Acting Blur

Scripture: Luke 10:25-37

Sermon preached at Gospel Light Christian Church, Singapore by Pastor Paul Choo on 08 August 2004

Introduction: The parable of "the good Samaritan" is so well known that the phrase "a good Samaritan" is commonly used to describe a kind person. Though most Christians are familiar with the story and are shocked with the behaviour of the priest and Levite, few Christians see themselves described in these two characters.

Let us learn some useful lessons from this well-known parable.

Life is uncertain: The injured victim was on a journey either to or from Jerusalem. He was most likely a businessman who was carrying much money - and before he was attacked his thoughts were probably on his money and the things that he could do with it. Possibly the last thing on his mind was that he would be penniless and crippled for life. When things are going well, men usually do not want to acknowledge that life is uncertain and that their world can "collapse" at any time. They like to feel that they are in control of their destiny and believe that if they are diligent they can continue to build upon what they have. They choose to forget that there are many circumstances in life that are beyond their control (like being robbed by highway robbers in broad daylight). In other words, we have to acknowledge that even if we did not gamble, drink and womanize our money away, it could disappear through events beyond our control. Even fewer people would like to acknowledge that some disaster could "cripple" them to the extent that they could not recover (like being hacked almost to death by cruel highway robbers). The only certainty in life is its uncertainty. There are many helpless, hurt victims all around us everyday - we don't have to travel to the Jerusalem-Jericho road to look for such people.

Acting Blur: The Jerusalem-Jericho road was a busy well-traveled road. I believe that the Lord "abbreviated" this parable by describing just these three travelers to keep the story short. The ratio of those who "act blur" and those who help a "helpless" person is not 2:1 but more like 50:1. Among Singaporeans who are skilled to "act blur, think smart" (or more accurately "act blur but think smart how to act blur"), the ratio is probably much higher.

The merciful God had sent these two very appropriate people, who were duty-bound by their vocation, to help this victim. When they saw the victim, they obviously did not view themselves as having been specially "sent" by God to help him. They viewed this encounter as an "unfortunate" incident from which they should do their best to "escape" from. Like most people, they viewed their "excess" abilities and resources as something that they could use for their own luxury or storage, rather than for use to help those who were in need. Though their conscience demanded that they stop and help the victim, they managed to soothe their conscience with many "good excuses" - and they probably had a good night's sleep that night.

The priest was either on his way to or from Jerusalem where he served in the Temple for a month at a time. Logically speaking, we would expect him to be "tuned" by his service to God, to serve God's people. Instead we find him to be unchanged by the time that he spent in the Temple. In fact, his service to God appeared to make him less sensitive to man's needs (as compared to the irreligious Samaritan) - probably because his conscience was soothed by his performance of spiritual activities. And as he passed the wounded man, he felt that he did not really need to help because he had already spent so much of his time serving God that he did not need to do more "good."

I am sure that he also managed to soothe his conscience by other good excuses, such as:

"It's dangerous here. If I stop to help, I could be the next victim and if I'm dead, then I can't help anyone anymore."

"If I'm found here next to this wounded man, I might be a suspect - and that will shame the priesthood!"

"I'm on my way to the Temple to perform my duties. I'd better not be late. It would be a terrible testimony."

"I'm on my way home after one month away, my wife and kids are waiting for me - if I don't take care of my family, who will? Then how can I be useful to others?"

"My wife is expecting me home at this time - if I'm late, she'll be worried."

"I'm all alone. What can I do by myself? If there was someone with me, at least we could have carried him to the town!"

"I didn't have any bandages or medications with me. I really couldn't do anything for him."

"I'm a priest not a doctor. I really don't know how to handle a wounded person. I'll only make things worse."

"I'm scared of blood! I hate the sight of it!"

"He's is such bad shape, he'll probably die anyway - so what's the point of wasting everyone's time?"

"The Levite was just behind me. He'll probably handle this case better than me, so I might as well leave it to him."

"I'm a priest - my job is to pray for the sick!"

Don't all these excuses sound familiar? Whenever we see someone in need of help (eg. a newcomer in church, someone new in our fellowship group, a shy person, a socially awkward person, a foreigner, a hurt person), we immediately "dig into" our bag of excuses and we are can always find one that will not only soothe our conscience but also make us look good in man's eyes.

Be a good Samaritan: The good Samaritan saw a wounded man in need of help and realized that he had been placed in a position to help. He didn't see a person of a different race (who despised him), or a different religion (who called him a religious compromiser), or a helpless person who could not repay him, or someone he could "hand over" to someone else to take care of but he simply saw a God-given responsibility to help. By the way the Samaritan continued to help this wounded man, it seems to me that he felt more than just a sense of responsibility to help but also saw it as a series of opportunities to grab - and he grabbed them!

The Real GOOD SAMARITAN: I don't believe that the Lord was describing Himself in this parable. However, though it is not the intent of this parable to describe Him, we can see many parallels between the good Samaritan and the Lord.

We were "dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph 2:2), through our own sins. The Lord was not merely passing by but He left heaven to come to the Cross for us. Though we rejected Him (in many cases, we rejected him repeatedly), He saved us. He did not pay money but with His life and His blood.

Conclusion: Let's stop acting blur and giving excuses! Let's follow the example of the Good Samaritan and go out of our way to help "our neighbour." Remembering that whoever is in need is our neighbour!