SCRIPTURE: Luke 10:29-37
“But he wanted to justify himself… The one who had mercy on him.” (Luke 10:29,37)
Notice the direction of the heart: one wants to justify himself, the other has mercy on another.
The first is self-focused, the second is other-focused.
Looking out for number 1, or looking out to the interests of others.
What is especially biting in this story is who is self-focused, and who is other-focused.
You would think it would be the religious people (priest, levite) looking out for others.
And those accursed samaritans would never do something like this (or so a Jew might think).
But this is exactly Jesus’ point, a very sad point.
Another irony in this story is that the key to being justified is mercy, God’s mercy for us.
What do I sense the Lord saying to me in this?
Is there a way where I am more concerned with justifying myself, rather than helping others?
Am I quicker to justify NOT helping others, than I am to help others?
** ‘It might be dangerous’, ‘I don’t have the time or money or ability to help’, ‘someone else is already helping’ **
Today I am going to look for people in need, and then hear the Lord say to me, “Go and do likewise!”
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, thank You that I don’t have to justify myself. Thank you for having mercy on me. Please give me an opportunity today to ‘go and do likewise’.