The Upper Room Daily Devotional from The United Methodist Church of Nashville, Tennessee, United States for Wednesday, 29 November 2017 "The Good Samaritan" by Pam Lewis (Essex, England) - Luke 10:25-37
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DAILY DEVOTIONAL FOR WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017
Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers? (LUKE 10:36 (NRSV))The good Samaritan story is so familiar to me that I often skim through it instead of looking at the details. Most of us think we are, or should be, the good Samaritan of Jesus’ parable. But what message would the story have if we were the one who was beaten, robbed, and left for dead? Imagine that you are lying bleeding in the road when a theologian comes along. She is so busy thinking about God and godly things that she doesn’t even notice you. Then a minister comes by. He is in a hurry because he is late for church; and although he sees you, he takes no time to stop and help. You lie there in pain and discomfort when suddenly along comes. . . a refugee, a teenager, a homeless person, a person of a different color or religion. Imagine that person tending your wounds, taking you to the nearest hotel, and paying for you to stay until you recover. Sometimes it’s hard for us to accept love from a stranger, especially one who is different from us in some way. Some-times we forget that God can show us love and mercy through people who we think are the most unlikely to do so. This story encourages us to receive God’s gifts from others — any others — with grace and humility.
TODAY'S PRAYER:
O God, help us to accept your love from wherever and whomever it comes. Help us to show love and care to those we meet, not just those who are most like us. Amen.* * *
Luke 10:25 An expert in Torah stood up to try and trap him by asking, “Rabbi, what should I do to obtain eternal life?” 26 But Yeshua said to him, “What is written in the Torah? How do you read it?” 27 He answered, “You are to love Adonai your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your understanding; and your neighbor as yourself.”[Luke 10:27 Deuteronomy 6:5; Leviticus 19:18] 28 “That’s the right answer,” Yeshua said. “Do this, and you will have life.”
29 But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Yeshua, “And who is my ‘neighbor’?” 30 Taking up the question, Yeshua said: “A man was going down from Yerushalayim to Yericho when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him naked and beat him up, then went off, leaving him half dead. 31 By coincidence, a cohen was going down on that road; but when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levi who reached the place and saw him also passed by on the other side.
33 “But a man from Shomron who was traveling came upon him; and when he saw him, he was moved with compassion. 34 So he went up to him, put oil and wine on his wounds and bandaged them. Then he set him on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day, he took out two days’ wages, gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Look after him; and if you spend more than this, I’ll pay you back when I return.’ 36 Of these three, which one seems to you to have become the ‘neighbor’ of the man who fell among robbers?” 37 He answered, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Yeshua said to him, “You go and do as he did.”
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Whom has God sent to help me? Will I receive them?
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Header Photo Credit: "Harvested Land," Beth Shumate. August 15, 2014. (link)
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