Loving Like Jesus

"Loving Like Jesus" is an expository sermon by Jim Fryer.

Luke 10:27-37

Luk 10:27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.
Luk 10:28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
Luk 10:29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbor?
Luk 10:30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
Luk 10:31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
Luk 10:32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
Luk 10:33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
Luk 10:34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
Luk 10:35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
Luk 10:36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves?
Luk 10:37 And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

The context of these verses gives us only a glimpse of this great parable that we call The Good Samaritan. But within these verses we find the complex truth of loving like Jesus loved. We read that the Law said to love God and Love People. The Samaritan portrayed this love and Jesus told a young lawyer to go and love the same way Jesus loved.

Notice 3 things His love portrayed and why we should be loving like Jesus.

I. His love was displayed by compassion.

v. 32... If you read the entire passage in Luke 10 you will find that at least 3 other men had seen the poor stranger and decided for their own reason not to help. It is evident in the commentary of this passage that the intent is to show the weakness of these men in meeting the real meaning of the Law.

Here is a truth that we need to remember. Love is not found in religion. Religion always causes us to put religion first and living the religion second. By helping the man in trouble the Samaritan displayed true religion and undefiled.

If this is the way Jesus loved, and it is, we must put our religion aside, put our preferences aside, and put our stereotypes aside and love those who are unlovely, which is loving like Jesus.

II. His love was demonstrated by contact.

v. 34... If we study this parable in detail we will see that everyone except the Samaritan refused to touch the wounded traveler. The reason seemed legitimate. If the religious persons touched the wounded man and he were actually dead, they would be denied service in the Temple for one year.

How could they give up this important duty for one man that they did not know? Yet it was the Samaritans willingness to get his hands dirty that demonstrated true love and compassion.

The Bible records that Jesus was touched by the feelings of our infirmities. He was touched by the limit of the flesh. He was in all points like us yet without sin. It is in our being unafraid of being touched by the sins of others that allows us to minister to them in their darkest hours. And that is loving like Jesus loved.

III. His love was delivered with care.

v. 34-35... In this verse we find that the Samaritan took CARE of the wounded traveler. He bandaged his wounds with bandages that should have been reserved for him on his travels. He poured oil and wine in the wound to sear it and treat infection that most assuredly would come.

He put him on his own animal and led him to an Inn to recover. He paid for his stay, gave money for future stay, and promised to pay if the money did not cover all the expenses. When was the last time you did this? When was the last time that you gave up things that were intended for your self and give it to someone who was “wounded and dying?” That would be loving like Jesus did.

When was the last time you put someone up in a motel or gave them a room in your house until they could “recover?” When was the last time you loaned out your car and paid the expenses? When was the last time you helped someone out of the gutter? Love is delivered with care and that's loving like Jesus.

I have to tell you that no one wants what you have unless you think it is so valuable you HAVE TO SHARE IT. Have you ever received such a large or wonderful gift that you just had to share it with someone? How about the time you received an unusual gift for service you rendered on your job? How about a bonus that was far above your expectations?

Do you just keep that to yourselves and not feel compelled to share it with those less fortunate. How about the time when you child was given a good bill of health? Did you go and visit with the families whose child received tragic news?

How about those who have been displaced by a hurricane or a fire or a tornado, etc? Do you take a few days off and go to help in the recovery or do you send a small gift just to soothe your conscience?

I’m not trying to put a guilt trip on you; I'm only trying to get you thinking about Loving as Jesus Loved. His love was not in word only. His love was on display for all to see. Will we live our lives in like manner?

A group of business men were late for their plane and were rushing through the airport when they bumped into a blind girl who was selling apples to waiting passengers. They got to the gate just in time, went to the entrance of the plane when one of them, a Christian, felt terrible about what they had done to the young blind girl.

He told his friends to go on and that he would catch the next flight because he had to go back and check on the girl. They protested but he had been so moved by their selfishness that he could not think of leaving without offering at least to help.

When he got back to the terminal there was the girl trying desperately to gather her apples. The young Christian business man knelt down and told the girl that he was sorry and that he would help pick them up for her.

When they had completely picked up all the apples he took out his wallet and paid for a few of the apples they had bruised. He apologized to the girl and began to turn away when the young blind girl asked a question he never forgot. “Mister, are you Jesus?”

No one will probably ask us this question but it would sure be nice if someone, somewhere, sometime would ask, “Mister, are you a Christian?” It gets no better than that because that would be loving like Jesus.

You have His Word on it!

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