Special Sunday Edition
Ethan Barton, Pastoral Resident, Tallowood Baptist Church
“I love Jesus and all, I just can’t stand people.” Have you ever heard another Christian say that? It’s a mindset that’s typical to more of us than we may imagine. I myself am guilty of it embarrassingly often. But it can never work that way. According to Jesus himself, love of God and love of people are inextricably linked.
Who is my neighbor? That is, what people should I, as a lover of God, also be loving? In typical Jesus fashion, he answers in a bigger way than was expected. In this parable, which has since become one of Jesus’ most famous, a man desperately needs a neighbor. Two men—a priest and a Levite, both of whom are fully dedicated to serving the Lord and ministering to people—pass him by. After all, they didn’t know who he was, and they could become legally unclean if they touched what might be a dead body, and it was a bad time because they were busy doing their duties before God, and a million other excuses. Excuses are easy to make! If we’re honest, most of us would do the same. Our interpretations of God’s instruction to love tend to match what happens to be convenient.
But not for the Samaritan. In spite of all the excuses he undoubtedly also could have made, he acts. He sacrifices effort, money, inconvenience, and time out of his day, without expecting it to ever be given back. He loves the man that desperately needs a loving neighbor. He loves the way Jesus loves.
There are billions of people that desperately need a neighbor. Jesus has called us to make those sacrifices and be that neighbor. As the beloved disciple writes in 1 John 4:20, anyone who says “I love Jesus, I just can’t stand people” is a liar. If you don’t love God’s people, you can’t love God. Yes, it’s blunt—and it leaves no room for excuses! Love of God and love of people are inextricably linked. Let us worship our Lord by sacrificing our time and convenience and even resources to love even the lowest of those around us.
