Consider
the postage stamp, my son...
Its usefulness consists in its ability
to stick to one thing
until it reaches its destination. |
In this study we are going
to examine
the true meaning of commitment.
Which of the following
references best describes a commitment?
A. The act of doing or
performing some task
B. The consignment of a
person to a prison
C. To promise, or pledge,
to bind yourself
to a certain course of action
until it is completed
In considering this question,
some might think that answer "B"
is the best answer.
Actually, all the references are correct; but each in a different way.
But answer "C" will be the one we'll focus attention on.
Notice what is written in Luke 10: 25-35
in a conversation between Jesus
and a Lawyer:
And, behold, a certain
lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying,
Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?
And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind;
and thy neighbour as thyself.
And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right:
this do, and thou shalt live.
But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus,
And who is my neighbour?
Luke 10:25-29
After the lawyer's last question, Jesus
told the congregation of an event
that had recently occurred in their area:
And Jesus answering said,
A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho,
and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment,
and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
And by chance there came down a certain priest that way:
and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place,
came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed,
came where he was: and when he saw him,
he had compassion on him,
And went to him, and bound up his wounds,
pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast,
and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
And on the morrow when he departed,
he took out two pence, and gave them to the host,
and said unto him, Take care of him;
and whatsoever thou spendest more,
when I come again, I will repay thee.
Luke 10:30-35
The scene unfolds with a man (bruised,
beaten and bloody) laying on the
side of the road. We don't know his name or nationality, only that he was
seriously injured (half-dead) and abandoned by his attackers.
Next we see a priest (a minister of
God) and then a Levite (one of God's
chosen servants) passing by... neither of them stopping to help.
Both seem to have forgotten their commission
from the Lord regarding
strangers:
For the LORD your God is
God of gods,
and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible,
which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:
He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow,
and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment.
Love ye therefore the stranger:
for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Deuteronomy 10:17-19
But the stranger that dwelleth
with you shall be unto you
as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself;
for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt:
I am the LORD your God.
Leviticus 19:34
The Lord had said that even the animals
of an enemy were to be cared for:
If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his
ass going astray,
thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.
If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden,
and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
Exodus 23:4, 5
In Luke 10:33 we are introduced to
another traveler... a Samaritan.
But a certain Samaritan,
as he journeyed,
came where he was: and when he saw him,
he had compassion on him...
Luke 10:33
He too comes upon the suffering man,
but we see him doing something
quite different:
He came to where the man was
Took time to look at him
And... exhibited compassion
It was a dangerous neighborhood the
Samaritan was passing through.
To slow down, or stop, at that point, could mean he might end up becoming
the next victim.
Also, before the injured man could be moved, some pre-hospital emergency
medical treatment had to be given ...
And went to him, and bound up his wounds,
pouring in oil and wine,
and set him on his own beast,
and brought him to an inn,
and took care of him.
Luke 10:34
Then the victim was placed on the most
available ambulance (a donkey)
taken to an Inn (a place to recover), where the Samaritan continued to assist
him.
We certainly would commend someone for
doing such a thing;
but in those days it was not only unusual...it was dangerous!
Would you be willing to be such a caregiver?
Consider what the Samaritan
had to do
to help this stranger:
1. Risk his own life (become fully involved)
2. To change his own travel plans (be
inconvenienced)
3. Use his own provisions to care for
someone else (make an investment)
4. Offer immediate medical treatment
(exercise special skill)
5. Donate his own transportation (and
walk the rest of the way)
6. Find a place for the man to recover
(locate the Inn)
7. Continue to care for the injured
man through the night (keep working)
As if this wasn't enough... the next
morning:
... when he departed, he took out two
pence,
and gave them to the host, and said unto him,
Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more,
when I come again, I will repay thee.
Luke 10:35
8. He had to find someone else to continue
caring for the injured man
(ask for help)
9. Left 2 days wages as a down payment
for the help (spend more money)
10. Promise to return (come back again)
AND...
11. Pay any remaining expenses (make
another investment)
It seems there are, perhaps,
some questions
that the Samaritan never thought to ask;
questions that might have made a difference
in the outcome of this experience:
1. Who's fault is it that this man
has come to such injuries?
Maybe he deserved what he received.
2. Is he worth all of the
inconvenience, time and effort
offering help is going to cause me?
3. I don't know this man...
Why should I get involved in his personal
problems?
4. What about my life and safety...
Who's going to watch out for me?
5. This effort may end
up costing me a lot of money
But these thoughts never took hold in
his mind. He saw a need,
and made a true commitment of himself, to see the experience through
to the end, no matter what the outcome would be.
His priorities and God's priorities were in complete agreement.
Have you ever seen God's priority list
for life?
You can find it in Exodus 20:1-17
Priority #1 (Put God first
above all)
And God spake all these
words, saying,
I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of bondage.Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any
graven image, or any likeness
of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath,
or that is in the water under the earth:
Thou shalt not bow down
thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children
unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
And shewing mercy unto thousands
of them that love me,
and keep my commandments.
Thou shalt not take the name of
the LORD thy God in vain;
for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Remember the sabbath day,
to keep it holy.
Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God:
in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter,
thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle,
nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea,
and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day:
wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day,
and hallowed it.
Exodus 20:1- 11
Priority #2 (Next comes... the Family)
Honour thy father and thy mother:
that thy days may be long upon the land
which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Exodus 20:12
Priority #3 (Followed by...
your Neighbors)
Thou shalt not kill.
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false
witness
against thy neighbour.
Exodus 20:13-16
Priority #4 (And then your
Neighbor's... Things)
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's
house,
thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant,
nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass,
nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
Exodus 20:17
There is an order here that shouldn't
be changed!
When people try to re-arrange the list,
life has a way of becoming very complicated.
Think about it...
Like the unnamed traveler, in this world
we also have been wounded,
and left by the side of the road to die... There was nothing we could do
to save ourselves, and many passed us by... until Jesus came along and
provided all the help we needed.
Unlike the Samaritan, however, the commitment He made cost Him His life.
But the results for us are eternal:
... he [Jesus] was wounded for our
transgressions,
he was bruised for our iniquities:
the chastisement of our peace was upon him;
and with his stripes we are healed.
Isaiah 53:5
... God so loved the world, that he
gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life.
John 3:16
With the Lord's help it would be nice to
find a way to make this study
of commitment one of joy, instead of difficulty... to bring out the blessing
in helping others, instead of looking only at the sacrifices.
This is what Jesus was able to do, and
what we need to do also:
Looking unto Jesus the
author and finisher of our faith;
who for the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, despising the shame,
and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:2
Notice that it was for the joy Jesus
saw coming... not the immense suffering
He was passing through... but, for the joy that was set before Him... that
He
continued on through the whole terrible ordeal of Calvary... for you.
He could truthfully say to His Father
near the end
of the experience:
...I have finished the
work which thou
gavest me to do.
John 17:4
He completed the work that was promised.
There's often a need with commitments
to make a full investment of your
time and of yourself... along with much hard work... sometimes pain and
great inconvenience... sometimes, even more...
Yet I do believe, that in the case of
the Samaritan who stopped to help the
wounded man, he went on his way with a deep feeling of satisfaction for
having taken care of one who was really in need. Jesus felt the same.
That feeling can be yours too as you reach out to help a soul in time of
need.
Pray that we may always be willing to help others in difficult times.
And may the Lord help us to consider the eternal value and
importance of commitments.
Have you made any commitments lately? Why not make one today?
The True Meaning of Commitment
was written by Chris Teske
We hope you enjoyed this
InSight study.
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