Grosey's Messages

LUKE 10 YOU’VE GOT TO TRY A LITTLE KINDNESS

Most of you remember the Seinfeld show, which finished in 1998 but has gone into syndication heaven. In its final episode, Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer are stuck in Lakeland, Massachusetts. Killing time wandering around on the sidewalks in this quaint New England town, they become witnesses of a car jacking. Being New Yorkers and the kind of people they are, they make fun of the guy who is being robbed. Kramer, who has a camcorder in his hands, films the incident as a curiosity. They never lift a hand, never shout out; they are 10 yards away, and couldn't care less. They just stand there and casually watch!

The robber speeds off with the car and the police arrive on the scene. With the excitement over, and the poor victim standing dazed in the street, Jerry turns to his friends and suggest they go get something to eat. They turn to walk off when the officer stops them and says,"Hold it right there."

Jerry: Wha'?

Officer: You're under arrest.

Jerry: Under arrest? What for?

Officer: Article 223 dash 7 of the Lakeland county penal code.

Elaine: What, we didn't do anything.

Officer: That's exactly right. The law requires you to help or assist anyone in danger as long as it's reasonable to do so.

George: I never heard of that.

Officer: It's new, it's called the Good Samaritan Law. Let's go.

AFTER CONFEDERATE GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE RETIRED FROM THE MILITARY, HE WAS NAMED PRESIDENT OF WASHINGTON & LEE UNIVERSITY IN LEXINGTON, VIRGINIA, ORIGINALLY NAMED WASHINGTON ACADEMY BECAUSE OF A GIFT FROM GEORGE WASHINGTON. THE NAME WAS CHANGED IN 1871 IN HONOR OF GENERAL LEE. WHILE LEE WAS PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY, A NEW STUDENT CAME INTO HIS OFFICE AND ASKED FOR A COPY OF THE SCHOOL'S RULES AND REGULATIONS. LEE LOOKED AT HIM AND SAID, "SON, WE DON'T HAVE ANY RULES AND REGULATIONS IN PRINT." THE YOUNG MAN SAID, "YOU MEAN THIS SCHOOL HAS NO RULES?" LEE REPLIED, "YES, WE HAVE ONLY ONE." HE SAID, "WHAT IS IT?" LEE REPLIED, "OUR ONLY RULE IS KINDNESS."
WE ARE LIVING IN A SOCIETY IN WHICH KINDNESS IS BECOMING AN INCREASINGLY RARE COMMODITY.

LAST MONTH PRIME MINISTER JOHN HOWARD NOTED THAT THE LEVELS OF CIVILITY AND RESPECT WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY HAVE BEEN DROPPING. HE SAID AS AUSTRALIANS WE NOW LACKED KINDNESS.

A SURLY DRIVER CUTS INTO YOUR LANE. YOUR TEEN-AGER BRINGS HOME A CD WITH LEWD HOSTILE LYRICS. A STAR FOOTBALL PLAYER SPITS AT A REFEREE. AN ABC TV NEWS-SHOW HOST INSULTS THE PRIME MINISTER WHILE HE'S SITTING RIGHT THERE. . .IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO IGNORE THE GROWING RUDENESS, EVEN HARSHNESS, OF AUSTRALIAN LIFE
WE HAVE BECOME A SOCIETY IN WHICH THE MILK OF HUMAN KINDNESS HAS CURDLED. AN OVERWHELMING MAJORITY THINK INCIVILITY IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM. MORE THAN THREE IN FOUR SAID IT HAS GOTTEN WORSE IN THE LAST TEN YEARS.
WELL, EVERYBODY CAN RELATE WITH KINDNESS AND EVERYONE CAN RESPOND TO KINDNESS. MARK TWAIN ONCE SAID, "KINDNESS IS A LANGUAGE WHICH THE DEAF CAN HEAR AND THE BLIND CAN READ."
JUST WHAT IS KINDNESS? KINDNESS IS TREATING OTHERS THE WAY GOD HAS TREATED YOU. EPH. 4:32, "AND BE KIND TO ONE ANOTHER, TENDERHEARTED, FORGIVING ONE ANOTHER, JUST AS GOD IN CHRIST ALSO FORGAVE YOU."

A man fell into a pit and couldn't get himself out.

A subjective person came along and said, "I feel for you down there."

An objective person came along and said, "It's logical that someone would fall down there."

A Pharisee said, "Only bad people fall into a pit."

A mathematician calculated how he fell into the pit.

A news reporter wanted an exclusive story on his pit.

A fundamentalist said, "You deserve your pit."

An IRS agent asked if he was paying taxes on the pit.

A self-pitying person said, "You haven't seen anything until you've seen my pit."

A charismatic said, "Just confess that you're not in a pit."

An optimist said, "Things could be worse."

A pessimist said, "Things will get worse."

Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit!

In this series of evening messages we are studying the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is…..

Number one, not unlike patience, and not unlike love, they are both rooted and grounded in the character of God. If you hear that the message today is about kindness and goodness and go, "Oh, well, you know, who cares?" I mean, aren't we redeemed to begin to look like God on this earth? God is kind. God is good. These two words are fabric of the quality of God. And if I am to be godly, which we must be, then kindness and goodness must be resident in my existence.
Secondly, both of these words are intensely relational. They are things that flow out to other people. We're really good at being kind to ourselves and good to ourselves. The object of this text is not how kind and good can you be to yourself. It's clear that he is talking about things that impact other lives and impact relationships.

I find it interesting in Matthew 11:30 that Jesus Christ uses the same word when He says, "My yoke is easy." Literally He says, "My yoke is kind." In the gospel of Luke a derivative of this word is used to describe old wine that has become-and I love this word, because some English words sound just like what they are-mellow. Doesn't mellow sound just like what it is? I don't know why it is that life tends to make us crusty, crotchety, tight, rough, hard, when it is the quality of Christ that we move through life being mellow with people. I think when somebody walked away from you, wouldn't it be great if they'd say, "You know, one thing I like about that person is they're so mellow"

Therefore, God’s chosen ones, holy and loved, put on heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, 13 accepting one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a complaint against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so also you must [forgive]. 14 Above all, [put on]love—the perfect bond of unity.

NOW AS I THOUGHT ABOUT KINDNESS, I THOUGHT ABOUT AN INCIDENT IN THE LIFE OF JESUS WHICH SHOWS US KINDNESS.

A man is on his way along the perilous road between Jerusalem and Jericho, a road that drops rapidly from 5000 feet above sea level to 1200 feet below sea level in the course of about 45 miles.

The Samaritans were descendants of a mixed population, occupying the land after the conquest by Assyria in 722 B.C. The enmity between the Jews and the Samaritans was real, long and deadly.

This parable has been allegorical spaghetti up to modern times.

1) Origen's (AD 184-254) four interpretive points:

a) Literal meaning of text. b) Moral.

c) Spiritual. d) Allegorical.

2) His allegorical interpretation of the Good Samaritan:

a) The man going to Jericho = Adam.

b) Jerusalem = Paradise.

c) Jericho = the world.

d) Man's wounds = disobedience or sins.

e) Priest = the Old Testament law.

f) Levite = the Old Testament prophets.

g) Good Samaritan = Christ.

h) Donkey = the body of Christ.

i) Inn = the Church.

j) Two denarii = knowledge of the Father and the Son.

k) Return of the Good Samaritan = second coming of Jesus.

3) This style of interpretation was popular until 1900's.

a) Some add that oil = anointing with the Holy Spirit.

b) The wine = the blood of Christ's death.

A. See the need

First, a lover of others needs to see the need. Jesus told about "a man who was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead."

This guy was really stupid! He had no business traveling alone along one of the most desolate and dangerous roads in the world. If you were to travel this road today, as I have, you would be awed by the bleakness of the terrain. Virtually no one lives there. There are no towns, petrol stations or typical signs of civilization. Then there were groups of bandits who routinely robbed, beat and murdered travelers. Your best bet was to avoid the road altogether. If you had to travel it you were safest with a large caravan and armed guards. To travel alone was suicidal.

This is a story about someone in need. The issue isn’t how the man got into the mess he was in. He was hurt and needed help.
Too often we blame people for their problems and excuse ourselves from helping them. We say that he was fired because he drank too much. She was raped because she went to a party she never should have been at. They were in a car crash because they foolishly drove during an ice storm. He has AIDS because of his sexual behavior. She flunked out because she didn’t do her homework. People bring their problems on themselves.
All of this may be quite true, but Jesus says nothing about how someone got in trouble and everything about how to help them out of trouble.

Last October in France a 23 year old shepherd named Christian Raymond fell over a ravine but caught the edge of a cliff with his fingers. As he fell his cell phone came out of his pocket and landed on the ledge near his face. Earlier in the day he had called the emergency number, so he pushed redial with his nose. After 20 minutes of hanging by his finger tips the rescue unit came and saved his life.
Should the rescue people have told him to be more careful and that he brought it on himself? Of course not, when a man has a need he must be helped. That’s what Jesus was saying.

B. Skip the excuses

Along that treacherous road came two potential helpers who looked at the half-dead victim and refused to stop and help. It is possible that they had pretty good excuses.
The first was a priest. At that time there was an excess of priests so they served at the Temple in Jerusalem on a rotation basis. It was a comparatively rare assignment. The priest wanted to get to Jerusalem for the high and holy privilege of serving God and God’s people. However, any priest who touched a dead person was technically disqualified for seven days. He would lose his turn at the temple. So, when faced with the choice of serving in the liturgy or helping a man who might die on him, he chose to go with religious service.
You may see this differently than I see it. I’ve wondered what I would do if I saw a car accident or someone needing help on my way to church services at NBT. Should I stop to help or hurry along and hope someone else will stop? Would the people here understand if I didn’t show up?

The second was a Levite. He was part of the Temple staff but not a priest. We don’t know why he kept going. It may have been a safety issue with him. In those days, like today, there are bandits who set up decoys. Stop to help someone and the rest will jump out and get you. It was too risky for him. He decided not to take a chance.

Obviously Jesus disapproved of the priest and the Levite. There is a lesson here for us that our seemingly valid excuses for not getting involved with the needs of others are rarely legitimate. We should listen to Jesus telling us to skip the excuses.

"A friend is one who walks in when others walk out." Walter Winchell

COMMON ATTITUDES DISPLAYED

C. Help the hurting

The Wall Street Journal printed a little article called "How Important Are You?" .... "More than you think. A rooster minus a hen equals no baby chicks. Kellogg minus a farmer equals no corn flakes. If the nail factory closes what good is the hammer factory? Paderewski’s genius wouldn’t have amounted to much if the piano tuner hadn’t shown up. A cracker maker will do better if there’s a cheesemaker. The most skillful surgeon needs the ambulance driver who delivers the patient. Just as Rodgers needed Hammerstien, you need someone and some needs you."

Instead, Jesus introduces the hero who helped the hurting. He could not have shocked them more than with the choice of a Samaritan. Jews and Samaritans hated each other and certainly didn’t help each other. The lawyer would have assumed the Samaritan to be the villain, not the hero.

The Samaritan not only stopped but became involved. He was a good man with good credit and who was willing to use his resources and reputation to help someone who could not help himself. He was prepared in advance with oil and wine (an emergency first aid kit) just in case. He showed no hint of pride, self-preservation or selfishness. He saw a man who needed help and he gave him the help he needed.

We really value personal security and safety. Why do you think we have dead-bolt locks on our homes? Why do you think we have security systems on our automobiles? Why do you think we have safety deposit boxes? And that restricts us from seeing people the way Jesus sees them. We’re concerned about our own safety.

Rodney Starr, a sociologist, wrote a book called Rise of Christianity, which is basically a sociological look at why Christianity rose to take over the Roman empire in the first four centuries. There were devastating plagues in the early centuries – the first millennium. In fact, in 260 AD, there a plague that roared through the Roman Empire killing tens of thousands of people. Rodney Starr quotes an early church leader named Dionysius, and I want you to hear how Christians, our spiritual forefathers, related to this plague. Here’s what Dionysius wrote… he’s talking about the heroic nursing efforts of early Christians and he says:

“Like most of our brothers, Christians showed unbounded love and loyalty, never sparing themselves. Heedless of danger, they took charge of the sick, attending to their every need and ministering to them in Christ. And with them departed this life supremely happy. For they were infected by others with the disease drawing on themselves the sickness of their neighbor and cheerfully accepting their pains. Many in nursing and caring for others, transferred their death to themselves and died in their stead. The best of our brothers lost their lives in this manner.”

Now, Dionysius contrasts the way Christians drew near to the sick and nursed the sick with what non-Christians did. And he writes: “The heathen behaved in the very opposite way. At the very onset of the disease, they pushed the sufferers away and fled from their dearest, throwing them into the road before they were dead, and treated the corpses as dirt, hoping thereby to avert the spread of the contagion of the fatal disease. But do what they might, they found it difficult to escape other Christians. Our middle class value is to protect ourselves. The early Church’s value was to trust God and follow Jesus Christ. Guess who won the day in the early Church?”

And we see somebody who’s hurt on the highway and we think, “I don’t know if I should stop. It might risk my safety.”

Caring people take time to be compassionate.

1) Jesus often felt compassion for people.

2) You care about what happens to them.

3) You want to make their life better.

Caring people get involved.

1) The Samaritan's actions speak loudly:

a) Gave the guy first aid.

b) Bandaged his wounds.

c) Lifted him onto his donkey.

d) Led him to an inn.

e) Made him comfortable.

f) Gave money to the innkeeper.

g) Offered to cover future expenses.

2) Feeling compassion is nice. "Doing" compassion is better.

Caring people are not stingy.10:35 The Samaritan coughed up what was required.

Can you imagine helping an accident victim today, and telling the hospital, "Just put it on my bill"? Maybe we could cover the daily TV charge for the room. Real compassion will usually cost us something concrete. According to God, people are worth it. Jesus - "Go and do the same." The Samaritan set an example for all of us to follow.

Seven simple steps to get this into your life.

A. Identify people who need your care. Make a short list of people you could help.

B. Reach out to people - don't wait for them to come to you. Most people won't share their pain but keep it inside. Draw it out of them.

C. Communicate beyond the superficial level. Go deeper than, "How are you?" Often the reason we don't care for each other is that we don't hear when someone expresses a need. One woman was fed up with the "cliche'" superficial level of communication in her church, so she conducted an experiment. To everyone who asked her, while passing the hallways, "How are you?" she replied, "Lousy!" Some didn't even hear what she said. Others said, "I'm sorry to hear that." But no one asked her why, no one went any deeper.

Ask probing, thoughtful questions, especially about their struggles and their spirituality.

D. Empathize with them. Galatians 6:2 - "Bear one another's burdens." Try to feel what they are going through.

E. Listen without judging. This is especially hard for born-again Christians. "Of course your life is messed up! You broke commandments 2, 4, 7, and 8!"

Listening doesn't mean our convictions go out the windows, just that we give them time to pour out their heart. Good listening requires concentration. Hear what is not said, as well as what is. Body language can speak volumes.

F. Respond with a caring gift. Give them something tangible, even a card that says, "I'm praying for you." Then pray for them!

G. Know the ultimate source of compassion.

1) Compassion is not just what you do. It is who you are.

2) We can care for others, because Jesus first cared for us.