The Samaritan's Compassion: Rethinking Who Deserves Our Help

A religious scholar asks Jesus what must be done to inherit eternal life, setting the stage for one of Jesus' most profound teachings on compassion. When the scholar tries to limit his obligations by asking "Who is my neighbor?", Jesus responds with the parable of the Good Samaritan—a story that continues to challenge our assumptions about who deserves our care.

The parable follows a Jewish man who is beaten and left for dead on the dangerous road from Jerusalem to Jericho. A priest and Levite pass by without helping, prioritizing religious purity over human compassion. Shockingly, it's a Samaritan—someone from a despised group—who stops, provides first aid, transports the victim to safety, and pays for his ongoing care. Every action costs the Samaritan something: his oil, his wine, his donkey, his time, his money.

Throughout the sermon, Pastor Heather challenges us to examine where we've drawn boundaries around who deserves our compassion. Have we created theological, political, or social qualifications that justify walking past certain people's suffering?  

The heart of Jesus' teaching lies in his reframing of the scholar's question. Instead of defining who counts as a neighbor (who deserves our love), Jesus focuses on what it means to be a neighbor (demonstrating love regardless of who receives it). This shift from qualifying others to qualifying ourselves remains revolutionary in our divided world.

As we journey through Lent, let this parable inspire us to expand our hearts beyond comfortable boundaries. Where might God be calling you to show "tender compassion" to someone you've previously dismissed or avoided? What religious rules or personal convictions might actually be hindering you from embodying Christ's revolutionary love?

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In the service of LOVE,
Pastors Dennis and Heather Drake

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to the First Love Church Podcast.
This is a collection of Sundayteachings inspired by the
Revised Common Lectionary andrecorded weekly in Ocala,
florida.
If you came this morning andyou were full of great joy
because everything is workingout for you, then bless, then

(00:21):
bless.
We rejoice with you and we'reexcited for you, and we will be
here for you next week or whenlife gets you, whatever it is.
But we are grateful for you.
And this is the beauty of livinga deeply formed spiritual life
that, no matter what happens, nomatter what happens in your
life, things you can control,things you cannot control.

(00:43):
There is a way, there is a pathto stay in peace, to stay in
belovedness, to stay inremembering who we are and what
we have been called to do.
And so this morning, again, I'mso grateful that you're here.
This is the third Sunday ofLent, and sometimes Lent feels
long, just like sometimes winterfeels long.

(01:06):
Where are the promises ofresurrection, where are the
promises of a new world beingformed, of Christ coming and
being among us?
And so I am here to remind you,just like the beautiful equinox
that we all experienced, wherebalance comes comes where things
that were wrong come back intobalance.

(01:27):
And this is the beginning ofthis season, of this beautiful
season of lent, preparing ourhearts for resurrection.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
there's a hope in this practice you know, I would
like for you to to try to allowthis church service today and
and and the time when we get tomeet together, because there's a
corporate blessing, there'ssomething that happens when we
make the effort to join together.
Whether you're here online, wewelcome you as a part of our
church family.
But I know that there areunfinished things in people's

(01:59):
lives.
They're broken, they're barren,they're desert places.
There's dry places in people'slives and really Lent is there
to remind us that broken,they're barren, they're desert
places.
There's dry places in people'slives and really lent is there
to remind us that, that thatit's not that we did something
wrong.
It's a season, it's part of theexistence, but we can, through
the practices, get through itand get to the promise that god
has for us.

(02:19):
And hey, the blues, I haven'tseen you guys in forever.
Good to see you.
So I have a great illustrationthat happens every year.
We have, I have grape vines Iput in the back and we one time,
heather and I, were at one ofthese yard garden sales and they
were like, oh, we don't wantthese seven dollars for these

(02:39):
grapes.
And so we bought all thesegrapes and planted them.
Because when I was a little kidwe had a grapevine in the
backyard so I just put it up andwhat's happened is they say
you're supposed to prune themabout 80 or 90 percent back of
all those little vines.
So we do it, prune them allback.
And I gotta tell you right now,when you look at them, it
doesn't look good, it doesn'tlook hopeful for grapes to ever,

(03:03):
or for anything for that matter.
I mean, it's just a little rootcoming out of the ground, a few
little vines running acrosssome wire, but it doesn't fail
that by the middle of summer Ican't walk between them.
The branches are just goingeverywhere and the grapes are
hanging down from everywhere,are hanging down from everywhere
.
And you're like, how did naturejust take that barren, pruned,

(03:31):
dried up thing because of theseason it was in?
And we just kind of trust thatthat happens in nature, but we
forget that in our own livesthere are times where it's very
pruned back and it's verydifficult.
I remember so many struggleswhen Heather and I were first
married, just to put gas in thecar.
And some of you are in thatplace now and you think this is

(03:51):
life.
I'm going to tell you somethingthat there's a season and what
we do in that season.
We decided to serve God anywayand we decided to have those
kinds of principles as a familyand as a result of it we have a
beautiful little family and wesometimes have enough money to
put gas in the car and put gasin someone else's car.
And I'm telling you, thoseseasons change and there is

(04:16):
flourishing.
That happens.
And so when I see thatgrapevine every year it reminds
me of those spots in my lifethat have yet to receive that
season of harvest or increase.
But I know the God who set thatnature in motion and has
brought transformation in mylife so far, is faithful to

(04:36):
complete what God has begun inme and in you.
So if we can kind of rememberthat, I think that it helps
sustain us and encourage us inthose struggle times.
Right Amen.

Speaker 1 (04:46):
Yes, in the next few weeks there's a lot of things
that will be happening aroundhere.
One of the things that will behappening is on Friday night,
and you're welcome toparticipate with us, but we're
having a potluck fellowship atour house and we would love for
you to join us.
To join us, to join us, yousimply show up with something to
share.
It's kind of like how we doeverything here.
We all have something and wefind a way to share it, to

(05:09):
nourish each other and toencourage each other, but
there's something powerful aboutknowing and learning the story
of the person that sits next toyou or that attends church with
you or that you intend to workwith.
We have a beautiful invitation630.30 at our house bring
something delicious.
People often ask us well, whatshould I bring?

(05:30):
Whatever you love to eat, bringthat and share what you love.
Another beautiful thing that weget to do this week is outreach
here at the church on Wednesdayand we go to Harvey's
Fellowship of Homes, and it isagain our beautiful Savior's
plan for us to always be peoplewho are generous, particularly

(05:51):
who are people who are generousto the poor, to those who have
nothing, and this is aninvitation for us to join in
with the work of Christ, to joinin with the kingdom work, and
for us to feed our neighbors.

Speaker 2 (06:04):
We go to that place where folks are on a fixed
income and actually it needsfixing and they struggle, and
every month, by the end of themonth, they have nothing.
They're waiting for the checkto come in, because they're all
older, retired folks and sothey're waiting for that promise
to come in, because they're allold, older retired folks and so

(06:26):
they're waiting for thatpromise to come in.
But in the meantime there's alack of food.
So we try to go that last weekof the month and we're able to
bring frozen meat, fresh breadsand canned non-perishables and
things of that nature, and soGod provides that for us.

(06:46):
But what we really need issaints that would go along and
help us distribute it.
And it's not that it's all thatheavy, but I really think the
beautiful thing is knocking onsomeone's door, giving them the
grace to not say here's yourfood, but offer would you like
to have some food?
And then, when they say yes,say but really what I'd like to
do is could I pray with youabout anything?

(07:08):
And it's amazing how we've seenGod do healings at that time.
We've seen God really touchpeople in their families as
we'll pray for their childrenand children's children as we're
standing in those doorways andso it's a beautiful opportunity
to minister.
It's 11 o'clock at Harvey's.
I'll give you directions if youdon't know how to get there,

(07:30):
and we're done, and I meaninside of 30 minutes.
You, you can.
You can use your lunch time ifyou.
If you want to, you can fast inthat day anyway.
Right, as a church, we'refastened on Wednesday.
So take this Wednesday.
You know you're gonna eat, youcan fast on that day anyway.
Right, as a church, we'refasting on Wednesdays.
So take this Wednesday, we'regoing to eat lunch anyway.
So take that time and come helpus distribute that food.

(07:51):
And I thank you for those thatare faithful and come all the
time and for those that, whenyou can, I'm grateful for your
support and help in thatministry.
And then just know that, as yougive your regular tithes and
offerings at church and whywould you commit to helping a
church?
Uh, my, as a pastor, my familyand I have grown accustomed to

(08:13):
eating and uh, your giving uhsupports our, our, our ministry
and and it keeps the lights onhere and then allows us to do
things like that outreach andother things that we're doing on
a consistent basis.
So thank you for your faithfulgiving.
The offering boxes are by thedoor.
Use them for what they wereintended for and thank you for

(08:33):
that giving and thank you forbeing a part of outreach.
And even if you're not there,take that hour from 11 to 12 and
pray with us, because it's abeautiful opportunity and fun.

Speaker 1 (08:44):
From Proverbs 19, 19, verse 17 the one who is
gracious to the poor lends tothe lord, and the lord will
repay him for his good deeds.
From first john, chapter 3,verse 17.
But whoever has the world'sresources and sees his fellow
christian in need and shuts offhis compassion against him, how

(09:06):
can the love of God reside insuch a person?
Proverbs 14, 31,.
You insult your maker when youexploit the powerless, but when
you're kind to the poor, youhonor God.
These are the verses that andthere are over 2,000 in the

(09:26):
scriptures that tell us that itis our responsibility as people
who follow the way of Jesus, tobe people who are generous, but
we are also to be extremelyaware of the needs of the poor,
that we are to be the people whomake sure that there is food
that can be given.

(09:47):
In fact, one of the ordinancesof the house of the Lord, or how
someone would know that thiswas a tabernacle, that this was
where God was dwelling, was Goddemanded that there would be
bread in his house.
Now, I don't know if you knowthis, but there's always bread
here.
Now, we didn't intentionallyplan it like that, but we have
bread here.
But this is the way God said it, because if a foreigner comes

(10:10):
in and is hungry and has no oneto advocate for them, at least
they would be able to come to myhouse and receive bread.
If someone had everything andthen lost it one day, they would
be able to come to God's houseand say today, my family will
eat bread, for whatever yourtragedy was, god said, make sure
there's always bread in myhouse so that anyone who has

(10:32):
need can come.
Now, this is a beautiful thing,and I'm not saying that every
church has to be a part of this,but I'm just saying pay
attention, the bread is here Now.
The bread is not just for you,but it is for you to give to
other people.
And so this invitation,particularly in Lent, we focus
on the three pillars of whatJesus taught us when he was
saying if you're going to followme, this is what you're going
to do when you pray, when youfast and when you give.

(10:56):
And so this in us is aspiritual formation.
It creates in us a generositythat allows us to be grateful.
All of a sudden, we begin tosee things that we maybe did not
see without the practice ofgratitude, and it allows us to
remember that, because of thework of Christ, we are one.
We are one with everyone.

(11:17):
Jesus said this in John,chapter 17.
This was his prayer Lord, makeus one and let them know that
you love, that you love them asmuch as you love me, and that I
love them, and that there is alove that encompasses and that
asks us to all join in in thegoodness of others.

Speaker 2 (11:37):
You know, we do the outreach and have always done
outreaches since we've been atchurch, and we do them sometimes
where we knock on the doors andsometimes where we show up at
the truck and have people justhand out boxes.
One time we were doing thattype of an outreach and this guy
kept coming back and he wouldswitch his shirt as if I
couldn't tell it was the samedude.
I mean, come on, your silverfeelings in your teeth are not

(12:00):
changing.
That's you dude and a couple ofpeople were getting angry.
They were like this guy'sripping us off.
This guy keeps coming back.
And I thought about that and itwas such a good lesson for us
because we tend to think of thepoor and who we think deserves

(12:24):
our benevolence.
And then we could judge thatguy as if he's clever enough to
figure out how to get in theline three times, he's clever
enough to go somewhere and get ajob.
And why does he have to do thisline?
And you know, and come to findout, he's had a lot of kids at
the house and he was having ahard time and you know, I said
let's just let people have that.
Maybe they feel like they gotto get one over on the system,

(12:47):
whatever.
But at the same time, can um,can we trust um that, like you
know how, uh, in the bible theywould, they'd pray over a, a
piece of material and take ithome and it would bring healing
to someone.
Could our can of beans bringconviction in the home of

(13:08):
somebody that took threeportions?
You know, or do we feel like weneed to defend it?
Or can we really trust thegospel that God is going to take
care of people and we can justbe generous and we're like, yeah
, but what if we run out ofpeople and don't get enough?
You know it's amazing how therealways is enough out.
People don't get enough.
You know, it's amazing howthere always is enough.

(13:28):
And and I'm telling you that Ithink we need to remove that
element of who we think deservesit, because I I think that
there's not one of us probablythat deserve, uh, the grace that
god's given you.
Now, if you've got an argument,you want to talk to me about it
after service.
I just have a feeling it wasGod's mercy that showed up on
you and yet we want to find thepeople, the haves and have-nots,

(13:52):
the deserves and deserve-nots,and we want to make that
decision.
And I believe that God iswanting to unition the hearts of
people where we're generous tothe poor, and that's how we want
to run our lives and how wewant our, our world to uh, to
exist.
Amen, and if enough of us, youknow, you know, demonstrate that

(14:13):
and push for that, that's whatwe'll see in this earth.
There is enough for everyone.
And, and I know christ wants usto be more generous and to not
be so quick to decide whysomeone shouldn't get it, but
maybe try to find in there thegrace of why they can't have it.

Speaker 1 (14:31):
Proverbs 14.21.
It is a sin to belittle one'sneighbor.
Blessed are those who help thepoor.
I remind you that Jesus, whenhe spoke on the mount, said this
Blessed are the poor.
Jesus was turning everything weknew about blessing and cursing
on its head.
Jesus was looking at thosepeople and saying if you thought

(14:53):
for one minute that they arepoor because of what they have
done, I'm changing everythinghere and there is a blessing on
those who have a desperation,those who need the gifts given
to them, those who are aware oftheir own frailty and their own
vulnerability.
The invitation for us is tojoin in God's plan of bringing

(15:17):
hope and bringing healing.
I read to us this morning fromthe prophet Isaiah.
Philip will also read to usthis morning from the prophet
Isaiah, because during Lent, oneof the things that we're asking
you to do, and reminding youand inviting you to do, is read
Isaiah, chapter 58.
The entire chapter, not thatlong.
If you are a person who doesn'twant necessarily to read it,

(15:37):
there's lots of apps that willread it to you and so you can
have that.
But this idea and thisunderstanding is that when we
read the scriptures, that weallow the word of the Lord to
change our thoughts, to bring usa higher thought.
In fact, jesus said this to us,that this was the life that he
was offering, a life ofrepentance, changing the way

(16:00):
that you think about things.
So I'm going to read to youfrom Isaiah, chapter 55.
Is anyone thirsty?
Come and drink, even if youhave no money.
Come, take your choice of wineor milk, it's all free.
Why spend your money on foodthat does not give you strength?

(16:21):
Why pay for food that does youno good?
Listen to me and you will eatwhat is good and you will enjoy
the finest food.
Come to me with your ears wideopen.
Listen and you will find life,and I will make an everlasting
covenant with you.
Seek the Lord while you can findhim.

(16:42):
Call on him now, while he isnear, and let the wicked change
their ways and banish the verythought of doing wrong.
Let them turn to the Lord thathe may have mercy on them.
Yes, turn to our God, for hewill forgive generously.
My thoughts are nothing likeyour thoughts, says the Lord,

(17:04):
and my ways are far beyondanything you could imagine.
For just as the heavens arehigher than the earth, so my
ways are higher than your waysand my thoughts higher than your
thoughts.
The rain and the snow come downfrom the heavens and stay on the
ground to water the earth.
They cause the grain to grow,producing seed for the farmer,

(17:24):
and stay on the ground to waterthe earth.
They cause the grain to grow,producing seed for the farmer
and bread for the hungry.
It is the same with my word.
I send it out and it alwaysproduces fruit.
It will accomplish all I wantit to and it will prosper
everywhere I send it.
You will live in joy and peace.

(17:45):
The mountains and the hills willburst into song and the trees
of the field will clap theirhands.
Where there once were thorns,cypress trees will grow.
Where nettles grew, myrtleswill sprout up.
These events will bring greathonor to the Lord's name and
they will be an everlasting signof his mercy and his love.

(18:08):
What a beautiful invitation forus, what a good news for us to
remember this morning.
And the prophet says to us thismorning with the same words
come, you who have no money,come and buy.
Come with your ears wide opento hear the word of the Lord.
Come and allow the thoughts ofGod to transcend the thoughts of

(18:31):
this world and bring us into arenewal.
Philip, will you read for usthis morning?
I remind us this is the word ofthe Lord for us and we hear the
good news that is given.

Speaker 4 (18:48):
Isaiah 58.
Shout with the voice of atrumpet.
Blast, shout aloud, don't betimid.
Tell my people, israel, oftheir sins.
Yet they act so pious.
They come to the temple everyday and seem delighted to learn
all about me.
They act like a righteousnation that would never abandon

(19:08):
the laws of its God.
They ask me to take action ontheir behalf, pretending they
want to be near me.
We have fasted before you.
They say why aren't youimpressed?
We have been very hard onourselves and you don't even
notice it.
I will tell you why.
I respond it's because you arefasting to please yourselves.

(19:32):
Even while you fast, you keepoppressing your workers.
What's good is fasting when youkeep on fighting and quarreling
?
This kind of fasting will neverget anywhere with me.
You humble yourselves by goingthrough the motions of penance,
bowing your heads like reeds,bending in the wind.

(19:53):
You dress in burlap and coveryourselves with ashes.
Is this what you call fasting?
Do you really think this willplease the Lord?
No, this is the kind of fastingI want.
Free those who are wronglyimprisoned.
Lighten the burden of those whowork for you.
Let the oppressed go free andremove the chains that bind

(20:17):
people.
Share your food with the hungryand give shelter to the
homeless.
Give clothes to those who needthem and do not hide from the
relatives who need your help.
Then your salvation will comelike the dawn and your wounds
will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead youforward and the glory of the

(20:38):
Lord will protect you frombehind.
Then, when you call, the Lordwill answer yes, I am here.
He will click quickly reply.
Remove the heavy yoke ofoppression.
Stop pointing your finger andspreading vicious rumors.
Feed the hungry and help thosein trouble.
Then your light will shine outfrom the darkness and the

(20:59):
darkness around you will bebright as noon.
The Lord will guide youcontinually, giving you water
when you are dry and restoringyour strength.
You will be like a well-wateredgarden, like an ever-flowing
spring.
Some of you will rebuild thedeserted ruins of your cities.
Then you will be known for arebuilder of walls and a

(21:22):
restorer of homes.
Keep the, the Sabbath day, holy.
Don't pursue your own interestson this day, but enjoy the
Sabbath and speak of it withdelight as the Lord's holy day.
Honor the Sabbath andeverything you do on that day,
and don't follow your owndesires or talk idly.
Then the Lord will be yourdelight.

(21:43):
I will give you great honor andsatisfy you with the
inheritance I promised to yourancestor, jacob.
I, the Lord, have spoken.

Speaker 1 (21:54):
Amen.
This is the word of the Lordfor us.
Amen, amen.
The Lord says my ways arehigher than your ways, my
thoughts are higher than yourways.
My thoughts are higher thanyour thoughts.
And this morning, our prayerfor you is that you will allow
the Holy Spirit to perhaps beginto change your thoughts, to

(22:19):
allow our thoughts to align withthe love of Christ and the
kingdom that is being built here.

Speaker 2 (22:26):
I was thinking about something this morning.
I was putting on some reallynice cologne that someone gave
me and you'd be maybe offendedif you knew how much this bottle
of cologne cost that thisperson gave me.
But that's real good, and I wasreflecting on the fact that
when I was younger it wasimportant to me to smell good.

(22:50):
So I remember going to likeWalmart and getting some cologne
and putting it on.
You know, as a young, little guyyou know, just out of high
school, you know putting on somestuff.
And then I met Heather and shegoes what is that you have on?
And I'm like it's clones?
She goes I don't think so.

Speaker 1 (23:10):
We all grow beloved.
We all grow, Just be merciful.

Speaker 2 (23:16):
And she goes.
No, you get clones from thesehouses and I'm like, what do you
mean?
Houses Like go to people'shouses?
You know like clone houses islike go to people's house, you
know, like cologne house, youknow.
So she has.
She knew, brethren, a better wayit wasn't to go to walmart and
get.
She knew about the, the goodstuff.
And I needed, uh, I needsomeone to rescue me out of my

(23:41):
walmart funk.
Rescue me out of my Walmartfunk and bring me higher.
And I want you to know thatyou're in a Walmart funk in some
area of your life, whether yourealize it or not.
And I'm telling you, if we'llopen up our hearts, god will
give you that elevated thought,or he'll put someone in your
life that will just show youthis is the way to go.

(24:08):
And can you have the couragethat to?
To go that path, even though itlooks like a more difficult?
It was a more expensive pathfor me than going, but I don't
smell like Walmart Good, and soI hope that in my silliness,
that you'd see the profoundtruth in us, getting someone to

(24:33):
help us have an elevated thought, a thought that's higher than
where we are right now.

Speaker 1 (24:37):
And that's the invitation of the Holy Spirit,
who is the thought adjuster.
And sometimes, when we arelooking for miracles and beloved
, we are a people who believe inthem and we are on a regular
basis looking for miracles, butsometimes the miracle is already
there.
It just has to be an adjustmentwith the way we're perceiving
things.
And the invitation of the HolySpirit is to allow us to join

(25:02):
with the Spirit in thinkingdifferently, in allowing the
Spirit to expand our thoughts.
And so today, in the text inLuke, chapter 10, then, a
religious scholar stood beforeJesus in order to test his
doctrines and he posed thisquestion Teacher, what
requirement must I fulfill if Iwant to live forever in heaven?

(25:25):
Now, as we read this text, Iwant to remind you of this
question, even as we get to theend of it.
Think about the question thatthe answer has brought.
He is asking what are therequirements?
What is it going to cost me?
What am I going to have to doin order to have eternal life,

(25:47):
in order to live forever?
What is this going to look like?
And Jesus asked him.
I love this about Jesus askingquestions with questions.
Jesus didn't say do this a, band c.
Now you're done.
Jesus asked him a question whatdoes Moses's law teach us?
And what do you read in the law?

(26:07):
Jesus was asking him to use hisintelligence and say after
you've read it, how do youinterpret it, how do you say it
should go?
And so Jesus is inviting aconversation, and I want you to
know that God Almighty, god, whois all loving God, who is all
giving God, who is all merciful,is still inviting you to a

(26:29):
conversation Every day.
The invitation is to to aconversation every day.
The invitation is to have aconversation with the divine, to
have a conversation with theone who is sorting all things
out and restoring all things.
But Jesus asks this young manand says to him you've read it.
What does Moses teach us to do?
And and how do you read the law?

(26:49):
And the religious scholaranswered and he gives the actual
definition from the law.
And this is the law.
That is not only the oraltradition of the Torah, this is
the written tradition of theTorah.
And so I'm sure he stated hiscase.
But this is what he says youmust love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart, all yourpassion, all your energy, all

(27:10):
your passion, all your energyand your every thought, and you
must love your neighbor as wellas you love yourself.
So this is the text.
He understood it.
He said this is what Mosesteaches us.
This is what it looks like tobe part of the people of God,
that we are going to be peoplewho love our neighbors as we

(27:31):
love ourselves.
There's much to be said in that, because perhaps some of you do
not love yourself very well andwe need to allow Jesus to
change that and that way you canlove your neighbor.
But Jesus says to him that iscorrect.
Now, as somebody who likes to becorrect about the answers when
it's on a test, I would havebeen thrilled.

(27:51):
I literally I would have beenlike yes, yes, everyone thinks
Jesus is great and has authority, and I asked a question and
then he asked me a question andI answered it correctly.
But it goes a little furtherthan that.
Jesus said that is correct.
And then he said now go and doexactly that and you will live.
Because it is not enough toknow it, but it is how we live

(28:15):
it that Jesus is confrontingthat.
Jesus is saying this about whatis the actual energy that is
behind it, what is our actualactions?
It's great that you know that.
Moses said that to us.
But how will you live it?
Jesus says to him now, go anddo exactly that and you will
live.

(28:35):
I remind us this morning Jesusis saying the same thing to us
Go and do exactly that and youwill live.
Wanting to justify himself weshould all pay attention here.
Now he felt an accusation whenJesus said to him.
And Jesus simply said to him goand do that and you'll live.

(28:56):
And now he had to justifyhimself.
Now we have to ask ourselveswhy.
Why did he feel like he mustjustify himself when Jesus said
go and do exactly that and youwill live?
Wanting to justify himself, hequestioned Jesus further, saying
what do you mean by my neighborWanting to justify himself?

(29:20):
So think about this for aminute.
I encourage you.
I suspect and this may be anaccusation, so I stand in the
place of mercy as I need it Ithink he didn't want to love all
his neighbors.
I don't know, maybe he had theone, and so he wants to know
what the inclusion table lookslike.
Is it everybody?
Is it only the ones to theright?
Is it the ones have been here along time?

(29:40):
It's not the new neighborsright Because they're not as
good as the old neighbors.
And you know, this kind ofthought was probably going on in
his mind this idea of it can'tbe everyone Like.
No, that can't be.
And Jesus said now go and doexactly what it says.
But what do you mean by myneighbor?

(30:01):
Now, before we tell the scholarthat he is off?
We do this all the time.
We want to know how far thelove is allowed to go, who is in
and who is out, how big thecommunion table will actually
have to be in order for everyoneto have a place at this feast
that God is preparing.
But the invitation for us isask yourself this question where

(30:24):
are you limiting the mercy ofGod?
Where are you limiting thegrace of God?
And maybe we were having thisconversation this morning,
dennis.
Maybe he was asking like, howmuch expense is this going to be
?
Like how much effort is itgoing to be for all of them?
I mean cause, I can do, likethe first three, but the next
block, no, that's just beyond mycapability.

(30:44):
So maybe he was just definitelyexamining his resources.
But the truth is it's as he waswanting to justify himself.
And when Jesus said I want youto go and do exactly that and
you will have life.
He felt an accusation.

Speaker 2 (31:03):
You know, I wanted just to comment on 29 because,
you know, maybe it's a littleabstract, because maybe you
don't, you know, get personallyconfronted in this exact way of
of how you love your neighbor.
But uh, I I really find it,within the church it becomes the
uh doctrinal issues that we uhagree on or don't agree on that

(31:30):
will say whether we lovesomebody or not.
You know, I can't believe thatyou would vote for that party.
I can't believe that you wouldallow that type of behavior in
your home.
I can't, you know.
And so we tend to look at that.
And then when there is abehavior that we deem, I mean,
look, I've studied and myconclusion is that that is a

(31:56):
wrong behavior.
And so by you doing that,you're choosing to not be my
neighbor, you know.
And when we put a lot ofconjecture in that, you know a
lot of of our opinion of whatthat really is.
And so the challenge isn't somuch were you nice to your

(32:16):
neighbor when you were pullingthe cans in last week, although
that is important, but some ofus just live in neighborhoods
where there's no neighbors, soyou can get away with that.
So where does it really boildown to?
And I find it to be really thatissue of belief, of doctrine.
It's where we've drawn the linein the sand, if you do, and

(32:39):
it's funny how we're always juston the good side of the line
with our behavior.
How is it?
No matter what you've done, youjust fall right up.
But then those people that dothe one thing you don't do, well
, they're way over there, sothey can't be my neighbor, and
so I would really challenge youon that, because I know that for
me, I'm very challenged, andsince the Holy Spirit is

(33:00):
challenging me on that, I'm justgoing to Extend the challenge
as a gift, as a real gift.

Speaker 1 (33:04):
We pause here for a moment to thank you for joining
us today, to thank you forjoining us today.
If you're finding this episodemeaningful, would you take a
moment to share it with a friend?
This podcast is made possiblethanks to the generosity of
people just like you.
If you would like to supportthe ongoing work of First Love
Church and the continued work ofour podcast, visit us online at

(33:27):
firstlovechurchorg, remindingyou to like, follow and
subscribe.
This is what I love about thescriptures that it gives us a
testimony of how Jesus lived,and on a regular basis, people
were offended at Jesus.
Now, in my mind, I could not beoffended at Jesus.
I just think that Jesus iswonderful.
I have loved him since I was atiny little girl and I've tried

(33:47):
to follow him, and so I stand inthis side and go.
Jesus doesn't offend me, but Ijust believe that he absolutely
would.
There would be something.
I just this is who, in fact,Jesus said.
Blessed are you.
If you're not offended becauseof me, Because I am going to say
something that will ask you togo further than you thought you
could, but I remind you on aregular basis, like a regular

(34:09):
basis.
Jesus was bothering the peoplewho were religious because of
who he ate with and who hepartied with.
I just want to remind you ofthis.
They were like this cannot beright.
We know you do miracles, youspeak with authority, we see
love in you, we think thatyou're the Messiah Some of us do
but you're eating with thewrong folk, and that's how we

(34:29):
know we're right.
And so I want to challenge allof us that we would listen to
the Holy Spirit tell us,encourage us, and that we would
hear what Jesus is telling uswhen he's saying I want you to
think differently.
I want you to expand yourthoughts.
I want you to expand yourtables.
I want you to expand any placethat communion is given, so that

(34:53):
love can be the feast that weall get to enjoy.

Speaker 2 (34:56):
And I just like for you to imagine yourself being
there back then and you were afollower of God.
But you met Jesus and so you'rereally excited about the
miracles.
You're excited about the wordhe's saying.
You're really excited about themiracles.
You're excited about the wordhe's saying.
But he's okay with hisdisciples just going out in the
field, grabbing stuff out of theground and without washing it,

(35:19):
and just shoving it right intheir face.
And you know, because you'vestudied your whole life, you
know that's not what God wants.
So imagine your struggle.
So imagine your struggle andit's the struggle that you have
today turning loose of some ofthe things you believe for this
call of love from Jesus, becauseit's still happening.

(35:44):
At some point, whether yourealize it or not, those people
had to go, but I'm right andsome of them just chose their
stubborn old way of doing things, when jesus was showing yeah,
but I.
But god showed me this.

Speaker 1 (35:58):
So, bless god, this is yeah, but he's given a new
thought, a higher thought, youknow and stay around till we go
to lent, and then easter, andthen pentecost, beloved, because
talk about things that the HolySpirit's going to do.
In fact, it does to Peter overand over again.
God shows up to Peter this is aspoiler alert if you didn't
know.
This happened, but it's goodand it's worth us rehearsing.

(36:18):
But so Peter is praying, whichis what you should be doing, and
he's inviting the presence ofGod.
And God shows up and says tohim eat this.
And there's a vision of all thethings that are on the do not
eat list.

(36:38):
And Peter goes nope.
And you gotta love Peter.
I mean you do.
You do you do To somebody thathe recognizes as the almighty,
that he recognizes as creator,that he recognizes as redeemer?
And he goes nope, you're notgonna trick me, like that's who
God is trying to trick us.
That is not who God is.
In fact, god says to him I wantyou to eat everything and don't
dare call unclean what I nowhave called clean.
And so this invitation into anew way of thinking is the

(37:03):
invitation to follow Christ, andI love this because I think
about this and I allow and askfor all of us to use our holy
imagination.
I think that the guy standingnext to this dude was super
happy he asked the questionBecause now he doesn't get in
any trouble.
But he gets to hear thisresponse, right, he gets to hear
him go.
Yeah, I got a neighbor I justcan't deal with either.
But now we ask to be doing thatwith everyone.
But who is my neighbor?

(37:23):
What do you mean by my neighbor?
I don't know if you've everexperienced children.
They're beautiful, they'rewonderful, they are gifts to us.
But there is something about achild when they ask you a
question, when you say somethinglike clean it all up, and then
they will say what do you meanby all he?

Speaker 2 (37:44):
says it out loud Eat it all.

Speaker 1 (37:48):
Well, what do you mean by that?
I mean, this is how childrenbehave.
I just need to know how much ofwhat you said you're actually
going to expect.
And so this is the truth of it.
God is saying I would like youto love everyone.
John, chapter 3, verse 16 and 17.
For God so loved the world thathe sent his only begotten son,

(38:08):
his one and only son, thatwhoever believed in him would
not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send Jesus intothe world to condemn the world,
but that the world, throughJesus, would be saved.
The invitation is, theintention, is what God's plan is
that the world would be savedthrough the work of Christ,

(38:28):
through the understanding ofJesus, and so this is an idea
for all of us, and I would likefor you to do some reflection
this week, and maybe we couldtalk about it the next time that
we get together, like forfellowship.
I had some ideas of the thingsthat we could talk about, one of
them from Sarah earlier on,when she was talking about a
fellowship that they had, whenthey just began to talk about
just what they saw, anythingthat they saw God doing that was

(38:51):
loving, that was good Like inthe world around them.
We need to remind ourselves,think about these things,
anything that's loving, puregood of a good report.
But I was also thinking aboutwouldn't it be awesome for us to
have a conversation where wetalked about how we changed our
mind?
I would like to tell you a lotof the things that I once stood

(39:13):
fast on like that I held as abelief in my life.
I have been able to let go andfound real life in them.
I will tell you that at onepart in my life, for a very long
period of my life, I only woredresses and skirts.
Now, this is not about that,but that was something that I
really believed in and my faithwas tested because I lived in
Chicago and there are periods ofthe year where you should not

(39:37):
only wear dresses and skirtsbecause of your knees, beloved,
and it's 23 degrees below zero,and they've given a 15 second
time where, if you are exposedto this cold on your skin, you
can begin to have frostbite.
And you know what I thought tomyself.
Well, this pleases the Lord.
Here's the skirt and I wouldstand outside and freeze and be

(40:00):
in pain.
It feels like a blowtorch whenit's that cold on your skin and
think what I am doing ispleasing the Lord.
And let me tell you that everyperson that was on that bus
thought I was a fool.
Why don't you have clothes on,ma'am, like, put pants on, do
something, cover up?
And I was confident that thispleased the Lord.
Now that may seem foolish toyou, but in my heart, this is

(40:20):
what I knew God wanted, and Iwas willing to do it because of
love, until my mind was changed,until the scriptures were
really revealed, until somethingelse happened.
And so for all of us, I'm sure,as we follow the Lord a long
time, there are things.
Now maybe you were never thatextreme, maybe you didn't do
anything like that, but thereare things that we have held
onto because we're sure that Godwants us to make sure that our

(40:43):
hands are washed before we pickfood to give it to the poor
person.
You know, that's really what thedisciples were upset with.
At one point, jesus healed aman whose arm had been withered
since the time he was born, andpeople were like but you did
that on the wrong day, sorry,like let's wither it back up and
let's do it God's way.
You know, like I mean, thatseems silly to us now, but they

(41:05):
were serious.
God would not ask us to do thiswork of love on the Sabbath,
and so there was always thiscontention with.
I know that you're asking us todo it, but are you asking us to
break the rules too?
And the invitation is let'sfollow the work of Christ here.
What do you mean by being myneighbor?

Speaker 2 (41:23):
Heather skied in the Czechoslovakian mountains in a
jean skirt I did in the TatraMountains, and again, people
thought I was insane.

Speaker 1 (41:30):
Here I was clicking on those boots and I was going
down the mountain in my skirt.
I also swam in the Dead Sea ina jean skirt, beloved.
These are things you should notdo in skirts.
In fact, this is an invitationinto foolishness, not into
wisdom.
And so I remind us again I didthat not because it was
convenient or it was the bestfit, because I thought that's

(41:52):
how I honored the Lord.
And so, to anyone who I have askirt, a long dress on today,
because this is the appropriateclothing when I am further
skiing, let's get a pair ofpants on, beloved, and maybe
some knee warmers, because our,especially as we get a little
bit older, our knees are needinga little bit of warmth.
And so the invitation for allof us is what does wisdom tell

(42:12):
us to do?

Speaker 2 (42:13):
I wanted to talk about just you know, a story
that kind of it reminds me and Ithink that for us, that we have
to be careful about how wejudge folks, you know, in and
out.
I was swimming one time in theocean with some friends and this
kid kept hanging around with meand the other kids and, like

(42:36):
you know how you boogie boardand the waves kind of take you.
It was just like the whole timethis kid was staying with us
and so I thought, after a lengthof time it's kind of odd that
he stuck around.
So I just began to ask him, youknow, if he knew the Lord and
had a relationship with the Lordand if he wanted us to pray
with him about anything.
And so he seemed all excited.
So we're there on the shore justgetting ready to grab hands and

(42:58):
pray and all of a sudden thesegiant muscle guys just like the
beach is giant and they comeright to where we are and
they're cursing so loud andeverything.
And I thought, oh, oh, man, theatmosphere for praying for
somebody, for salvation church,has just been ruined by these
giant guys who are cursing andall this stuff.

(43:20):
And then I thought, you know,what difference does it make you
know this is an opportunity?
Uh, uh.
And then the kid starts cursingand I thought, well, now he's
clearly not in his heart's open.
And I thought, well, who moreneeds Jesus than the cussing kid
on the beach?
So let me just go for it.

(43:41):
So I asked him and he was soopen yeah, pray for me, I want
this.
And so I had to kind of justignore the cursing muscle men.
That would not go away, and Ijust closed my eyes and prayed
with this guy anyway.
And when I opened my eyes,those muscle men had taken off

(44:02):
their hats.
I mean, they were just inSpeedos or whatever, but they
took off their hats and werereverencing the Lord in the
middle of Daytona Beach.
And we're like what justhappened?
I misread this entire thing, doyou?
know, what I mean.
I thought, well, this kid's notgoing to want these guys, these
guys aren't supposed to be here, we can't do any of this.

(44:24):
But I pushed past all of thosenatural things that seem to make
sense, right?
All of those natural thingsthat seem to make sense, right?
I mean, those are all religioussigns that someone is not open
to your gospel.
And all of a sudden, despiteall of those things, there was
literally a move of God.
When you stop with all of these, you know kind of rules.

(44:47):
Now, I'm not suggesting westart a curse fest in the middle
of service today, don't miss mypoint, uh, but it is just that
we, we tend to focus on that asbeing the most important thing,
this or that, whatever ourreligious little rule is, and if
someone crosses that, they'rebanished, uh, to utter darkness.

(45:07):
And when, when god's arm islong to reach.
Amen.

Speaker 1 (45:13):
Jesus is answering the question.
Who is my neighbor?
Listen, and I will tell you.
There once was a Jewish mantraveling from Jerusalem to
Jericho when bandits robbed himalong the way and they beat him
severely and stripped him nakedand left him half dead.
Jesus is speaking to a group ofpeople here and they are

(45:35):
themselves Jewish, and so he'sreminding them.
I'm talking about one of you.
I'm talking about your neighbor, your brother, your sister, who
you are.
You are the person who has beenabused.
You were doing your job,whatever it was.
You were traveling to Jerichoand now you found yourself
severely stripped him naked andleft him half dead.

Speaker 2 (45:58):
I do want to reject to hear that that.
Keep in mind.
You know, jesus was just askedthe question who is my neighbor?
And so he begins to tell thestory, not by coincidence, but
to explain.
You know, and without being aspoiler alert, your neighbor is
defined by their need someone inneed, and whatever that need is

(46:19):
, if, if we have the ability, uh, and we have the means and we
have the resources but not.

Speaker 1 (46:27):
Okay, stay with the story.
In no way do I disagree with.
But if you don't have the means, then you take him to Jesus,
who has the means, like theinvitation always is, like the
man with the mat you just bringhim to Jesus.
I can't heal you myself, but Ibring you to Christ, I bring you
to the one who can heal.
And in the, from a distance,the priest crossed to the other

(46:53):
side of the road and walkedright past him, not turning to
help him one bit.
Now here's where we go off.
We're like well, I'm not likethat guy.
I don't know who that guy was,he was bad and I just want to
say but I want you to thinkabout this for a moment who in
your life do you see in need anddo you look at that need and go
not today, and walk to theother side of the road?

(47:16):
This is what the story invitesus to do to put ourselves in all
of the places.
What has it been like for youwho was just doing your work or
your life and all of a sudden,something happened and you are
in need of such mercy and theinvitation is for us to also
look at this and go.
Is it possible that the systemthat you are a part of is

(47:37):
represented by this Jewishpriest who looks at a man in
distress and crosses the road?
Now, a lot of people wouldargue well, you don't know their
rules and all the things thatthey have to do, and he couldn't
do these things because of thethings that they have to do, and
he couldn't do these thingsbecause of the rules.
And I want to remind you who'stelling the story.
Jesus is telling us the storyand Jesus is not so wound up

(48:01):
about a certain set of rulesthat he's saying that this man
should be followed, but he saysnot turning to help him one bit.

Speaker 2 (48:08):
So it is important for us to recognize that our
religion isn't going to empowerus to, you know, your rules
aren't going to empower you tohelp the neighbor.
That isn't where the strengthis found, you know, and people
do argue the idea.

(48:28):
Well, you know, a religiousperson couldn't, uh, couldn't
touch, you know, and becomeunclean.
But there's also a law thatsays you can't leave someone
unburied.
So, uh, either way, the theselaws are really just oftentimes
conveniences for us to say, nottoday not today.

Speaker 1 (48:48):
Later, a religious man.
So he was there a while.
I don't know how long thatwhile was, but he didn't receive
the help he needed.
And now here comes someone else, a Levite, A religious man came
walking down the same road andlikewise crossed to the other
side to pass the wounded manwithout stopping to help him.
And Jesus is a masterfulstoryteller and I think one of
the things that we need to do isbe better about the stories we

(49:10):
tell.
But Jesus is a masterstoryteller and he is getting
you to feel bad about the factthat here is a man who needed
help and people are just walkingby.
Here is someone who has avulnerability and needs
assistance and here we arewalking by, and really it is to
ignite in you some kind ofaggravation.
At the very least.

(49:31):
Why aren't people helping?
Why isn't someone doingsomething about this?
It is to stir in us a righteousunderstanding that to be a part
of the community of God, to bea part of God's world, is we are
all asked to help each other.
But this is again.
Jesus is telling the story andit should make you feel gross at

(49:52):
least some point, and it'smaking us feel uncomfortable.
And finally, another man, aSamaritan.
Now, at this point in the storyyou would have checked out.
You'd be like nope, nope, nope,nobody, nope, no, no.
This is not.
You're not going to use that,You're not going there.
We don't like these people.
You know we don't like thesepeople and this guy is not going

(50:14):
to be the hero in the story.
I just want to tell you thatAnother guy, a Samaritan, came
upon the bleeding man and wasmoved with tender compassion for
him.
You would have just said it wasall great until you start
bringing the Samaritans in hereand we're not following them

(50:34):
because we know everything theydo is wrong.
And this was a legitimatepolitical fight between people,
not only in politics, but itended up being murdersome
between people, groups.
It was horrible.

Speaker 2 (50:47):
And for us it's really shocking to read the
samaritan.

Speaker 1 (50:52):
No because our children's picture books had
them, like our gospel stories.

Speaker 2 (50:55):
I had a little bible was called the good samaritan
but uh, but you know it would belike right after 9-11 in our
country if you said the goodmuslim, that would not.
Or or oftentimes in a christianchurch, you know, if I'm saying
the good muslim, you're like,well, we're christians, we
believe totally different, soyou know.
So don't be telling me about nogood muslim.

Speaker 1 (51:15):
You know, I, I actually have a few here in town
of good muslim friends andthey're uh, extremely uh, uh,
loyal and uh and, and they servethis they serve this church
with the greatest beautifulheart and so, um, I I think that
, and though I I intend not toto change uh my doctrine towards

(51:39):
uh christianity, I I want to uhwonder why it is that we would
immediately make them our enemyI will tell you and I'm going to
be general because I know thatthis is being broadcast but I
was here at the church one daythis church and I was painting
in the men's bathroom and I hadthings to do and I knew that it

(52:00):
needed to be done by this day,like a Friday, so that it would
have time to dry by Sunday.
And I was feeling a little bitoverwhelmed and I knew the
people that I knew and I wasfeeling a little bit overwhelmed
and I knew the people that Iknew and I had them on other
projects and so I called myMuslim brother.
That was in the phone but Imisdialed to another Muslim

(52:21):
brother and he is in charge ofthe Islamic Center here in Ocala
and I have his phone number andwe have conversation.
There is times I would not callhim a personal friend, but I
called him and I misdialed theperson I was calling.
I was not calling and I said Iam stuck.
I said I have to get thisbathroom painted and I said we
have church on Sunday.
I said is there any way youcould come over and finish what
I'm doing so that I can go withsomething else?
And he said sister, I can bethere in two hours.

(52:51):
And when I heard him talk Irealized I had called the wrong
person.
What I'm saying to you is,sometimes we have ideas about
this and them, us and them.
And when I called this person,accidentally I wouldn't have
asked that person, not because Ididn't think they would have,
but they were very busy and hesaid in two hours I can be there
.
Will the supplies be there?
I said, oh brother, I havecalled the wrong person, not
because your answer isn't sobeautiful and so perfect, but he

(53:13):
also had service on the weekendand there was somebody else
that I was trying to reach.
But I want you to remember thatthere is good that is happening
all around us.
There are true and beautifulthings, and if we only listen to
things that separate us orthings that make us afraid or
things that divide us, these arenot the work of Christ.
Another man, a Samaritan, cameupon the bleeding man and was

(53:35):
moved with tender compassion forhim.
Please note that particularline, because every time that
Jesus does a miracle andsomebody records it or says
about it, they say it was thisexact thing.
He was moved with tendercompassion and Jesus saw the
woman whose son had died, and hewas moved with compassion.
And Jesus saw the people whowere hungry and he was moved

(53:55):
with tender compassion.
And Jesus saw the man who wasinfirmed and he was moved with
compassion.
And Jesus saw the man with amental health issue and he was
moved with compassion.
Is who jesus is, this is whogod is, and this movement with
tender compassion is a path andthe invitation is for all of us

(54:15):
to get on the tender compassionpath.
And what hinders.

Speaker 2 (54:18):
that is the religious law you know, and so you know
it's.
It's you know the law and thereligion versus that thing
that's already in you the HolySpirit and the conviction that
could come from the Spirit ofGod to draw us to goodness, and
that's what we want to likeascend to that kind of thinking

(54:43):
versus yeah well, maybe thisperson deserves it, maybe they
don't, but what about just beingsomeone who's so grace-filled?

Speaker 1 (54:50):
It is our job to love everyone without checking their
qualifications.
Are they worthy of love?
Because every person is made inthe image of God.
And this Samaritan stooped downand gave him first aid pouring
olive oil on his wounds,disinfecting them with wine,
bandaging them to stop thebleeding, lifting him up I hope
this guy bent his knees when hedid it.

(55:11):
Yeah, lifting him up.
He placed him on his own donkeyand brought him to the inn.
Now I do want you to payattention to that thing.
Everything that he did for thatman cost him something.
That was his oil, that was hiswine, this is his donkey.
These are his resources that heis offering for the healing of

(55:31):
another.
Then he took him from hisdonkey and carried him to a room
for the night, and the nextmorning he took his own money
from his wallet and he gave itto the innkeeper with these
words take care of him until Icome back from my journey, and
if it costs more than this, Iwill repay you when I return.
I'm gonna go on a little sidenote here and it's gonna be

(55:53):
quick, but I love this story forlots of reasons, and one of
them is when people still say tome, how are you a part of the
church, like how can you for solong been a part of the church?
And I wanna tell you I see thisas an indication of the church
that there is an in somewhere,that there is a place somewhere
where people can bring peoplethat they are in need of healing
of all kinds, people that theyare walking with People, that

(56:15):
they are in friendship withPeople, that they are restoring
belief to People, that they arejust loving and offering
friendship to that.
They can bring them here andsay I'm going to come back, I'm
still walking with these people,I'm going to come back, I'm
still walking with these people,I'm still in the process of
healing, but I need to do it.
Here's the hope that it becomesthis communal project.
He gives the money to theinnkeeper Take care of him until

(56:38):
I come back for my journey andif it costs more than this, I
will repay you when you return.
And now Jesus looks at this manand says so tell me which one of
the three men who saw thewounded man proved to be the
true neighbor.
I remind you.
The question really is whatmust I do to live forever?
What must I do to have eternallife, how can I live forever in

(57:01):
heaven?
And Jesus said go and do whatMoses told you to do, what you
know how to do, do it exactly.
And his question then becomeswell, not for everyone, right,
just not for everyone.
Who is then my neighbor?
And Jesus asks him who was theneighbor?
Jesus is asking are you payingattention to the story?

Speaker 2 (57:22):
You know, in my opinion, for whatever that's
worth is, I think that even in2,000 years, we've just not got
it as humanity that if we allwere to surrender to this,
there's just not hungry people,there's just not disenfranchised
, there's just not people thatare marginalized and taken

(57:47):
advantage of.
Uh, it just, it brings just, youknow just such a stirring in me
when, when people that I loveget, get, um, taken advantage of
.
But what really has to happenin my heart, and I believe yours
, is that our heart so expandsthat uh, I mean, mean Robert was

(58:09):
taken advantage of this week,and it just, and I just
everything in me I want to dosomething about, you know, and
but you know how many peoplethat I don't know I've been
really taken advantage of by thesystem or by other people, or
you know, I just we're so afraid, and I get it, it's scary to

(58:32):
expand our heart so that we willnot stand for anyone in our
country, in our world, that isnot given the respect and love
and care that they deserve.
Amen, and maybe that soundscrazy and idealistic, but I just
think there's enough of us toget that done through God.

Speaker 1 (58:53):
The prophet Amos said this one day you will no longer
train your sons for war.
I'm looking for that day,beloved, as is every mother all
over the world who is saying Ido not want to give my son to
aid this war machine that justkeeps killing people.
But the prophet Amos said oneday, one day you'll no longer
train your sons for war and oneday you will take your swords

(59:17):
and you will beat them intoplowshares.
You know what that is.
That means we're all going tofarm together.
That means community gardening.
I'm telling you that is a way tohead toward the promised land.
Like, get a little, getsomething pokey and instead of
poking your neighbor with it,poke the ground and get up a
weed.
You know all these violentthings that we have?

(59:37):
Like, get after those weeds.
Well, first, make sure thatthey're really the weeds,
because some of them are nativeplants and they need to be there
.
I just mean all of our thoughtsneed to be lifted, but the idea
is that one day and this ideawe keep pushing it off going
well, one day that'll happen,beloved, not without you
changing your mind, not withoutme changing our mind.

Speaker 2 (59:58):
And Jesus is offering this story and saying the same
thing, and I think oftentimesthose are pushed to the sweet by
and by.
Well, that's heaven you'retalking about, but we're here.

Speaker 1 (01:00:06):
But we prayed a prayer this morning.

Speaker 2 (01:00:08):
While we're here, we're going to fight, but we
prayed a prayer.

Speaker 1 (01:00:11):
As it is in heaven, may it be done here on the earth
.
We want what heaven has, wewant that for ourselves and we
are earnestly praying for it,and so it may take us changing
our minds to the thoughts thatGod has.
But the religious scholarsresponded the one who
demonstrated kindness and mercy.
Jesus said you must go and dothe same as he, the one who

(01:00:36):
demonstrates kindness and mercy.
Kindness and mercy is the pathof Jesus.
It has always been, but it iseven before Jesus.
In fact, there's one time inthe scripture where King David
has gotten himself.
He worked it out.
He's gone through lots ofperiods of insanity, many, many
insane thinkings and doings, buthe's at this big table and he

(01:00:56):
asks a question of everyone atthe table and he's like isn't
there someone that I can showkindness to?
If you're going to be a personwho follows David, follow him in
the path of kindness, is thereanyone I can show kindness to?
And someone at the table pipesup yeah, there is a person who
really needs your kindness andhe sets it straight.

(01:01:16):
So I want to encourage you, atthe table around, wherever it is
that you're eating, and thepeople that you commune with,
ask a question who can we showkindness to?
Jesus says to this person, theman who demonstrates kindness
and mercy you must go and do thesame as he.
This is the words of Jesus,beloved.
These are the words that shouldmean a lot to us.

(01:01:39):
This is the path that we'refollowing.
Jesus is the person that we'refollowing into trueness, into
real life, into abundance, intoreturning to love that God
actually invites us into.
And he says you must go and dothe same as he.
Beloved brothers and sisters,our responsibility as followers

(01:02:02):
of Jesus is to be full ofkindness and mercy, tender mercy
and mercy, tender mercy,compassionate hearts turning
toward those who are oppressed,who are hungry, who are darned,
trodden, who are in any kind ofdistress at all.
This is the way of Christ, andwe are invited In fact, more

(01:02:23):
than invited, we are told.
If we are following Jesus, thisis what we must do.
We must be people who have gooddeeds, who pay attention in our
wake to the suffering around us, and then bring the resources
we have in order to bringhealing to the world.

Speaker 2 (01:02:44):
Well, I'm excited for us to be able to move to this
part of the service.

Speaker 1 (01:02:49):
Kylie is going to do a blessing for us as we enter
into this third season of Lent,and then we are going to
celebrate Holy Communiontogether.
So, deep breath in, receive theblessing that is yours without
paying for it.
Jesus already has, but weinvite you into this moment of

(01:03:11):
blessing.

Speaker 3 (01:03:13):
This is a spring equinox blessing.
God of balance, we ask yourblessing at this threshold, when
light and dark are equal.
Teach us to welcome both intoour lives, making room for joy
and sorrow, for sunlightshimmering and moonlight.
Moonlight radiance, as thelight continues to grow and
birds and insects begin theirmigrations, journeying by

(01:03:36):
impulse and intuition.
Help us to listen to your calland to move in a holy direction.
Inspire us to celebrate theburgeoning and blossoming of
buds all around us as well aswithin our hearts.
Holy gardener, we hope you'veenjoyed this week's sermon.

Speaker 1 (01:04:12):
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