Let's be a Good Samaritan unto each other!

Our Lord wants us, His disciples to be “Good Samaritans” (Luke 10:25-37).  He wants us to put into practice Proverbs 25:21-22 which says: “If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.” Jews only saw other Jews as their neighbors. Jesus challenges this assumption, and exhorts His disciples to show compassion for all, regardless of class, color or creed. We need to think of a group that may be despised or ostracized in our society and then go out of our way to show mercy. Our neighbors are the people who may be ethnically, religiously, morally, and nationally different than we are. And these are the very people God says we must love as ourselves. National and racial differences are irrelevant in the kingdom of God. We are to treat people who are as irreconcilable to us as Samaritans were to Jews, the very way that we would wish to be treated. To live the agape life means to forgive one another and to bless one another. agape living implies praying for one another in the Name of Jesus Christ. agape rejects all evil, does good only. agape rejects lies, hypocrisy, and deception but rejoices in the Truth, Joy, and Peace. agape living is sacrificial unconditional loving. It is loving everyone including enemies, like Jesus Christ did and the Good Samaritan followed.

(I Corinthians 13:4-8)