Go and Do Likewise!
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
Have you had moments when you’ve wondered if kindness and compassion have completely evaporated from our society? Lately, I’m experiencing these moments more frequently.
I was recently sickened by a first hand account of what I can only describe as wanton cruelty and a blatant disregard for human dignity that occurred close to my home. In a nearby subdivision, a woman suffered a stroke while walking her dog. A passerby witnessed her fall and, instead of offering help, pulled out his phone to record her suffering. She cried out for help and a second passerby kept on walking. Finally, a third person responded by calling 911 and staying with her until an ambulance arrived. She only survived because of the assistance of the third person.
Does this story sound strangely familiar? It’s a true story that happened just this week, and yet it unquestionably echoes the biblical story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). The similarity was so striking that I felt compelled to ask God what lesson he might have for me in this parallel.
First, God showed me that as much as we may perceive an increase in callousness and cruelty around us, these things are nothing new to humanity. It can be traced all the way back to Genesis 4 when Cain killed his brother Abel. Man’s inhumanity to man is the oldest story around.
Next, God showed me that the shocking lack of compassion shown to this woman by two people is not the end of her story. Her life was saved. Why? Because someone cared. In this case, as in the biblical story, love triumphed.
Finally, God reminded me that even in our suffering, we are never truly alone. He sees when we fall. He grieves when we are mistreated. He hears our cries for help. He meets us with his provision, his comfort, and his love. The third person in each story was an extension of God’s hand of love.
As Fred Rogers so aptly observed, if you look, “You will always find people who are helping.” This world may be broken, but we are never without hope. It’s why Jesus came. It’s why he sent his Holy Spirit.
As dark as things may appear sometimes, the light of love cannot truly be extinguished. It is the most powerful force in the universe, the substance of God himself. And we so often underestimate it.
Loving others is a divine act—the most important thing we can do with our short time on earth. Darkness, sin, and decay may stare us in the face, but as the Apostle Peter tells us, “Love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8)
As I insert my own neighbor into the story of the Good Samaritan, I am reminded that love is a high calling we dare not ignore.
“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the [woman who suffered a stroke]?”
The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on [her.]”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
As you go about your day, ask Jesus to whom he is calling you to be the Good Samaritan. Ask him to open the eyes of your heart to the need around you and allow him to fill you with his love. Hope ignites when we begin to love as Jesus does. Not only will you be a blessings to others, you will be blessed.
‘Sometimes healing comes by waving the white flag of surrender when everyone else is telling you to stay in the fight.’
What would happen if the Body of Christ truly lived in love?
Available on all major platforms
