Introduction:
You have heard enough news media for a lifetime, you have heard what everyone has to say, now let’s hear what God has to say.
However, before I begin, I must warn you. Pastor Tom says, we may not see eye-to-eye on every issue, but we can walk arm-in-arm. Also, one of my professors said, “the test of a first-rate mind is the ability to hold two conflicting opinions and still retain the capacity to function.”
I wish to state, that as a church we blatantly oppose the sin of racism and injustice in any form. May God give us the courage to confront such sins where it may be found and participate with the Holy Spirit as we seek the reconciliation, healing and restoration of people to God, and to one another. Praise God! Hallelujah!
The dead of George Floyd’s is sad. No matter his past, he like every other person was created in the image of God, and his life mattered. I cannot but think, that one of his last words, were; “I can’t breathe!” However, this was not the first time we had heard those words. In December 2014, Fred Shapiro, editor of the Yale Book of Quotations, announced that the words, “I can’t breathe” topped the list of the most notable quotations of 2014. This is because in that year another man, named Eric Garner was killed, and his last words were those same words; I can’t breathe.
I think as human beings these times call for many questions, but one question we need to ask when someone calls for help, is a simple one – and I have taken the liberty to title this message, with the same question: Can - you - breathe?
I want to ask you that question today: Can - you - breathe? I know you look nice, and drive in a nice car, but behind the façade, and the make-up, are you okay? Can - you - breathe? If you are watching online, I don’t know what you are going through, but Can -you – breathe?
Today, I am taking my text from Luke 10:25-37. In this text is the popular story of the good Samaritan. This famous story is the most popular parable of the bible. Our Society is so familiar with the story that there are at least half a dozen Hospitals in the US named after the Good Samaritan. So many sermons have been dedicated to it, in fact searching the phrase “Sermon on the Good Samaritan” in Google returns over 1.8 million results. So you can imagine my surprise when the Lord led me to this scripture, but at the end of this message you will understand why.
Before we begin reading, let us pray.
PRAYER:
Father, we humble ourselves before You because we are debtors to Your grace. Everything we are is because of Your goodness and mercy. Lead us further into truth and justice. Breathe upon your word. Your word says, there’s a spirit in man and it is the inspiration of the almighty that gives man’s spirit understanding. Let the entrance of your word bring light. Let it be a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, in Jesus name, amen.
If you don’t mind, join me as we read together. Luke 10:25-28.
Luke 10:25-37 (NIV)
25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Pause for a moment, I just want to remind everyone that Jesus is coming soon, are you prepared? Let’s read on) 26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” 27 He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” 29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
I know we are maintaining social distancing, but look at the person closest to you, and from that distance ask them, “Neighbor, are you really my neighbor?” Praise God!
Put it in context, this man knew the law of Moses, he was a lawyer, and he knew the tension between the Jews and Samaritans, because Samaritans customarily did not have dealings with Jews, so what did Jesus do?
Jesus gave him a story using as a backdrop, “the good Samaritan”, this is not the only time a Samaritan was used in the narratives of Christ, remember the Samaritan woman at the well?). Jesus always challenged the controversial issues of His day and called on us to live with a higher standard.
Jesus was trying to draw the man’s attention to the idea that it is not only those in your Zip code that are your neighbor. They may not be your skin color, your tongue or your tribe. Many don’t like people that don’t look like them.
I AM not called to LIKE YOU because YOU LOOK LIKE ME or because YOU LIKE ME. YOU AND I are brought into the LOVE OF CHRIST because of our conforming into the LIKENESS of Christ. Hallelujah.
Now I can going to read the next verse as Jesus tells the story, please watch this:
Verse 30: 30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. (In other words, he began to have breathing problems).
The title of this message is deliberate, because the stories of George Floyd, Eric Garner and the man in the Samaritan story prompt us to consider for a moment, not just the anthropological significance of breathing, but also the theological significance of breath.
isn’t it interesting that the Holy spirit is often referred to and symbolic as the breathe of God? Jesus breathed on the disciples and said received the Holy Spirit John 20:22. Just as without breath life is impossible, without the Spirit of God, a life of righteousness is impossible.
It is also quite interesting that when God formed man from the dust of the ground, the bible says, “he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Genesis 2:7. God created man in his own image…. The imago dei. I believe that the breathe of God in man was not just for motion, but for emotion, the mind and image of Christ in man, because all other animals can move, but don’t have the breathe of God.
Isn’t it interesting that even when God decided to bring Adam a helper, because it wasn’t good for man to be alone, he created the woman from the bone, that helps man breathe?
In Job 33:4 (NIV) Job says, “The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
The Psalmist cried, Psalm 150:6 (NIV) “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
There’s something about breath, that’s why the enemy wants to steal your breath.
isn’t it interesting that in 2020 we have had major issues, all relating to breathing problems? COVID-19 and the cry of a man saying I can’t breathe?
Like this wounded man in the good Samaritan story, that had breathing problems because he was half dead, there are many in the society in emergency situations, and have breathing problems.
We as the church, we need to be vulnerable and ask our brothers and sisters and our communities, are you okay? Can – you - breathe? The church as God’s messengers of hope, is not a place, it is a people.
We must set the example that it is okay to say that you are not okay. We need to ask the marginalized in our society, “are you okay?” Can - you - breathe?
- After being marginalized, attacked, and wounded: Can - you - breathe?
- After being discriminated at work, because of your skin or gender even though you had the same qualifications as others, and you were not promoted like others: Can - you - breathe?
- After being overused, overruled, and overlooked: Can - you - breathe?
As the church we want to be able to speak up and ask many going through difficult times: Can - you - breathe? For far too long the body of Christ has been a hotel and not a hospital. The church should not always be a place for people to be comfortable.
We must speak the word of truth, that’s why the bible is referred to as a sword of the Spirit – that cuts – dividing the joints and marrow, body and soul. So when you come to church it should be a surgical experience.
One thing we must not forget about breathing, biology tells us that the human body breathes in oxygen and breathes out carbon dioxide. We breathe in the good stuff, but the body of Christ must not forget - to breathe out, the bad stuff.
I agree that there has to be reconciliation, but first – there must be healing. However, healing cannot come without understanding the hurt.
Jesus is the healer, but before he became healer, he was wounded for our transgressions.
How can you understand my position, when you have not first being in my place? You know sometimes, we try to put people in their place, when we have never been in their shoes.
I have learned that you may never be able to fix it right, if you don’t feel it right.
As God’s messengers, we need to be willing to sit where people sit, before asking them to stand where we stand.
One mistake many make is trying to fix people’s pain, without first feeling their pain.
As you would see shortly, the good Samaritan put the wounded man on his own donkey.
I want us to continue to read on: Luke 10:31
31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side.
There are many reasons why this priest passed on the other side, maybe he was late for church, or he had a meeting, or he was simply afraid - personal story – I remember many years ago, I was about to take a train with my wife in Europe, and as we were on the platform we saw a man walk up to another man who had a ring on his nose, this man gripped the ring on the other man’s nose and ripped it off, and blood went everywhere. Immediately, I grabbed my wife and ran the opposite direction, because I didn’t want to be caught in the crossfire. Can I be honest? Honesty, I was apprehensive. Could it be that the priest was afraid of getting involved? One of the reasons many don’t speak up against injustice is that they are afraid.
To be fair to the priest. You must understand that a priest is one of the descendants of Aaron and given high status in Jewish culture. The law was if a priest comes within six feet of a dead body, he would risk defilement and would require a lengthy purification process. So probably he didn’t want to mess up his holiness because he didn’t know, if the man was dead or alive. So he passed on the other side. He allowed his title, to cripple his mantle. He allowed his status to make him a statute. He allowed his timidity, to hinder his testimony.
But he still failed to ask the question, from the other side, “brother, can you breathe?”
In verse 32 of Luke 10.
32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
In proximity, religion, and ethnicity, both of these men, the Priest and the Levite, would be considered a neighbor to the man who was robbed, because the parable describes a man, presumed to be a Jew by the Jewish audience. So by all intents and purposes they were supposed to be neighbors.
See verse 33
33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him.
The good Samaritan ignored racism, even though he was considered a “despised Samaritan,” he rose above such shallowness to care for a fellow human being. Child of God, we are all created equal: no one race is superior nor inferior from the other, because at the end of the day, we all belong to the same race: the human race.
The civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. famously said: “On the parable of the Good Samaritan: “I imagine that the first question the priest and Levite asked was: ‘If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?’ But by the very nature of his concern, the good Samaritan reversed the question: ‘If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?”
35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ 36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” 37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
The bible emphasizes the need for justice and unity in the society, again and again.
Isaiah 58:6-8 (NIV)
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
1 Corinthians 12:13 (NIV)
13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
God hates any form of discrimination, even when the first racial discrimination occurred where some people opposed Moses because he married a black woman, God punished the discrimination.
There are a few lessons, we can learn from the good Samaritan.
LESSONS FROM THE STORY:
We have those around us that need healing and building up.
o Not everyone that smiles is okay, there are many that are wounded and smiling.
o God calls on us to ask the question: can you breathe? Can I help you? Are you okay?
Romans 12:15 (NIV)
15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.
We have a call to be messengers of hope.
o Hope has a name; His name is Jesus.
We have been equipped to be Jesus’ hands and feet.
o The hands and feet of Jesus are not of violence. We don’t fight like the world.
Ephesians 2:14 (NIV)
14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility,
SO WHAT CAN WE DO IN TIMES LIKE THIS?
We are not called to do as the world does. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal. Here are some things we can do as the body of Christ:
1. WE MUST PRAY
Like Jesus we must learn to process pain through prayer. If we try to process our pain only through the context of our culture or experience, we may end up in greater pain. In Matthew 26:36 Jesus went to Gethsemane and prayed, in the middle of His pain and pending crucifixion He prayed.
#We are called to pray.
#Prayer Brings Clarity, Calm, and Christ into every situation.
Hebrews 4:14-16
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
2. WE MUST EQUIP
In Luke 10:34, we see that the Samaritan equipped the wounded man. He poured oil and wine and placed him on his donkey – Time would fail me to look into the symbolism of these two objects – But oil speaks of the anointing, and wine speaks of transformation.
#We are called to build and equip others.
#We lead through life transformation
As a church we can equip others through partnership. Jesus partnered with people, his disciples in the garden. The good Samaritan also partnered with the inn keeper to equip the wounded man. The word of God also equips us.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
3. WE MUST ACT
It is the act of mercy that makes a neighbor recognizable. We can only love our neighbor by being neighbor. The first lesson of compassion is to look beyond ourselves toward others.
Every pain has a purpose, and God gives every purpose a platform.
Remember, 2020 is our year to go beyond. So begin by going beyond yourself.
The Samaritan story illustrates the process of compassion by doing four things:
1) he sees the victim,
2) draws close to him,
3) allows his heart to be moved with compassion, and
4) acts.
#We are catalysts and initiators
#We advance Kingdom agenda
As the people of God we must act. However, our actions must be determined by the word of God. For instance, we must work towards justice system reforms.
Jeremiah 22:3 (NIV)
3 This is what the Lord says: Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place.
Ephesians 2:10 (ESV)
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
As the people of God we are called to be like the good Samaritan. Jesus said, go and do likewise. We want to show compassion.
If you are going through a difficult season, we want to know if you can breathe. Share your stories with us. We want you to walk the journey of healing and restoration.
For those who have had set backs in life, I want to challenge you to stretch, God made you and placed within you a gift that nobody else has, discover your difference, develop your difference and display your difference, according to the words of Dr. Howard Thurman, he said, “there's a crown above your head that you have to grow tall enough to wear.”
After we have asked those amongst us, can you breathe? We must understand that we in our own strength cannot totally resolve societal ills, because such sins originate from the heart, and thus we must ask another question, and this time not horizontally but vertically. We must be able to look to God and ask, “Lord, can you breathe on us?”
This message is not just a message on compassion. Remember, Jesus told the story to give the definition of who a neighbor is? But Jesus was also explaining the depth of the great commandment of loving God and loving others.
This is why the Holy Spirit came, to enable us with the breath of God, to be the hands and feet of Jesus. To maintain both a horizontal relationship with others, as well as a vertical relationship with the Lord.
It is the Lord’s will, for us to have the heart to reach out and ask our neighbor: can -you -breathe? As well as ask the Lord, “can you breathe on me?” Let us pray.
Salvation/Re-commitment Prayer:
If you want to be save or rededicate your life to Jesus say this prayer with me:
“Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for my sin. Please forgive me. Come into my life. I receive You as my Lord and Savior. Now, help me to live for you the rest of this life. In the name of Jesus, Amen.”
Prayer:
Lord, come into our brokenness and our lives with your love that heals all. Consume our pride and replace it with humility and vulnerability. Allow us to make space for your correction and redemption. Allow us to bow down with humble hearts, hearts of repentance. Bind us together in true unity and restoration. May we hear your voice in this season. Give us collective eyes to see our role in repairing what has been broken. Allow these words to be a conduit for personal transformation that would lead to collective restoration.
Father in heaven, our hearts are heavy and our tongues fumble to describe the pain we feel. But we call upon You because You are the one true God and you are our God. We trust that You hear us, receive all praise in Jesus name, amen.
