. And then he, you know, says that line to the innkeeper. If you, you know, have any other expenses, I'll I'll reimburse you for it. So this isn't a quick gesture. This is inconvenient compassion. It costs time. It costs money. It costs comfort. But compassion that never takes action, I really wonder if that's compassion at all. [01:00:19] (41 seconds)  #CompassionInAction

And people were just amazed by this good Samaritan act that they'd seen out, you know, so much it made national news for for a couple of days. And when computers well, I mean, computers. When reporters asked him why he did it, he just shrugged and said, I saw someone who needed help. That's it. No big speech, no philosophical debate, just compassion that acted. And it gets our attention, and it makes a difference. And so Jesus ends the conversation with these three words, go and do likewise. [01:09:58] (45 seconds)  #GoAndDoLikewise

Notice this, not go and admire the Samaritan, Not go and debate the Samaritan, and certainly not, and churches need to hear this. Not go and form a committee about the Samaritan. Just go and do likewise. Because empathy isn't just something we feel. It's something we live. And sometimes the most Christ like thing we can do is simply refuse to walk on the other side of the road. And and I'll leave you with this, just very simple. Small acts of kindness change the world one moment at a time. When we look at the struggles of the world around us, it can be overwhelming. [01:10:43] (55 seconds)  #SmallActsBigImpact

Now notice something. When we'll note it. First of all, the priest saw the man, the Levite saw the man, but they kept their distance. They went on the other side of the road. The Samaritan does something different. He comes near. We've been in this series on the gift of empathy. And, friends, that's empathy. Empathy doesn't stay at a safe distance. Empathy moves toward pain, and it closes the gap. It refuses to pretend not to notice. [00:59:38] (41 seconds)  #EmpathyInMotion

Because we've gotten so tribalized over things. Or a transgendered person who helps a politician who is known for campaigning against them. This was a shocking story for them to hear. It becomes uncomfortable because empathy means seeing people as people and not categories. And so we get to the end of the story, and Jesus completely turns the lawyer's question upside down. Remember the lawyer said, who is my neighbor? And so he tells him this story and he says, which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers? [01:02:34] (49 seconds)  #PeopleNotCategories

Moments like the good Samaritan, another story I'll tell in a second, they they don't really we don't get them on our schedule. It doesn't come to us when we're convenient or when we feel fully prepared. They come to us suddenly right in the middle of ordinary life. And in that moment, we have to make a choice. Do we step back, or do we step in? But when we see it, when we really see this lived out, it gets our attention. I was thinking about this story that I heard that was really in the news a year or so ago, I think. [01:08:44] (41 seconds)  #StepInNotBack

But it's this guy. His name was Wesley Autry, and he was standing on a subway platform in New York City, when suddenly a young a young man that was nearby had the seizure, and he fell onto the tracks. And everybody is staring, and this man just instantaneously dove down there. The train was coming, but he drove down there. He pulled this man having a seizure, out of harm's way, you know, serving this shallow groove between the rails, and then he lay on top of him as the train passed over them. [01:09:26] (32 seconds)  #ActInTheMoment