Outside my own little world: having a reason to help someone out

“Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” James 1:27

“Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. Philippians 2:3-4

” Do not withhold good from those who deserve it when it’s in your power to help them. If you can help your neighbor now, don’t say, “Come back tomorrow, and then I’ll help you” Proverbs 3:27-28

“In helping others, we shall help ourselves, for whatever good we give out completes the circle and comes back to us– Flora Edwards

Earlier today I thought about Matthew Wests song: My own little world. I came to realize that so many times I look out for my own needs so much so, that I miss out on the big picture. That which really matters: helping others first. I touched on this in the 7 reasons why it’s more blessed to give than to receive post. The song got me thinking, “What if I got up every morning determined not to go back to sleep in the night without helping someone out?” There’s a world of a difference between being in a position where you happen to be at the right place at the right time to help someone, and purposing in your heart to do so.

Oh yeah? What is it?
The positive impact it has on you! You see when you lend a hand because you can, you don’t think much of it, but when you assist because it is your desire, it’s so thrilling knowing you managed to make someone else’s day better. I remember a long time ago telling myself:

There’s nothing better than putting myself in a position where someone’s day gets better, just because I was there.

How can this be done? Simply put the interest of others first. That’s it. Now, this does not work if your motive was to do it to further your own ambitions. The idea is to put the interest of others above your own, especially if you are able to help them now.

A new perspective on a known parable: The Good Samaritan
In my last post, the value of observing the Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth, I shed some light on the right way to read the Bible. If you haven’t yet read it, please do so. This point will make much more sense. There is only one problem with this parable: the name. Looking at it from the parable’s perspective, the meaning of it has got nothing to do with the Samaritan! Before saying anything else about it let’s take a look at first:

And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?”  So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’^[a] and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’” And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”  Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving himhalf dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”

 And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.”
Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” Luke 10:25-37

Observing the meaning
Character studies is normally a very good thing to do when reading the Bible because it gives you a different perspective on common parables, stories and so on. Here the expert in the law challenged Jesus by asking, “who is my neighbour?” The important thing to note about him is that he was a man who looked down on priests and despised Samaritans. This is why he wanted to “justify himself,” kind of like double checking to see if he was on track with everything, including that.

A note about parables
Jesus spoke Aramaic. Obviously those in Rome and Ephesus would not have been able to understand Him, so everything He said was translated to Greek. The word for “parables” Jesus used was methal. In Aramaic that would mean “riddle.” It was translated to Greek as parabole- parable. Concerning Jesus’ principal ministry, the kingdom of God, He spoke  to them about its secrets in parables which they perceived (according to the language He spoke) as riddles. That way they could see but failed to see, they heard and even understood the parables but not in a way that led to obedience.

Revealing the meaning
The parable of the Good Samaritan actually involves the expert in the law. He knew what the law talked about but wanted to be in the “safe zone” concerning his hatred towards priests and Samaritans. The parable indicates how the priest and pharisee did not help the man. That, basically, was a straight insult to the expert in the law! Samaritans in general were looked down upon, see John 4:7-9. After the man was assisted and Jesus asked about the one who was more neighbourly, the man replies, “The one who showed him mercy.” That was a huge slap in the face to the expert in the law! As the term suggests that’s something he’s supposed to know already. In essence the conversation went this way:

What does the law say?

It says love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and your neighbour as yourself. I already know that, but what significance does it have with inheriting eternal life.

(The parable is told)

Show mercy to everyone by not hating anyone and not looking down on anyone.

That now has real meaning when you look at in light of the kingdom of God. If someone asked, “What does this parable have to do with the kingdom of God?” you can just tell them that loving your neighbour is about not hating anyone and not looking down on anyone.

I remember my friend was like, “But love your neighbour is alright to have as the meaning  because if new-born again Christians understand it that way, they’re on the right track.” I replied saying, “No, even for them, that doesn’t work. Loving your neighbour is the lesson or idea behind the parable but it’s not the meaning.” Hence why a parable is, in essence, a riddle.

Thinking about it all
There have been moments when I have thought more about myself than anyone else. Then if I continued doing that, even without knowing it, it turns into everything me and nothing for anyone else. All me, no you. I am much better now and improving as I take it a step at a time. The problem with our survival instinct is that we put more focus on taking care of ourselves first then someone else. Those full of conceit tend to embrace that mindset and the saddest thing is they don’t even know it!  The more we do that the more we think about others less when we should actually think of ways to help them more. Remember it’s not about me, it’s up to me.

It’s better to be humble than to be humbled! As you watch and listen to this song, ask yourself, “What part/s of my life have I missed out on through the neglect of helping someone out?”