The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. from The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Wednesday,
27 July 2016 - "The unexpected, extravagant neighbor"
Daily Scripture: Luke 10:33 “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.”
Reflection Questions:
In the first part of his story, Jesus portrayed two presumably pious men who showed no real interest in acting like a neighbor. Then he made the contrast as strong as possible. He pictured a Samaritan (a group Israelites then regarded in about the same light as many of them regard Palestinians today) who acted with extravagant compassion and caring.
Lord Jesus, I don’t mind being a good neighbor if it’s easy and inexpensive, in time and certainly in money. Help me incorporate the idea of sacrifice into my thinking about what it might mean to be a true neighbor. Amen.
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Insights from Kinzie Oas
Kinzie Oas is the Adult Discipleship intern at The Church of the Resurrection. He attends North Park University in Chicago, IL, and aspires to be a Pastor. He would love to see church BBQ places instead of church cafes (think about it, Resurrection!). He also really loves badminton.
Coming into my last few weeks as an intern I find myself lucky to get to talk about the Samaritan in my final blog post! He is such an interesting part to this story, because he should have also passed by, but he didn’t (as we know). Instead, he stopped and helped the beaten man.
In some of the Bible classes I’ve taken, I have learned about Samaritans. Their faith, at a bare basics look, looks to me like kind of like a cousin religion to Judaism. They were in almost a sort of family feud. But in many family arguments go, eventually when things get really rough you will help your family. Sometimes that help doesn’t come directly from your brother, the priest or Levite, but it could come from that unlikely estranged cousin, the one who split because of an argument between your fathers long ago, who you haven’t recognized in years.
As humans, we are family, we are supposed to be there for each other, even when we don’t really like that other person. We are supposed to help them, love them, use our own money and resources to make sure they can get back on their feet. I know that sounds pretty, and I am one of the biggest offenders of talking a big game. So I would like to challenge you, and myself: let’s see if we can practice this. In my final blog post near the end of an incredible summer here at Resurrection, after meeting so many incredible members of this congregation, let’s get radical. Let’s help those who might not expect our help, those who maybe don’t think Christians do enough. I pray that you will do this with me, and that we can live what Jesus was teaching–to love others as we love ourselves.
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The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Daily Scripture: Luke 10:33 “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.”
Reflection Questions:
In the first part of his story, Jesus portrayed two presumably pious men who showed no real interest in acting like a neighbor. Then he made the contrast as strong as possible. He pictured a Samaritan (a group Israelites then regarded in about the same light as many of them regard Palestinians today) who acted with extravagant compassion and caring.
- In the story, the Samaritan didn’t just offer casual roadside help. He put the injured man on “his own donkey” (which would have meant he had to walk), brought him to an inn, cared for him, paid two days’ wages, and offered to pay more on his return if needed. How did Jesus' description of the Samaritan reflect God’s vast generosity to us? How can knowing we’ve received God’s generosity move us to be generous to our neighbors in ways we’d be unlikely to achieve out of our own goodness?
- We usually apply this parable to the need for us to help others, a big part of Jesus' teaching. But in this story, an Israelite accepted a Samaritan’s help, though Israelites usually shunned such help. How open are you to accepting help from others when you need it? Have you ever seen a situation in which asking for or accepting help opened the door to a neighborly relationship?
Lord Jesus, I don’t mind being a good neighbor if it’s easy and inexpensive, in time and certainly in money. Help me incorporate the idea of sacrifice into my thinking about what it might mean to be a true neighbor. Amen.
-------
Insights from Kinzie Oas
Kinzie Oas is the Adult Discipleship intern at The Church of the Resurrection. He attends North Park University in Chicago, IL, and aspires to be a Pastor. He would love to see church BBQ places instead of church cafes (think about it, Resurrection!). He also really loves badminton.Coming into my last few weeks as an intern I find myself lucky to get to talk about the Samaritan in my final blog post! He is such an interesting part to this story, because he should have also passed by, but he didn’t (as we know). Instead, he stopped and helped the beaten man.
In some of the Bible classes I’ve taken, I have learned about Samaritans. Their faith, at a bare basics look, looks to me like kind of like a cousin religion to Judaism. They were in almost a sort of family feud. But in many family arguments go, eventually when things get really rough you will help your family. Sometimes that help doesn’t come directly from your brother, the priest or Levite, but it could come from that unlikely estranged cousin, the one who split because of an argument between your fathers long ago, who you haven’t recognized in years.
As humans, we are family, we are supposed to be there for each other, even when we don’t really like that other person. We are supposed to help them, love them, use our own money and resources to make sure they can get back on their feet. I know that sounds pretty, and I am one of the biggest offenders of talking a big game. So I would like to challenge you, and myself: let’s see if we can practice this. In my final blog post near the end of an incredible summer here at Resurrection, after meeting so many incredible members of this congregation, let’s get radical. Let’s help those who might not expect our help, those who maybe don’t think Christians do enough. I pray that you will do this with me, and that we can live what Jesus was teaching–to love others as we love ourselves.
Download the GPS App
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224, United States
913.897.0120
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