Attitudes of Life
(Luke 10:31-37
A follow-up to Loving Your Neighbor
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. 31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, 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. 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. 36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? 37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise
Introduction:
In this very familiar text, there are three different attitudes of life. Every one of us has one of these attitudes.
There are times when some of all three show up in our actions. As we look at this text, let me explain.
1. First, there was the attitude of the thieves, “What’s yours is mine, and I’ll take it.”
This is the attitude of those who roam our streets today, robbing and taking that which belongs to others. I don’t understand what looting has to do with peaceful protests. I guess they feel that the world owes them a living, so they take it. A growing number in our society seem to no longer believe in working. However, the apostle Paul says, “That if any would not work, neither should he eat.” (2 Thess. 3:10b) I didn’t say it Paul did.
This is the attitude of the businessperson, Christian or Non-Christian, who cuts corners on a business deal. If you don’t deliver what you promised for the price you promised, then you have taken that which is not yours. If I waste time on my job and then take an entire paycheck; I’ve taken what isn’t mine.
Christians have this attitude when we run roughshod over the rights and feelings of other Christians. When we share gossip (true or untrue), we take someone else's character and good name and damage it. Something that does not belong to us. People whisper in my ear.’ I sure did hate to hear this, but etc.” If they hated to hear it, then why tell me?
2 Second, there was the attitude of the priest and Levite, “What’s mine is mine, and I’ll keep it.
We live in a very selfish world. The more we have, the less we want to share. We live as though we can
take it with us. Billy Graham said, “I’ve never seen a hearse with a U-Haul behind it.”
The attitude of the priest and the Levite was, we didn’t put him there, and we’ll not help get him out. They reasoned we are not our brother’s keeper (Gen.4:9b), but we are. Jesus said the only way to keep something is to give it away.
(Matt.10:39, 16:25).
This is the attitude of us Christians when we refuse to share the Gospel with the world. Suppose that, by some
miracle, I discovered a cure for cancer any k
ind at any stage. However, for some reason, I never shared my knowledge with anyone. Thousands of people continued to die of this dreaded disease. Maybe I was afraid I couldn’t make folks understand or was too busy. Perhaps I reasoned that it’s a personal matter between them and God. Then, after I had lived a long, happy life and died at a ripe old age, someone discovered that I had known the cure after all these years. But I never shared it. What would you think of me? How would I be judged?
Listen, Christians, you and I know the cure for a more dreaded disease than cancer. It is called sin. Sin destroys not only the body but also the soul in a devil’s hell. Most of us keep this knowledge to ourselves; shame on us. I believe God will judge us for our selfishness.
3. Third, there was the attitude of the Samaritan, “What’s mine is yours, and I’ll share it.”
This was the attitude that got the man out of the ditch, bound up his wounds, carried him to the Inn, and paid for his
Keep. This is Jesus’ attitude. I was wounded by sin and left for dead by the roadside of life. Jesus got me up, took me to
the Inn of Salvation, and fully paid my sin debt. Glory!!
Once upon a time, a man fell into a pit and couldn’t get himself out. A sensitive person came along and said, “I feel for you down there.” A practical person came along and said, “I knew you were going to fall in sooner or later.” A Pharisee said, “Only bad people fall into a pit.” A mathematician calculated how far he fell. A news reporter wanted an exclusive story on his pit. An IRS agent asked if he was paying taxes on the pit. A self-pitying person said, “You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen my pit.” A mystic said, “Just imagine you’re not in a pit.” An optimist said, “Things could be worse.” Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit!
The religious leaders knew the truth and did nothing about it. The Samaritan was an outcast, but he knew the truth, and his compassion moved him to action.
Conclusion.
From time to time, most of us need an attitude adjustment. Our old man causes us to slip back into a selfish attitude. Could this be what Jesus meant when He told Peter He that he who is bathed needs only to wash his feet? (Jn 13:10) It’s easy for us to get our feet tangled up in the wrong attitudes. Do you need an attitude adjustment?
