Bigger Than Our Words
Luke 10:26-29 (ESV) 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
This passage goes into Jesus’ parable of the “good” Samaritan to describe how one is to live a good life. The parable describes how a Jewish man was attacked by robbers and left on the side of the road, half dead. A Jewish priest and a Levite both walked by the man, showed no mercy or love, and left the poor man to die. But a Samaritan happened to journey by, and saw the injured man, and he showed compassion and love for him. He stopped, cared for him, and even paid for his care. Jesus concludes this parable by identifying the Samaritan as one who is merciful and loving and has acted as a true son of Yahweh.
Samaritans and Jewish people did not care for each other and were considered enemies. In fact, for a Samaritan to care for a Jew was unheard of. This Samaritan was not acting as someone led by customs, religion, or societal norms, but by the Spirit. He was a son who had the heart of Christ. In fact, the priest or Levite should have been the one to care for a fellow Jew, but they were more concerned with themselves, and they were not led by the Spirit. They may have looked good externally and held important titles, but their character was flawed and not aligned as a son of God. Their words were bigger than their actions.
As stated in Luke 10:26–28, Christ wants us to love God with everything and others as ourselves. This is a true indication of sonship and life with Yahweh. So, as you start your day, consider those around you, even those you do not know very well. Do you have mercy for them? Do you extend patience and love? Let our actions speak bigger than our words.