Description
The Biblical Duty of Compassion: Psalm 146 & The Good Samaritan
In this episode, we explore the biblical call to care f… (visit YouTube for more)
Transcript
The Bible has a lot to say about our duty to look after others, especially those who are not like us. This is Psalm 146 verse 9. The Lord watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
And the sojourners are often mentioned in the Old Testament. They were the people who were travelling through the land of Israel. They weren’t of the Israelite nation. They may have been worshiping other gods. They certainly came from other families. They weren’t one of the people.
And yet God makes special provision for looking after them. Whatever the reason it is for them passing through that nation, whether they are fleeing from their homeland, whether they’re just on holiday. God wants us to look after these people. He makes it clear in the parable of the Good Samaritan that we look after people who aren’t like us. They are our neighbours. The Lord watches over the sojourners.
He also looks after the widow and the fatherless, those who are unprotected in society. God takes that responsibility to himself. But there’s no magic here. God wants us to be his hands and feet, those who are upholding the widow and the fatherless on his behalf. The miracle that God chooses to work in this land is sending us to do his work.
We are compassionate. We’re compassionate to the immigrants. We are compassionate to those who have lost everything. We are compassionate to those who have no family or friends. Let us be those people who are serving the needs of others all the time in our lands.
Lord God, you who have given us so much, please help us to be generous and bountiful, and compassionate so that what we have, we share with those who have nothing, spreading the true message of the gospel as we do so. For your name. Amen.
