Divine Detours and the Message of Christmas “A priest…passed by. A levite…passed by. A Samaritan….saw the man, he felt sorry for him. He went to him, poured olive oil and wine on his wounds and bandaged them.” Luke 1o:25-26
It is easy to overlook the powerful impact this passage can have on our lives and ministries if we only think of it as, “a Bible story for children.” I’m sure the Priest and Levite were both good, upstanding members of their communities. I’m sure they were on their way to do something, “important.” But, by failing to stop and show compassion, they missed an opportunity to do the most important thing. It is good to be goal-oriented but we have to remember that our highest goal is to, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Love him with all your strength and with all your mind.’ ( Deuteronomy 6:5) And, ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’” ( Leviticus 19:18) (Luke 10:27). If this is our highest goal, then we will be able to keep our eyes open for the special opportunities that God places along our paths to be the gloves that Jesus wears as He touches the lost and broken through us. This is the essence of the Christmas Message: “The Word became a human being. He made His home with us. We have seen His glory.” (John 1:14a) Jesus did not allow His Divinity to prevent Him from taking on Humanity. Likewise, the Good Samaritan did not allow his Ethnicity to be an excuse to avoid his duty to Humanity. Therefore, we cannot make any similar excuses (socio-economic, political, or racial etc.) for failing to reflect God’s love for our neighbors in the whole world. As we love God with all of our lives and love our neighbors as we love ourselves, we are reflecting the glory of Jesus Christ who was born to make His home with us and in us and He will touch others through us. Merry CHRIST mas!
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