“Always have a willing hand to help someone, you might be the only one that does.” (Roy Bennett)
Luke
10:30-37, the Passion Translation
Jesus
replied, “There was once a Jewish man traveling from Jerusalem to
Jericho when bandits robbed him along the way. They beat him severely, stripped
him naked, and left him half dead. “Soon, a Jewish priest walking down
the same road came upon the wounded man. Seeing him from a distance, the priest
crossed to the other side of the road and walked right past him, not turning to
help him one bit.
“Later, a religious man, a Levite, came
walking down the same road and likewise crossed to the other side to pass by
the wounded man without stopping to help him. “Finally, another man, a
Samaritan, came upon the bleeding man and was moved with tender compassion
for him. He stooped down and gave him first aid, pouring olive oil
on his wounds, disinfecting them with wine, and bandaging them to
stop the bleeding. Lifting him up, he placed him on his own donkey and brought
him to an inn.
Then
he took him from his donkey and carried him to a room for the
night. The next morning he took his own money from his wallet and
gave it to the innkeeper with these words: ‘Take care of him until I come back
from my journey. If it costs more than
this, I will repay you when I return.’ So, now, tell me, which one of the
three men who saw the wounded man proved to be the true neighbor?” The
religious scholar responded, “The one who demonstrated kindness and mercy.”
Jesus said, “Go and do the same as he.”
Today, a Good Samaritan is someone who
voluntarily helps someone else who is in distress. The term "Good
Samaritan" comes from the above parable.
Did you know that Good Samaritan laws protect caregivers from prosecution
for medical mistakes as long as the caregivers are acting in a voluntary manner
without any expectation of reward? The protection that Good Samaritan laws
provide is not unlimited and is different from state to state.
Good Samaritan laws are not meant to protect
unpaid rescuers from making any and all mistakes possible. Laws usually state
that caregivers can't make gross medical errors, but instead are protected from
liability for reasonable mistakes. The idea is that any actions a
caregiver takes are judged against the reasonable person standard. As long as
whatever actions the Good Samaritan took were within whatever the judge or jury
in a civil trial thinks is reasonable person behavior, he or she will usually
be protected. If the Good Samaritan makes outrageous mistakes (known in legal
circles as gross negligence) and harms the patient, he or she could still be liable.
Good Samaritan laws were initially intended
to protect physicians and others with medical training. Over time, court
decisions and legislative changes have helped some laws evolve to include
untrained rescuers who render aid. There are several versions of Good Samaritan
laws. Some Good Samaritan
laws still protect only medically trained rescuers, while others offer
protection to any Good Samaritan. Keep in mind, there's never any liability for
reporting an injury to the authorities and letting professionals take care of
it.
Here are five ways Christians can use the
parable of the Good Samaritan for life inspiration:
Generosity-Christians are
called to live generous lives, both in meeting the physical needs of others and
in your outpouring of compassion for your neighbors. The Samaritan man gave
what he had. God promises the more you share the more you have. Putting
aside worry to care for others first models trust in God.
He asks us to love our
neighbor as yourself and is the great Provider you can trust in to make it
happen. The goal is not to get something in return for helping one
another, but trusting God enough to let go of what you have in order to do so
being a good steward of what He’s provides you with.
No hesitation-Jesus affects the
way you see those around us. Trust God to give you courage when you are
convicted to help. The Samaritan man wasn’t prepared with a medical kit in case
he crossed paths with someone who needed bandaging. He gave of what he had. He
chose to invest in the struggling stranger.
You may quote
scripture and recite platitudes on love and God, but unless you are willing to
get involved in the lives of others. Your efforts are useless. The Good
Samaritan had compassion, and he acted on it. Since the man was robbed, the Good
Samaritan probably put himself in danger of meeting the same fate. Love is
something you do. It doesn’t just say, ‘A shameful “I’m sorry. Isn’t that too
bad?” Love captures the moment for good.
Observation-You can take notice
of the people God places in your life. Both those who encourage and help you
and those who need your help and encouragement. The neighbor you’re called to
love is often not the one you choose but the one God chooses for you.
Scripture says the man on the side of the road appeared dead, a condition that
would make a religious authority ritually unclean (Leviticus
21:1-3).
The priest in the
parable let his holiness hold him back from helping. He didn’t want to be
stained by the stuff of life. When you live a lifestyle of avoidance, you try
to keep all your relationships superficial. If you can keep everyone at arm’s
length, you can pretend you don’t see their pain and their needs. If you don’t
get involved, you can avoid getting hurt or inconvenienced.
Prayerful preparation-A disciplined life
of prayer will
allow seeing people from God’s perspective, and fighting any fear holding you
back from taking immediate action. Pray that your eyes be open to see people in
need. God is faithful to reveal them. When you do take notice of someone in
need, it’s not just your action that needs to be immediate in aid, but your
prayer. It's only humanly possible to help someone to a certain extent, so you
need to allow God into the moment through prayer. You need to remember God’s limitless power when any
situation looks impossible.
Reflection and gratitude-You resist the
cultural urge to frame those struggling with challenges as soft or weak.
Suffering from the consequence of their own decisions doesn’t afford you the
right to love them any less. You’ve made bad decisions, suffered through your
own consequences, or been hurt at the hands of another.
Let gratitude for the
people God has in place in your life to pull you through, and energize your
love for them now. Remembering keeps you humble, and reminds you to be grateful
as you pass it on. Instead of convincing yourself you don’t have the time or
the means to help, focus prayerfully on allowing God to show you how He wants you
to love those suffering around you.
“The first
question which the priest and the Levite asked was: 'If I stop to help this
man, what will happen to me?' But... the Good Samaritan reversed the question:
'If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?’” (Martin Luther King, Jr.)[i]
[i] Adapted from:
· “5 Ways Christians Can Apply the Parable of the Good
Samaritan Today” by Meg Bucher
· “Do All States Have Good Samaritan
Laws?” by Rod Brouhard
· “Medical Definition of Good Samaritan”
by Charles Patrick Davis
Modern-day Good Samaritan
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