Situational Compassion

9.27.2010

Luke 10:37 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” ESV

The lawyer questioning Jesus in Luke 10.25-37, was asking some good questions and Jesus was giving him some straightforward answers. Jesus led him to the place where he could see that only by being compassionate he would show true love when He asked, “…which of these three proved to be a neighbor to the one who fell among the robbers?”

Nowadays we have a cultural belief in what is known as situational ethics. Meaning that in varying situations varying ethics apply depending on what is going on. It’s kind of a sliding-scale of when to do what is right; you do right when the situation calls for it, and not when the situation is different. It is nonsense. The lawyer tried to play situational-neighbor with Jesus and it backfired. To be fair the lawyer was only saying what he’d been taught and what he taught. But he was trying to make a situational-compassion approach to mercy and Jesus helped him see that approach was faulty.

Go and do likewise; don’t wait until the situation is just right before you act, go and do likewise in all situations and with all people. If you want a one-size-fits-all approach, this is it: love all people all the time and consider everyone of them in every situation your neighbor and treat them as God would have you treat them – all the same, all the time – with compassion and love.

I hear the Lord telling me today, Paul, go and do likewise. Don’t be like the only-certain-rules-apply-at-certain-times lawyer, be like Me – love everybody.

Father God,

Yes Lord, I will set my heart to follow You and go and do likewise – amen.