Bless Every Home: Week 2, April 22, 2018

The entire nation of China was rocked in 2011 by an incident involving a single two-year-old Chinese girl named Wang Yue.  Her family called her “Little Yue Yue.”  She innocently wandered onto a narrow, crowded road in Foshan, Guangdong Province.  She was hit by a vehicle, in fact, two.  Neither stopped.  She lay broken and wounded on the road for more than seven minutes. 

 

During that span of time, eighteen people either walked or cycled past the toddler before a scrap peddler named Chen Xianmei, finally stopped to attend to her injuries.  The little girl was whisked to a hospital for treatment but succumbed to her injuries and died eight days later.

 

The whole incident, including the fact that so many people passed by the little girl and refused to render aid, was captured on a security camera.   That footage was uploaded onto the Internet and it quickly stirred widespread reaction in China and even overseas. Many commentators saw this as indicative of a growing apathy in contemporary Chinese society.  It has been referred to as China’s “good Samaritan problem”—widespread apathy for the hurting.

 

But we all know, this is not just a Chinese problem.  It’s an American problem.  It’s a global problem.  It’s an ancient problem, because it is a human problem. 

 

Thankfully our human problems have a divine solution.  There is a true “good Samaritan” and we will meet him today.  His impact on us can transform even the most cruel or calloused into good Samaritans who care for others.

 

Bless Every Home

“Care”

Luke 10:25-37

 

1. We can be cruel

Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead”(10:30).

 

1. Attitude: “What’s yoursis mineand I’ll take”
2. Action: The cruel inflictsuffering

2. We can be calloused

Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.  So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side(10:31-32).

 

1. Attitude: “What’s mineis mineand I’ll keep”
2. Action: The calloused ignoresuffering

3. We can be compassionate

But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion(10:33)

 

1. Attitude: “What’s mineis yoursand I’ll give”
2. Action: The compassionate intervenein suffering