The good Samerican

Richard Frazer Jan. 23, 2022

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What's not to love about the story of the Good Samaritan? It has all the features readers love to experience: A problematic beginning; drama; tragedy; injustice; controversy; resolve; an unforgettable moral; the personal challenge.

The story (we don't really know if it's a parable or not, so I am going to treat it as if it really happened) has a prelude that is as vital to the narrative as is the story. A lawyer, one who was steeped in the Law of the Jews and all the writings related to it, in an effort to test Jesus, asks him the question every Jewish person knew the answer to: "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (Remember that lawyers never ask questions for which they do not already know answers).

Jesus likely grinned, having dealt with tricksters like this before, and in typical rabbinic fashion, turned the question back to the questioner: "What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?" Like the Teacher's Pet in the front row, I'm guessing the lawyer was all too eager to spout the answer and shine before the crowd.

Quoting the Bible (as all good religious people do), he responds with the "right" answer: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself."

After acknowledging the lawyer for the textbook answer, Jesus admonished him with the instruction, "Do this, and you will live."

If the conversation ended there, it may have not been worthy of being inked in holy writ. The snobbish expert in all controversies rabbinical then throws out the "gotcha" question in an effort to get Jesus off His game:

"And who is my neighbor – you know, according to YOU?"

At this point, I will assume the reader knows where the plot goes from there (Luke 10:34-37). Not moved by the questioner's query nor motive, Jesus weaves this epic narrative.

Undoubtedly, the message of the Good Samaritan demands a suitable and timely response in this season of unprecedented pain and struggle. We who are in America and other Western countries have had numerous safety nets to fall into during the global COVID-19 pandemic: PPP loans; unemployment benefits; shots and masks; therapeutics, etc.

The rest of the world, however, doesn't have such backup. Man and women are unable to earn a living due to industry shut downs. Families are food insecure because they have no means to purchase groceries. Prices are escalating, some as much as 50 percent. They are desperate.

Suicide rates are reaching unprecedented levels. We know that some parents are selling their own children to feed the rest of their family.

We in the West are faced with a mental and spiritual battle. Though there are plenty of justifications for "walking on the other side," not the least of which is feeling we need to cover our home (church or ministry) base before stretching our budgets and threatening our security to support or reach those in other countries, the moral of the story still grips our hearts and compels us to do something! Something radical. Something sacrificial. Something a Good Samerican would do.

To simplify a healthy response based on the account of the Good Samaritan, here are five steps "Good Samericans" can take to love their less-fortunate global neighbors.

1. Pray for compassion.Bravo if you have it. If you don't, ask God to break your heart with the things that break His. Compassion will guide your heart to do something.

2. Open your eyes to the needs that exist outside your present spheres of awareness. Discover your global neighbors. Compassion summons us to peer into uncharted territory. Be ready for the adventure!

3. Be wise in the ways you invest your resources. Maximize the actual advantage to those in need. Compassion can be dangerous if not coupled with discernment. Not every charity deserves your support. If you need help with this, ask one of your pastors, a mission team member, your favorite mission-person or known indigenous person(s) what needs exist. Don't assume you know!

4. Follow-up to discover if the need for assistance is prolonged or persistent. A special gift provides much-needed immediate relief, but also consider regular support.

5. Invite others to join you in the work. Wisely, the Good Samaritan enlisted the partnership of the innkeeper. Being "Good Samaricanish" with your friends, small group, staff or business will help you do MORE together and will be more enjoyable!

My favorite reason to love this story is the strong inference that the beaten and destitute man survived and lived to see another day because one person had the compassion and means to truly love his neighbor as himself.

Let that person be you! Let that ministry be yours! "Go and keep doing the same."

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Rich Frazer is President of Spiritual Overseers Service (SOS) International, a global training ministry equipping indigenous ministry leaders. He holds a Doctorate of Ministry with an emphasis on training ministry leaders to upcycle declining churches. Learn More »

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