“God's definition of what matters is pretty straightforward. He measures our lives by how we love.”
JUDGES 18-19
1In those days Israel had no king.
And in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking a place of their own where they might settle, because they had not yet come into an inheritance among the tribes of Israel. 2So the Danites sent five of their leading men from Zorah and Eshtaol to spy out the land and explore it. These men represented all the Danites. They told them, “Go, explore the land.”(18:1-2)LUKE 10:25-42
25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
27He answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’c ; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’d ”
29But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.33But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two denariieand gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
JOURNAL
Some of the stories in Judges are really strange. I often wonder why they are in the Bible...yet it is in these moments that I realize that one of the reasons is that they are true. Truth often is messy and doesn't fit neatly into my preconceived notions of how life should go. As a result it is sometimes difficult to see and accept the truth of my own life. Just as it is difficult to accept the truth and reality of someone else's life.
This is the beauty of the story of the good Samaritan that Jesus tells to the "expert in the law". He described a scenario that socially was taboo but yet framed it in a way that made the point that all humanity and everyone who is hurting and in need is our "neighbor". Our lives are to be lived in service and sacrifice and often that will mean clashing with socially accepted norms. It also requires us to get out of our own head and our own self-absorption in order to see the hurt and the opportunity for love and grace that are all around us.
Some of the stories in Judges are really strange. I often wonder why they are in the Bible...yet it is in these moments that I realize that one of the reasons is that they are true. Truth often is messy and doesn't fit neatly into my preconceived notions of how life should go. As a result it is sometimes difficult to see and accept the truth of my own life. Just as it is difficult to accept the truth and reality of someone else's life.
7Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
1 JOHN 4:7-12
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