Simple Kindness

In the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), the mark of being a neighbor is 'kindness.'  Like your State Farm agent, the Samaritan was there when most needed.  One would think that kindness is one of those no-brainers in life.  Except, we're not all that good at it.  Like the man who questioned Jesus, we're always looking for a way to be neighborly on our terms.  As long as we get to define who our neighbor is and how exactly we are expected to treat that neighbor, we're good.  It's when those choices are taken from us that we begin to get uneasy.

Maybe it's because of the world we live in.  Try showing kindness on the battlefield in Iraq.  Or the boardroom in the office.  Or the lunch line in the cafeteria.  Our world is driven, not by love (sorry, Madonna), but by competition, greed, and individualism.  Although it is sometimes enjoyable, I'm not being cynical here. 

At best, modern ethicists are concerned with rights, justice, and equality.  That's all well and good, but where do mercy, forgiveness, and compassion enter into the scene?  At what point do we say, 'Fair just isn't going to cut it, we need to be kind.'?  

Now you're starting to sound like a hippy, Ben.  Maybe so.  But what Jesus challenges us to do here is to move from simply living to living abundantly.  To live and love as God does.  It's more than being helpful; more than being nice. 

God transforms us in Jesus Christ.  In doing so, we are moved beyond who we are and what we're comfortable doing, and into the fullest experience of life -- loving and being loved infinitely.