Love People to New Life in Christ
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
“One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him a question: ‘Teacher, what must I do to receive eternal life?’ Jesus replied, ‘What does the Law of Moses say?’ The man answered, ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ AND ‘Love your neighbor AS yourself!’ ‘That’s right!’ said Jesus. ‘Do this and you’ll live!’ But the man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, ‘So who is my neighbor?’
Jesus answered by telling a story...”
Luke 10:25-29 (NLT)
We are all called to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and make disciples. We have been commissioned as the church to do so. One of City Church’s mission statements is to love people to new life in Christ.
As we love people to new life in Christ, we must be aware of the sin people must overcome. While sin can make us feel far from God, we are never far from God because God is always with us.
From the Parable of the Good Samaritan, we learn three attitudes that people display toward their neighbors:
An attitude of avoidance. It is an attitude where we keep our distance from others. “There was a man who was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when robbers attacked him, stripped him, and beat him up, leaving him half dead. It so happened that a Priest was going down that road; but when he saw the man, he walked on by on the other side.” Luke 10:30-31 (NIV).
Curious but uninvolved towards our neighbors.
“In the same way a Levite also came there, went over and looked at the man, but then walked on by on the other side.” Luke 10:32 (NIV).
Treat them how we would want to be treated. This reflects an attitude of gratitude.
“But a Samaritan who was traveling that way came upon the man, and when he saw him, his heart was filled with pity.” Luke 10:33 (NIV)
“Always treat others as you would like them to treat you.” Matthew 7:12 (NIV).
So, how do we start loving our neighbors to a new life in Christ?
Seeing their need. Our world has become so fast-paced that if we are not careful, we become blind to the needs of our neighbors. God sees the needs of people so should we. “The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others...harvests a crop of weeds. All he’ll have to show for his life is weeds!” Galatians 6:7b (MSG). We should be a church that slows down and sees how Jesus sees.
Sympathizing with their pain. Empathy starts with the heart, and that comes with listening. Christians often need to improve at seeing and listening. We need to see people and hear them in their pain. “When he saw him, his heart was filled with compassion.” Luke 10:33 (ESV).
Seizing ministry moments. If we were to slow down, hear people, and empathize, we would be more likely to seize ministry moments. “Whenever we have the opportunity to help anyone, we should do it! But we should give special attention to those who are in the family of believers.” Galatians 6:10 (NCV).
Sowing sacrificially. We must be willing, as the church, to count the cost and pay the price. “Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. The next day he handed the innkeeper two pieces of silver and told him to take care of the man. ‘If his bill runs higher than that,’ he said, ‘I’ll pay the difference the next time I am here.’” Luke 10:34-35 (NLT). But, when we count the cost and pay the price, we cannot outgive God.
Pastor Kent’s son Tahj will be the fourth generation of Christian men in his family, and that is because a church Sunday school bus volunteer (not a professional minister) slowed down, invited Pastor Kent’s grandfather to church, and took him for a meal after church. What actions can we do today, which may cause us to slow down but will enable us to better love people to new life in Christ?