(Luke 10:31) Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
The story of the Good Samaritan is a good reminder for us to reach out to others who are in need. But as you get into the story you have to ask yourself why did the priest and Levite not help the guy who was mugged? I would suppose that it was the same reason we fail to help others in need. It’s usually because of THE SIN OF CONVENIENCE.
The SIN OF CONVENIENCE usually happens when we are so busy and make the accomplishment of our goals supreme. We have our daily list and it’s important for us to finish before the end of the day. We typically pack our roster so full of to do’s that when we see a need we categorize it as an interruption or a bother. If we do help it’s with a huff and a puff. With such sacrifices God is not well pleased because God loves us to give with a cheerful heart. (2 Cor 9:7)
We live in a driven society. It’s hard to start and stop to meet the needs of others when you have this built up energy inside of you. We are like a bullet train striving to meet our destination as fast as we can with as little disruptions as possible. I guess we should be more like a metro train that determines there will be asides along the way.
Now let’s be practical. We live in the West and it’s unfair to compare ourselves with other countries that are more casual in their societal orientation. It’s true other cultures esteem people over appointments. They stop and chat and don’t care about their destination while they are engaging. But where we live we have calendars and schedules and appointments to keep. There’s nothing really wrong with that, I guess. It’s the way we are set up to operate. But we have to remember there may be inherent weaknesses in a society that we need to take a look at every now and then to make some necessary adjustments.
The Good Samaritan was inconvenienced. Think of all he lost that day. He lost time and he lost money. Who knows what else he had to give up in his schedule? But think of what he gained that day. He gained a good sense of wellbeing for doing something right. You always feel right after doing something right. What he gained was far greater than what he lost. The problem with us is that we are so selfish. It’s all about me and it’s me first. We get what we want and end up being so unhappy as a result.
Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13) He said that if you do service to one of the least of these you do it unto Him (Mat 25:31-46). Every time we reach out beyond ourselves, the Lord is blessed. What we do for others blesses the Lord’s heart especially when it involves sacrifice. With this in mind let’s avoid THE SIN OF CONVENIENCE and demonstrate the sacrificial love of Christ to others for His glory!
Louie