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October 22, 2006
B-Pentecost 20 (Every Member a Missionary #3)
Luke 10:25-37
Pastor Robert Raasch

Let Love React

1. What does God require?
2. What has Christ done?
3. How does love show?

Have you noticed that for three weeks in a row, our worship services here at Mount Olive have focused on the idea that every member is in fact, a missionary? Two weeks ago Pastor Zank preached a sermon on Jesus calling people to follow him. But everyone that Jesus invited had an excuse. "I need to first do this or first do that." Jesus' word: "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." The point was this: God is calling us all to leave behind the various distractions in life, the misplaced priorities and instead focus on our true purpose in life, namely, the rescue of lost souls. The theme that week: "Don't look back." Then last week Pastor Berger shared with us the account of Jesus' sending out his 72 disciples. Remember, Jesus told them not to take along a purse, or bag or an extra pair of sandals, but rather just go with the power of the gospel. The point was, "don't get too attached to the stuff of his world. Rather use worldly wealth to bring more people into contact with the life-saving Word. The theme that week: "Don't over-pack."

Okay, so it's: "Don't Look Back." "Don't Over Pack." The third thing we want to keep in mind as we consider the thought, "Every member a missionary," is our theme for today, namely, "Let Love React." Our Scripture lesson today reminds us that our concern for people's physical and spiritual needs is in fact a response to God's love for us. Here, in Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan, the Lord teaches us to:

Let Love React

For us to get the most out of this text, we need to consider three questions:

1. What does God require?
2. What has Christ done?
3. How does love show?

First, what does God require? Isn't that basically the question that the expert in Jewish law asked Jesus? "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" In other words, what are God's minimum daily requirements for me to get into heaven? Jesus' answer, in effect, "You tell me. What does the Law of Moses say?" The man replies, "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 "Love your neighbor as yourself." Jesus' response? "You have answered correctly." But what does Jesus go on to say? "Do this and you will live." Uh-oh. Wait a minute. What does that mean? Or as the lawyer puts it, exactly "Who is my neighbor?"

Well, in order to answer that question for him and for us, Jesus tells this story of a man who was heading from Jerusalem to Jericho. On the way, he was beaten and robbed and left for dead. You heard what happened. First, the priest ignored him. Then the Levite, that is, a temple worker, ignored him. They both passed by on the other side. Maybe they felt they had more important things to do, more religious obligations to carry out. Maybe they felt they couldn't commit the time needed to help this man. Maybe they were afraid they'd be putting their own lives in danger. Whatever their motivation was, love for someone in need is not one of them.

There was, however, one who did show that kind of love. Jesus says that a Samaritan took pity on the assault victim. Even though he was of a different race, a different culture, maybe even a different language or religion, still he went out of his way to help this beaten man. He administered first aid, gave up his own donkey for the man to ride on, brought him to the local motel. And then he opened his wallet and pulled out the equivalent of two days pay (in today's dollars, what $150-200?) And as if that weren't enough, he says, in effect, "Here's my credit card. Whatever this man needs-put it on my bill. I'll pay it all when I return."

My friends, do you realize that Jesus told that story for more than just the benefit of the lawyer? He told it for our benefit too. He invites each one of us to ask, "Which of these three am I? When I see someone who's in need, someone who's hurting, someone who needs help, be it physically or emotionally or spiritually-do I set aside what I'm doing and go to them as this Samaritan did? Do I make sacrifices for people who can't pay me back? Or do I act like the priest or Levite? I maintain an air of aloofness. I avoid getting involved. I rationalize that I have better things to do with my time or my money. I close my eyes. I shut my heart and pass by on the other side. And in so doing, I prove that I am not the neighbor that God requires me to be.

I don't know about you, but as I look at the three men in this story, I realize that I've acted a lot more like the Priest and Levite than the Samaritan. I realize how easy it is to get wrapped up in my own little world and think only about my responsibilities, my schedule, my comfort zone. In fact, if you're like me, the more you think of the times you've ignored the needs of others, the more it hurts. You feel like you're being beaten down by the accusations of a guilty conscience. In fact, maybe right now you feel a little like the traveler in Jesus' parable. You feel like you've been attacked and left for dead.

But, my friends, isn't that where the second question comes into play? Namely, II. What has Christ Done? If you think about it, hasn't Jesus been the Good Samaritan to you and me? No matter how bad we looked-beaten, bloodied and covered with the filth of our sins, Jesus did not turn his eyes away from us. He didn't point fingers, "Okay, whose fault is this?" He didn't try to pass the responsibility to someone else. "I'm note helping those losers." No, rather, Jesus first took pity on us. His heart went out to us and then he put his love into action. He came to our side and bandaged our wounds. How does Isaiah put it? "By his wounds, we are healed." Jesus poured out his life blood to make us whole again. He wrapped us in his love and affection. He placed us into the seat that he deserves to have and promises to transport us to a heavenly dwelling where we will enjoy eternal rest and healing.

In other words, Jesus did whatever it takes. He went the distance to rescue you and me from eternal death. And in so doing, he showed us what true love really is. How does St. John put it? "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us (1 John 3:16)." You want to talk about the ultimate Good Samaritan. Here he is: Jesus Christ, going to the cross to rescue you and me.

And what effect does that love have on our lives? St. John tells us in his first epistle, "Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." Which brings us to the third question: III. How does Love Show? In other words, when we recognize the love that God has shown to us, how is that love translated into our love for our neighbor? What does it mean to love our neighbor? Well, based on the parable that Jesus told of the Good Samaritan, it means three things. Loving our neighbor means, Opening our eyes. It means not looking the other way when we see people in need, but rather, scanning our surroundings, looking for the coworker who's hurting, the family member who feeling beaten down, the stranger who needs our help. Secondly, it means opening our hearts. It means allowing ourselves to care about those who are less fortunate. It means being genuinely concerned about their physical and spiritual needs. And finally, loving our neighbor means opening our hands. Think of the Samaritan. He didn't just think about his neighbor or pray about him. He did something for him. He bandaged his wounds; he carried him to an inn and then he opened his wallet. He took the money God had given him and used it to provide for the needs of this stranger.

Now, tell me, do you think that Samaritan did all those things because he felt pressured to? Was he coerced into helping that man? Did he resent the sacrifices he made for the man? Absolutely not. He did it because he wanted to. He did it because that's what love does. Love reacts.

My friends, isn't the same thing true in our lives? You and I have experienced God's love in Christ. We know the sacrifice that Jesus made to set us free. And now that we know that, it can't help but change our lives. Suddenly, we see that the offering we give to church is not merely something we do because everyone else is doing it. Rather, it's an expression of who we are. We don't give because we have to or because we're coerced to. We give because we truly want to. We find great joy in, as Paul puts it, "growing in the grace of giving." I know the world says, "That's foolishness-to find joy in devoting a larger portion of your hard earned money to the Lord, to find pleasure in a larger gift to the Lord each year." But you and I as precious children of God don't see things the way the world sees things. We don't see ourselves as containers for God's blessings. Rather, we see ourselves as channels for God's blessings. Do you know the difference between the two major bodies of water in Palestine? One sea, the Sea of Galilee, has an inlet and an outlet. Water flows in and water flows out. The sea is alive and full of fish. The other sea only has water coming in. No water flows out. The name of that sea is the Dead Sea. Christians, God has made you the Sea of Galilee. He's designed you to have his blessings flow through you. And in so doing, he does extraordinary things through ordinary people.

And please don't underestimate God's power to do extraordinary things in and through you. Don't be surprised when God moves you to say, "You know, I think I'd like to start writing a little larger check to church each week." Or, "you know, maybe we should think about including the Lord's work in our will." Don't be surprised if God's love for you prompts you to say, "Maybe there is someone I could reach out to. Maybe I could try helping out in that ESL class. Maybe I should invite that co-worker to come to Bible class with me. Maybe I could pay a visit on someone in the nursing home, or send a sympathy card to someone who's just lost a loved one."

My friends, these are the kinds of things that God's love prompts us to do. God's love in Christ makes us people we never thought we could be. God's love allows us to find joy in serving the needs of others. God's love recreates us in his image; it sets us apart for his purpose; it makes us his missionaries to a world that desperately needs to experience more of that love. Let's face it. God's not going to send angels into the world to show people his love. Instead, he's going to send you and me. And because God has given us his unconditional love in Christ, there is nobody who's better equipped to love our neighbors, in thought, word and deed, than you and me, the precious, redeemed sons and daughters of Him who has given us everything, in Jesus Christ. Amen.