Go and Do. Go and Do.

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://myencounterchurch.org/#/messages-media] 

Have you ever thought that Jesus’ parables—the stories that he tells—can sometimes be a bit dramatic? I mean, imagine that you’re in a foreign land, just passing through, and you find yourself in a particularly dangerous part of town. You’re already nervous because you know that people are often robbed in the area, and then you come across a naked, half-dead body. What would you do? This is the premise of Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, and I’ll admit that at first read it can seem a bit far-fetched.

But, just as every story in the Bible points to Jesus, so too does Jesus’ own parable point to the truth of who he is. Jesus is the one who came into a hostile land, was cruelly murdered in it, and then pledged to return in order to redeem the very people who executed him.

Jesus lived out an impossibly far-fetched, radical love, and he challenged us to go and do the same. While some of us may cringe at the thought of bandaging the seeping wounds of a stranger, especially a stranger encountered in a dangerous and foreign place, there can be many permutations of this work.

I don’t think we necessarily have to risk personal safety to be like the Good Samaritan, but we have to risk something for the gospel. Perhaps it’s social danger. Perhaps we befriend the person who everyone thinks is a little strange, or socially awkward, or too different. Perhaps the risk is actually inviting that neighbor or co-worker to church. Perhaps we spend our money differently and live in a smaller home or drive an older car so that we have more money to give away, all the while enduring the judgement from colleagues who take nicer vacations or live in a more desirable zip code. Perhaps we stand up for a stranger who is suffering under discrimination, or follow the holy spirit’s prompting to post something risky but true to social media.

The Lord asked us to go and do. Go and do.

Sometimes the risk might be our own personal satisfaction. Through his church, my dad has been delivering Thanksgiving meal baskets to families who qualify for a free meal through a local program. My dad purchases the “traditional” (to him) Thanksgiving dinner items—a turkey with a disposable roasting pan, seasonings, vegetables and stuffing, rolls, and a pie, and drops the meal off (with cooking instructions in case any of the food is unfamiliar) at the family’s home. A few years ago, my dad dropped off a basket to a family who opened the door, took the basket, and slammed the door shut without saying a single word. My dad was a bit surprised by the reception, but he got back into his car and continued delivering baskets of food around the community. Jesus didn’t tell us to offer kindness, hospitality, or gospel to people who express gratitude in a manner that fulfills our own cultural expectations.

The Lord asked us to go and do. Go and do.

It can be tempting to ask what the minimum threshold is for living a selfless life. What’s the minimum commitment I can make to charitable giving, volunteering, hosting, or sharing? What’s the least I can do to be neighborly? The challenge, according to Jesus, is not to limit ourselves to the minimum, but rather to push ourselves to the maximum. What’s the greatest sacrifice I can possibly make of my finances, my time, my home, my influence, my knowledge, my resources? As Dirk preached on Sunday, people are not an interruption or an inconvenience. People are an invitation to love as Jesus loves.

After all, Jesus is the only one who went and did, perfectly.

[Kristin vanEyk loves partnering with the people and the mission of Encounter Church. Learn more about Encounter or listen to Sunday's message here.]