Luke 10:30
Topic : LukeWhich Was a Neighbor'
A certain woman driving alone from Washington to Richmond, ran over a spike which punctured her tire and left her stranded. In distress, she raised the hood of her car and tied a scarf to the door handle; then she locked the doors and sat in the car praying for the Lord to send help.
By chance there came a limousine with a bumper sticker that read, “Smile, God Loves You.” When the occupants saw the stranded woman, they passed by in the far lane without even smiling.
Also, there came a sports car with a CB radio and a bumper sticker saying, “Honk If You Love Jesus.” The driver passed by in the far lane without even honking or using his CB to tell the highway patrol about the woman’s dilemma.
A certain workman, when he saw the raised hood and scarf, come to the spot where the woman was, with compassion. He stopped his old pickup, which had no bumper stickers, crossed the four-lane highway and offered to change the tire.
The woman tried to pay the workman, but he refused the money saying, “If my wife were stranded on the highway, I’d want some good Samaritan to stop and help her out.” And again he crossed the four-lane highway, got into his bumper-stickerless truck, smiled and honked at her, and went on his way to work. Which now of these three was a neighbor unto her that had a flat'
The Law
Lawyer: I’d keep the Law if I could, but I can’t because it’s unclear.
Neighbor: I see a need, recognize it, am able to meet it, and respond to it.
The Beggar
On 9-8-82 I saw a man, Jimmy Packer, outside a Safeway store, asking for $1 for wine. Usually I’d brush by or give him a quarter to rid myself of the nuisance, but I told him, “I need to run an errand. If you’re still here in 5 minutes and want to dry out, I’ll take you to a 24-hour house where they can help you. He was. I did.
Mother of the Salvation Army
Catherine Booth was the “mother” of the Salvation Army. “Wherever Catherine Booth went,” said Campbell Morgan, “humanity went to hear her. Princes and princesses merged with paupers and prostitutes.”
One night, Morgan shared in a meeting with Mrs. Booth; and a great crowd of “publicans and sinners” was there. Her message brought many to Christ.
After the meeting, Morgan and Mrs. Booth went to be entertained at a fine home; and the lady of the manor said, “My dear Mrs. Booth, that meeting was dreadful”
“What do you mean, dearie?” asked Mrs. Booth.
“Oh, when you were speaking, I was looking at those people opposite to me. Their faces were so terrible, many of them. I don’t think I shall sleep tonight!”
“Why, dearie, don’t you know them?” Mrs. Booth asked; and the hostess replied, “Certainly not!”
“Well, that is interesting,” Mrs. Booth said. “I did not bring them with me from London; they are your neighbors!”
