LEARNING DAILY

Luke 10:29, But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

Jesus had been confronted by a lawyer wanting to know what he had to do to gain eternal life. Jesus told him to love God and love your neighbor as yourself. From there the lawyer wanted to know who his neighbor was. The Bible tells us that the lawyer was testing Jesus; his question about his neighbor demonstrated that he had head knowledge about the Scriptures, but the Scriptures had never penetrated his heart.

Pastor Ed Newton related this to the story about the Good Samaritan; he said, “When Jesus talked about the Good Samaritan, He was really talking about Himself.” He continued by talking about a priest who walked by the beaten man and that doing so did not line up with what he taught in the temple’ Jesus also spoke of a Levite who would not help him because it would have made him unclean. Pastor pointed out that it is one thing to talk the name of Jesus but to not act like Him is another thing. Pastor Newton said the Samaritan “sounded and acted like Jesus”.

The Samaritan saw the injured man and had compassion on him. He went to him and took care of him and then took him to a house of healing. In addition to doing that the Samaritan paid the full price for the man’s healing and recovery. Pastor said, Jesus sees our condition; He sees each of us for who we are and has compassion on each of us. There is not one person who is so unclean or full of sin that Jesus cannot change them by His compassion. Through the stripes He was given He heals us of our transgressions, and by going to the cross in our place, He has paid the full price for whosoever believes in Him would enter into His kingdom for eternity.

Pastor spoke of this as sacrificial love (Listener Guide). In this process every Believer has to be able to see themselves as Jesus sees them. The Samaritan showed mercy – every Believer is to do the same (Luke 10:37). “Every believer needs to see others as Jesus sees us” (Pastor Newton). 2 Corinthians 1:4 tells us, “so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God”. Comfort is being able to rest because God carries one’s burdens and gives the strength to keep going. When Believers help one another go through situations, it helps “lighten their load” (Listener Guide). If you have experienced God’s comfort and the help of a Believer as you went through a trial, you know the importance of being able to help others.

The target statement on the Listener Guide said we need to see ourselves correctly in order to love God fully. Going back to the Samaritan, Pastor Newton stated, “The Samaritan saw the injured man, he had compassion, bound up his wounds, set him on his own animal, took him to an inn, and took care of him.” He related this to Jesus seeing each of us – “we need to see ourselves as valuable, so valuable that Jesus went to a cross in our place”. When we do not see ourselves with a healthy self-love, we become people pleasers and become controlled by them.” Who is better able to express how God comforted them, supported them when they could not carry themselves, than those who have experienced it. The Takeaway Statement from the Listener Guide states: “But godly self-love embraces grace, healing, and stewardship, allowing us to love others from a place of wholeness rather than neediness”.