LUKE 10:33

As Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan, He informs the readers that when the Samaritan came to where the wounded victim lay, “when he saw him, he had compassion on him” (v.33). He was inwardly moved, so touched by the suffering and helplessness of what he saw that he could not leave him there without tending to his wounds and then get him to a place where he knew he would be further helped. There was no way he could have done like the priest and the Levite – see this man’s plight and plainly refuse to help. They deliberately, coldheartedly passed by on the other side. The church must have compassion.

Compassion compels us to show kindness. It drives us to show mercy. It incites us to lend a helping hand. It causes us to alleviate the suffering of others. It makes us really see others and enables us to empathize. It forces us to get involved. It makes us more like Jesus.

The words of Jesus are very deliberate and telling. Jesus tells us and he “went to him” (v.34). Sometimes we are waiting for people to come to us, when in truth and indeed they can hardly even come or cry out for help. It is our duty to go, to go and help them, to go and reach them, to find them. The church is not to avoid and bypass people but to intentionally go toward them, to become engaged and enmeshed in their pain and hurt.

It is noteworthy that after initially responding to this man’s needs, by pouring in the oil and wine, the Samaritan went further. He then picked him up and set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn, and further took care of him. How many of us would have done that to a perfect stranger, of a different race, nationality, religion, and background?

We must acknowledge that the church is obligated to care for and mandated by our Master to painstakingly minister to “others,” even those referred to as undocumented. Like the good Samaritan, we must be so moved by the pain and grief of others to the point of inconveniencing ourselves to help, even at our own expense. There is no way we can see so many broken and wounded lives all around and pretend not to see. We cannot pass by on the other side!