The parable of the Good Samaritan is one we are familiar with. We look at ourselves and admit at times we are like the priest and levite. There situations of pain and suffering that we ignore, for example the plight of refugees at the Chicago police stations. It’s not that we don’t want to help its just that we don’t know how. The problems are too big for little old me. Some official type person will have to take care of it. Other times we do in fact act the Good Samaritan. We reach out to a relative, friend or neighbor and extend ourselves in compassion. As the parable describes that is not a one off. The Good Samaritan not only does the immediate care but is enmeshed in the victim’s life. He provides for his ongoing treatment and promises to stay involved in the future. Today, however, it might be appropriate for us to identify with the crime victim himself. We are all feeling beat up and battered by circumstances and situations that drag us down. We are lying in a ditch waiting for deliverance. All of which serves as a reminder that the true Good Samaritan is Jesus. He loves us and cares for us and is enmeshed in our lives now and forever. In our prayer we turn to him with the blessed assurance that he can make a way out of no way.
