HELP DON’T COST A THING

We all know the story of the Good Samaritan. That is why writing about it can sometimes be daunting. But maybe you are like me who often feels too familiar with Bible stories so much that I miss the fresh insights that the Holy Spirit wants to offer. I am currently reading the Gospels (I have read them a couple of times) and I am realizing, again, that the word of God never gets stale; it is new every morning. Therefore, reading the story of the good Samaritan again, with the help of the Holy Spirit, I found something new, something different, which I hope I am able to articulate clearly in this blogpost.

My Study Bible guided me to re-imagine the story of the Good Samaritan through the lens of characterization. There are a couple of people in the story, beginning with Jesus the story teller himself and the religious lawyer unto whom the story is told. However, within the world of the story itself, we have the thieves, the priest, the Levite, the inn keeper, the Samaritan and the wounded man in desperate need of help. Before I delve fully into character analysis, let me provide a little bit of context. The road from Jerusalem to Jericho, in those days, used to be referred to as the “way of blood” because of lurking dangers. Apart from the rocky and jagged nature of the road, it was a popular hideout for armed robbers who were looking to prey on vulnerable sojourners. Who else could be an ideal prey if not this ordinary man navigating a dodgy path all by himself? I use the phrase “ordinary man” intentionally because the Bible does not provide any biographical information about him which, again, confirms his ordinariness. He could be any man. He is every man– everyman travelling  along the Jericho road of life.

The thieves attacked this man, they took everything away from him, they stripped him of his raiment (which implies that they left him naked), they beat him black and blue and left him there to die alone as they moved on in search of their next victim. The plot thickens when, “by chance”, a priest came along. Thank goodness. He is a priest after all. He definitely won’t watch the wounded man succumb to the cold hand of death. Perhaps the wounded man was still half-conscious and could recognize the priest. Perhaps he sighed in relief that, finally, a man of God was going to rescue him. Maybe he even gestured for help, with his last ebbing strength,  when it dawned on him that the priest was not looking in his direction. The priest did not flinch. In fact, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed by the wounded man. I wonder what his (the priest) thoughts were. Did he assume the man was already dead? Was he just trying to avoid trouble? Was he afraid for his own life? Did he think it was a trap? Maybe he was not really wounded? Maybe there were bandits in hiding, waiting to feast on him if he had stopped to help? In a bid not to demonize the priest, I am trying to imagine if I were in his shoes. I am trying to rationalize his decision and justify his action because that is what we always do whenever we don’t do what we are supposed to do and whenever we do what we are not supposed to do.  Really, it is not rocket science. It is a story of a man in desperate need of help and the man who, having the capacity to help, chose not to.

And then came a Levite. It is not inadvertent that Jesus mentions his identity. In fact, it is very important for the plot of the story. Levites are into the ministry of help. They assist during Temple services. They are the members of the choir, they are the ushers, the church gate keepers, the guardians, the temple officials and so on. Travelling from Jerusalem to Jericho meant that this Levite had probably just finished ministering in the Temple (which is located in Jerusalem) and is heading home. So, when he saw the dying man, his first instinct as a certified helper was to rush to his side. He looked at him in pity; he noticed his pulsating breath and then hesitated for a moment. “What is the right thing to  do?”, he asked himself. Of course, he knew the right thing to do. It was what he was born to do – to help. But no, he needed to be tactical. There was a lot at stake for him if he offered his help. What happens when God’s people withhold their help? What happens when God’s people are insensitive and nonchalant about showing mercy when it is  most needed? How often do we hide under legalities when things come to the crunch? How far is “too far” when it comes to lending a helping hand? At this point, the dying man must have lost hope in humanity. He must have accepted his fate– to die alone without help. He must have lost his voice. He must have muttered his last prayers to God. His vision must have become blurry and his eyes already half closed. Maybe his skin was already turning into a sallow yellow color. So when the Samaritan came along, he was too weak to have noticed. Why would he even care at this point? If a priest and a Levite could deny him help, who else could show him kindness and empathy?

 Strangely, he had the strength to cry for help when he still had hope in humanity. But now that his hope is lost, his strength is lost also. So when then Samaritan knelt by his side to help, he thought to tell him that there was no need because he would not make it to the next morning anyway. But he was too weak to utter a word. All he had left was a faint consciousness. When the Samaritan first set his eyes on him, the first sets of emotions he felt were a mix of dread and compassion but he chose to activate his compassionate side. Meanwhile, he probably, for  a minute, entertained the thought that the dying man might be a Jew. He probably thought it would be best to leave him to die, considering all the prejudices and injustices that the Jews did to the Samaritans. He probably remembered that one time– when he was young– on the playground when Jewish kids threw sticks and stones at him and called him a mixed blood with gentile ears. But he dusted off the conflicting thoughts and focused on what was at stake: a dying man in need of help. His compassion overturned his resentment. He knelt beside the dying man and held him up with his hand supporting his back. He gave him a reassuring smile as he started to bathe the wounds. He brought out the ointment in his bag and applied it to the man’s wounds. He bandaged the wounds after applying the ointment. The man’s breath became stabilized but he still could not talk. The Samaritan, despite being in a rush, decided that he would not leave the dying man because if he did, he would die eventually from lack food, water and shelter. He gently carried him on his horse and sat behind him so as to prevent him from falling. When they got to the nearest hotel, he helped him to get down from the horse and literally carried him into the hotel lobby. He booked a room for two and he spent the whole night nursing his wounds. When dawn crept in, he was incredibly pleased to see that the wounded man was stable and breathing properly. He didn’t bother to wake him. Instead, he went to the hotel reception and paid for a few more days for the wounded man. He instructed the hoteliers to nurse the man back to health and promised to pay any extra expenses that may come as a result. He stepped out of the hotel, climbed on his horse and continued his journey home.

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Back to my point about the characters in the story of the Good Samaritan. While God is the best judge of human intentions, it won’t be hyperbolic to say that the reason why the priest and the Levite didn’t help is not only because of their lack of compassion but also because they simply did not see a human being, they saw a scum of the earth. Of what gain is it to exert energy on catering for the despicable? Should it be your cup of tea that someone who chose to live a careless life got what they deserved?  I wonder if the Priest and the Levite felt pangs of guilt when they got home. I wonder if they shared the story with their families on the dinner table.

When you see people in need and you don’t help them, you are simply saying that their lives do not matter. And who are you to say that when all life is precious in God’s eyes? The thieves saw the man as someone to use and exploit, the priest saw him as a problem to avoid while the Levite saw him as an object of curiosity. Only the Samaritan saw a human being worthy of love  and care. Only the Samaritan saw him through God’s eyes. If we see everyone (regardless of how different from us they are) through God’s eyes, I believe we would be able to show more compassion and exude more empathy. God help me to see others through your eyes. The basic question from this story is: who is your neighbor? Your neighbor is not always someone that looks like you or shares your beliefs and politics. Your neighbor could be that person who is completely different from you and it behooves you to treat him as a full human being. It is easier to help those we know than to help strangers but sometimes it is more rewarding to help strangers because by helping them, we “entertain angels unawares “(Hebrew 13:2). Final note: do not rationalize why you shouldn’t help. Do not justify why you should help. Just help. And yes, HELP DOES COST A THING. It can cost you  your time, energy, money and comfort just like the Good Samaritan.