The story of the Good Samaritan” is familiar to many Christians. However, while they see many of the obvious and even not-so-obvious elements in the story, many do not recognize that the story illustrates cross-cultural ministry opportunities for themselves.
In the story, we usually recognize that two Jewish men (a priest and a Levite) passed the injured man without stopping to help. We also usually recognize that it was a Samaritan who stopped to help. That is, after all, a major point in Jesus telling the story. Jesus wanted the lawyer with whom he was speaking to understand that anyone could be his neighbor.
Did you make the connection that anyone could be your neighbor? People from a different culture, ethnicity, or economic standing can be your neighbor. Jesus wants you to understand that lesson, too.
Jesus used the example of helping someone in need as “loving your neighbor as yourself” (vs. 27). Think of two ways you have helped someone from a different culture, ethnicity, or economic standing and use one paragraph each to describe them. If you haven’t ever done that, think of two ways you could do so and use one paragraph each to describe them.
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