A No-Name

"‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, 

I will reimburse you for any extra expenses you may have."  

Luke 10:35

He is part of a group of people, joining the woman Jesus met at the well, the widow whose two mites represented all she had, the thief on the cross who begged for mercy and so many more, whose names we will never know. Where he was traveling to that day has not been told us, and what plans he had that were interrupted were not part of the story. But so noteworthy was what he did that the story was told by Jesus to those who were questioning him. And so impactful were his actions that, in our day, a host of ministries and charitable organizations incorporate into their names the story of a no name who we know as the Good Samaritan.

We live in a day and age of staged events. Even this week, as one of our football players is signing a letter of intent to a state university, the media will be present to take pictures and report on the young man’s accomplishment. But that day, on the road leading down to Jericho from Jerusalem, there was no notoriety to be gained, no ulterior motive to be satisfied, with not even an onlooker to record his name for posterity. The unnamed man saw a need, he had pity in his heart, and he felt compassion for the man suffering. So moved was he by the man’s condition that he was willing to inconvenience himself (remember that not only did he bandage up the man’s wounds by the roadside but he took him to an inn and spent that entire night caring for the man at the inn.) Someone no different than us was willing to interrupt his plans because he saw someone in need and decided he couldn’t just pass by and do nothing.

Most of us live incredibly busy lives but have we become too busy to notice the hurting around us. One man said that “sometimes the pace of life can crowd out God’s place in our lives.” Have our schedules, our plans and how we want to spend our time and money become so regimented that there is no room for divine interruptions and divine appointments. Have the needs and requests for assistance and aid become so frequent that, like the priest and Levite who passed by the wounded man, they automatically fall on deaf ears. I am thankful for the example of a man whose name isn’t known and whose name isn’t important – but who left us more than an example, really a standard, of not passing by and of caring for one another, whether that be in the major crises in life, or in the times when a shoulder is needed to cry or lean on, an ear to listen, or a hand to pull us up. Now it’s our turn, with no desire for fame, acknowledgement or recognition, to show that kind of love and compassion in our generation!

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church