Will the “Real” Good Samaritan Please Stand Up? – Part 2

By Pastor Rey Diaz

In this famous story there are actually two heroes who ‘show mercy.’  The obvious one is the Good Samaritan.  The less obvious one is the innkeeper.  One way or another the innkeeper had to help a person who was for all intents and purposes – an enemy. If he were a Jewish innkeeper, then why would he want to allow a Samaritan to stay in his inn?  If he were a Samaritan innkeeper, why would he want to allow a Hebrew in his Inn?    The innkeeper was paid in advance with two silver coins but then the Good Samaritan left while the man recovering stayed in the inn.    So the innkeeper had to continue caring for this man on the hopes that the Good Samaritan would return.  The costs pile up.  It was difficult and inconvenient. 

So, in my estimation, the innkeeper is also a ‘Good Samaritan.’  He saw someone in need and helps.  The innkeeper was told by the Good Samaritan “take care of this man.” 

Take care of this man.  Take care of this person.  Take care of these people.  Take of this nation, tribe and tongue. 

What if we, the church, are called to be an inn?  What if we, followers of Jesus, are called to be innkeepers?  What if the ultimate Good Samaritan, Jesus, is bringing people to our inn and asking us “will you take care of them?”  So we need to recognize the people who God is bringing to our inn.  To our community.  To our church.  To our life. 

Here at Washington Cathedral we surrounded by people.  People that God died for.  People who don’t speak English.  People who don’t look like us.  People who don’t even value what we value.  People from every nation, tribe and tongue.  And Jesus has brought these people into our community.  And Jesus is looking at us and asking, “will you take of them.”  We have answered yes.  That’s why we are different.  Unique.  Unusual.  Meta. 

We are reaching out to so many different people groups.  Brazilians.  Egyptians.  Koreans.  Pacific Islanders.  Hondurans.  Spanish speakers.  English speakers.  We are a family of churches with one dream.  We are all about Jesus. 

This is costly.  It’s messy.  It’s complicated.  It’s confusing.  It would be so much easier to be a homogenous unit, but that is not what heaven will be like.  Because God is all about people.  People from every nation, tribe and tongue.  And if we are all about Jesus, then we need to be all about people from every nation, tribe, and tongue.  Jesus died for the whole world.  For all people. 

Revelations 5:9-10

⁹ And they sang a new song with these words: “You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. ¹⁰ And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth.”