INTRODUCTION:

Did you hear about the would be bank robber who held up a bank while wearing a ski mask. He took the money then demanded car keys from one of the customers. I say he was a would be bank robber because he was apprehended when he came back into the bank, without the ski mask and asked the woman, which key unlocked the door. (1)

Or how about the poor guy who went into a pizzeria, ordered a slice, went to pay for it, then robbed the place while the cash register was open. The only problem was, he left his wallet, laying on the counter. (2)

How dumb can you be? I love stories like that, don't you? They not only make me laugh, but they help me feel better about the mistakes I make.

You've probably heard Bill Engvall and his "Here's your Sign" bit. He says: "Stupid people should have to wear signs that just say, "I'm Stupid' That way you wouldn't rely on them, would you? You wouldn't ask them anything. It would be like, 'Excuse me, oops, never mind. I didn't see your sign.'

It's like before my wife and I moved. Our house was full of boxes and there was a U-Haul truck in our driveway. My friend comes over and says, 'Hey, you moving?'

'Nope. We just pack our stuff up once or twice a week to see how many boxes it takes. Here's your sign.'"

A couple of months ago I went fishing with a buddy of mine, we pulled his boat into the dock, I lifted up this big 'ol stringer of bass and this idiot on the dock goes, "Hey, y'all catch all them fish?"

"Nope - Talked 'em into giving up. Here's your sign."

We were trying to sell our car about a year ago. A guy came over to the house and drove the car around for about 45 minutes. We get back to the house, he gets out of the car, reaches down and grabs the exhaust pipe, then goes, 'Darn that's hot!'

"See? If he'd been wearing his sign, I could have stopped him." (3)

Maybe the lawyer in today's passage of Scripture could have used one of those signs. Or maybe one those books for Dummies. Like our theme slide. Because that's sort of what this passage is all about. Within this encounter and the parable is Christianity 101. "It's Living the Faith for Dummies".

Let's look at this passage we've come to know as the parable of the Good Samaritan. Luke 10:25-37

Luke 10:25-37 (NRSV)

[25] Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

[26] He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?"

[27] He answered, "You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself."

[28] And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live."

[29] But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"

[30] Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead.

[31] Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

[32] So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

[33] But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity.

[34] He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

[35] The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, 'Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.'

[36] Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?"

[37] He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

This parable is so familiar, that there are groups who don't know anything at all about Christianity but they know this story. We all know the parable of the Good Samaritan. We may not know anything at all about why the Samaritan was an important character and how Jesus turned the least likely person and most politically incorrect person into the hero. But we know the story,

And we've heard it so many times, that we usually just tune it out. So, maybe, what we need is to tell it in a different way. Something to make it more real. Bring it up to date and give it a fresh appeal. So let's try this.

A certain young man, a computer programmer by trade, with a really cool car,

finally got some vacation time.

He decided to take off on a long driving vacation from Kansas City, Kansas to Pueblo, Colorado.

He'd never seen that part of the country. But knowing the lay of the land and how few and far between the gas stations would be, he meticulously watched his gas gauge.

Unbeknownst to him, though, the gauge had broken during the last time he filled up. And it stuck on full.

Being the trusting soul he was, and a guy who likes to do things quickly, the young man took the advice of the station owner and took a short cut. Where, unfortunately, about half way across,

He promptly ran out of gas.

He had absolutely no idea where he was, except on the "so called" short cut.

Not realizing he was out of gas, he looked under the hood but that didn't really help.

Because while he knew a lot about computers, he knew absolutely nothing about cars.

And wouldn't you know it, his cell phone wouldn't work either. No signal. No tower in sight, No bars. No "Can you hear me now?" Nothing. So, he sat in his cool car, which was now a hot car, dejected, hoping someone, anyone else would come along on this "so called" short cut.

As luck would have it, he spotted the cloud of dust first.

Coming down the road was a BMW.

It turned out to be driven by a very well to do woman. There was a fish on the trunk of her car and a rosary hanging from the rear view mirror.

She even stopped. But then when she found out he needed a ride, she said she was in a hurry to get to her daughter's house. It was her grandson's birthday and she had an ice cream cake that she didn't want to melt. Besides that, they had invited their priest and she didn't want to be late. So, still mouthing excuses, she got back in the car and left him there. She didn't even offer to call anyone.

Still dejected the young man just sat back in his car.

About an hour later, he saw another cloud of dust and watched as a traveling evangelist drove up in a car with a "Honk if you love Jesus" bumper sticker on the back. The preacher couldn't help either. He was on his way to a preach a 5 day revival. He was already running late because the Lord had told him to help someone on the side of the road today and he'd already pulled over about 12 times and he didn't have time for any more. And that's why he was taking the short cut.

He didn't offer to help and he didn't have any gas. He did offer the young man a granola bar. And he did get out and preach a whopping good ten minute sermon about praying your way through problems. And he gave a great blessing for the car and the young man's vacation. But then he just drove off in his car with the "Honk if you love Jesus" bumper sticker on the back.

Now, even more dejected, the man young wondered if he'd ever find anyone to help. Worn out, hungry, thirsty and tired. The young man just sat there. What else could he do. It was at least 20 miles to the last town and he had no idea how far ahead the next town was.

And then he heard something. He actually heard the low rumble of the bass before he saw the cloud of dust. It was the unmistakable boom of a tricked out automobile with the big bass speakers, the kind you feel more than hear. Then he saw the cloud of dust. And the truck.

It was a big wrecker nearly bouncing down the road to the beat of the music.

It pulled up and out jumped an even younger young man, dressed in baggies and a hooded sweatshirt. His nose and both of his ears were pierced. And he had a tattoo on both wrists.

Not only did he offer to help but he gave the stranded young man a fresh bottle of cold water, a ham sandwich and some cookies.

The wrecker driver assessed the situation and declared that the young man had simply run out of gas.

So, the wrecker driver gave the young man a can of gas. It wasn't much but it would probably be enough to get him to the next gas station. He even agreed to follow along behind and make sure he really did have enough gas to make it. And if not, they'd stop and either siphon some from the wrecker or the wrecker driver would tow the young man and his car to the station so he could fill up.

The wrecker driver even radioed ahead and had the part for the broken gauge waiting, so the owner of the gas station could repair his car.

So, munching on a sandwich, drinking some cold water, and knowing that he had a guardian angel following, the young man headed on down the road, with the wrecker bouncing to the beat behind him. The wrecker, by the way, had no fish decal and no "Honk if you love Jesus" bumper sticker.

But it had something else. Something much more important. That wrecker had a true neighbor and a disciple behind the wheel. A disciple who was listening to loud, booming rap music. (4)

I suppose that if it were Jesus telling the story, He would conclude by saying something to the effect: "And that's the basics of Living the Faith Dummies, now go do likewise."

I haven't been able to chase down the source of this quote, but Someone wrote, "The parable of the Good Samaritan gives us three philosophies of life.

First there's the robber's philosophy: "What's yours is mine, I'll take it."

Second, there is the philosophy of the priest and Levite: "What's mine is mine, I'll keep it."

And Third, there's the Samaritan's philosophy: "What's mine is yours, I'll share it."

That's how I want us to look at this parable today, through the lens of each of those.

I. WHAT'S YOURS IS MINE, I'LL TAKE IT:

There are so many people like that today. The privileged few, the robber barons of the modern world. The Enron executives of every company who just can't be satisfied with being wealthy. They have to have all the marbles.

No wonder there is so much crime. The disparity between the rich and the poor has widened to the point of there no longer being any hope for the poor. No wonder they look to drugs and alcohol. Not only does it numb for a moment, but both are quick ways to money and at least a little sense of security.

It used to be that anyone, if they worked hard and were faithful could make it. Now you can work hard, and think you've got it made and then have it all jerked out from under you because a couple of executives decide to raid the retirement fund or the health benefit fund.

One minute you've got it made, the next minute someone is foreclosing on the house you've lived in for twenty four years. In six years it would have been yours. You weren't mugged or physically assaulted like the man in the parable. But you were left by the side of the road and left for dead.

That was the attitude of the robbers. "What's yours is mine, I'll take it."

And believe it or not, from a Christian perspective, that attitude is easier to understand, I think, than the attitude of the Levite and priest.

II. WHAT'S MINE IS MINE, I'LL KEEP IT:

A. Their attitude was "What's mine is mine, I'll keep it." And they weren't even subtle about it.

I guess I should give them a break, it would be professional courtesy. Especially since there have been times that I've been too busy with one task to carry out another. Sometimes you just have to prioritize, right. I mean I wasn't selfish on purpose or because I didn't care.

That's what we always imply with this parable. They probably did care. They were just too busy or too preoccupied or simply didn't want to get involved. So they kept their gifts, their God given gifts or caring and compassion to themselves. They refused to share them with someone in need.

B. They remind of the man who was happy because he had done three good deeds the day before. He had met a poor woman on the street, who was weeping and who held a sickly looking child in her arms. After asking, he discovered that she was upset because hat her child remained unbaptized.

The man asked, "Why don't you have the child baptized?"

The woman replied, "Because I have no money, and the fee for baptism is five dollars."

Whereupon, the man handed the woman a ten dollar bill and gave her his address so that she could bring back the change. Which she did and then went on her way.

"That is one good deed," said a friend. "Now what about the other two?"

The man said, "Oh, all three of them are tied up in that one. First, I relieved the sorrows of a weeping woman. Second, I assured the child of eternal salvation. And third, I got rid of that counterfeit ten dollar bill I've been carrying for more than a year." (5)

If that attitude isn't "What's mine is mine, I'll keep it" I don't know what is.

III. WHAT'S MINE IS YOURS, I'LL SHARE IT:

A. But the attitude we're supposed to have, the attitude taught in this "Living the Faith for Dummies" lesson is simple. "What's mine is yours, I'll share it."

"A certain woman's husband is a tractor-trailer driver and he dreads runs to New York City. His greatest fear was realized one day when his rig broke down on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

At 4:30 p.m., after he had been waiting for assistance for over an hour, a police car stopped and the officer called a tow truck. More hours passed.

Then at 8:30 a young man stopped his car and walked over to the truck. He handed her husband a white bag with the familiar golden arches on it and said, "I saw you here about four o'clock, and I saw that you were still here when I went by again a half-hour ago. I thought you might be hungry by now."

With that he gave the truck driver the bag of hamburgers, French fries and a coke and then drove away. The tow truck got there a little before 10 p.m. (6)

B. Love is not just action. Love is self-sacrifice. The Samaritan risked his own life for another. Your neighbor doesn't have to be a stranger or the guy who lives next door, it could be a family member. A special need sometimes calls for a special expression of love.

Cal Thomas says, "Love talked about is easily ignored, but love demonstrated is irresistible."

Love is not just self-sacrifice; it's sacrifice with nothing expected in return. (7)

"What's mine is yours, I'll share it."

CONCLUSION:

Erwin McManus, the pastor of Mosaic in Los Angeles, tells of riding down the highway with his wife Kim and little girl Mariah. Suddenly his wife turned to their daughter and said, "Mariah, I love you to pieces." Whereupon Mariah responded, "Mommy, I love you whole." (8)

God loves us whole. God makes us whole. And God enables us to love others whole. Living the Faith for Dummies is summed up in the lawyer's answer: "You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself."

Take it with you wherever you go. And then don't take the time to help someone else, Give the time as a gift of yourself to them and to God. Let that be Your Sign. The sign of being a Good Neighbor.

1. News of the Weird 7/9/2004

2. www.dumbcrooks.com January 19, 2004

3. Based on Bill Engvall's comedy routine

4. An original story

5. Dave Stone, "The Good Samaritan" 1/1/2001

6. I couldn't find the source for this one

7. Parables, Etc. (Saratoga Press, P.O. Box 8, Platteville, CO, 80651; 970-785-2990), August 1982

8. Dave Stone, "The Good Samaritan" 1/1/2001

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