I was thinking about the pandemic recently after a resident of our neighbourhood suddenly swerved away from us as we were walking down the street. I remarked to my wife that it reminded me of the parable of the Good Samaritan, in which both a priest and a Levite crossed the road to avoid helping a fellow Jew who had been robbed, stripped, beaten, and left for dead. These were men whose calling it was to care for their countrymen, yet they refused.

This story also illustrates the premise of Serves You Right. God calls us to love those we would rather hate. Samaria is north of Jerusalem. Ethnically, the Samaritans were part Jewish and part Assyrian. Their place and mode of worship were was different. The Jews viewed them with contempt, and the feeling was mutual. They hated each other so much that Jews would actually cross to the east side of the Jordan River to avoid traveling through Samaria on their way to the Galilee.

The victim of the crime in Jesus’ story was traveling to Jericho, a town about 30 miles northeast of Jerusalem. The Samaritan was evidently traveling to Jerusalem, where he would not be welcome. Violating every convention of the day, he not only went to the injured man, but he also administered first aid, took him to an inn where he could recover, and paid the innkeeper for his care.

As we navigate our new reality, seeking to maintain safe distances and uphold imposed regulations, let’s keep in mind that Jesus’ command to love those we’d rather hate (Matthew5:43-48) trumps gloves and masks and two-metre gaps. Expenditures of our resources will not be met with hand-outs and bail-outs. God will meet our needs as he uses us to meet the needs of others.  

 Image: El bon samarità(1838), by Pelegrí Clavé i Roquer

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