The Jericho Road
Luke 10:30 “And Jesus answering said unto them, “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.”
The road from Jerusalem to Jericho, from the Holy City to the “jewel city of the plain” was noted at the time of our Lord as the roughest, rockiest, most robber-infested road in the world. It was the most dangerous and most undesirable route any one could travel in the land of the Jews. Yet, Jesus specifically mentions this road in his reply to a lawyer.
The lawyer had just succeeded in getting himself into a corner. Attempting to attack the teachings of Jesus, he demanded to know “who is my neighbor?” And in response, Jesus told the famous parable of the Good Samaritan. ( see Luke 10:30-36)
For all of us, life is a journey from the cradle to the grave, from birth to death. Like any journey, it has its dusty routines and its glorious high spots. There are heights of happiness to be attained and there are the depths and swamps of despair to be waded through. And somewhere, along the journey, every one of us hits the Jericho stretch of road. The rough, rocky, hard going in which we meet the most severe buffeting life can offer. “A certain man” went down from Jerusalem to Jericho . That might be you. Or it might be me. Some travel the Jericho road for a long time, some have only a short experience upon it. But everyone, sooner or later, hits that “ Jericho stretch” of road.
1. Jericho roads are many . Poverty is one Jericho road. Not all babies have dainty bassinettes and well-prepared layettes. Not all babies are baptized in embroidered dresses. Lincoln slept upon a bed of straw in the loft of a cold shack. Yet he came through it to bear malice toward none, but charity toward all. Jesus himself was born in a stable and cradled in the warm straw of a manger, while the cattle looked on in wonder. Of John the Baptist, it may be said that he never enjoyed what we would call a square meal or a decent suit of clothes.
Suffering is another “ Jericho road.” “Why am I a cripple?” asks a little girl who will never be normal because she was dropped when a baby. “Maybe so other Mothers will hold their babies more carefully,” comes the answer. Why go into details? There are hidden reasons for all suffering. But somewhere in life that bad stretch of road awaits us. Fever, famine, fighting, discouragement, distress, hard times and many other factors affect our lives.
Explanations may help a little bit. True, there are others who are worse off than we are. But what comfort does that really provide? My old Grandmother was a woman of refreshing common sense. On her ninetieth birthday she met with her family in good health and good spirits, suffering only from the weakness of age and poor eyesight. She said, “There's a woman down the street who is only seventy years old and is much worse off. But after all, what good does that do me?”
The pain and trouble of others is certainly no source of comfort. Rather, it is a source of additional pain. The “ Jericho stretch” is a purely personal matter. It is sure to be hard, rough, and wearisome.
2. Whom do we meet on Jericho road ? Like the traveler in Christ's story, we meet all manner of men. We meet robbers, who will take our money, our lives, our liberties, our good names. They fall upon us with injustice and unkindness, with no concern for retribution at the hands of God or man. Bad and sinful habits are theirs and the full fury of their unChristian hatred crushes us.
And we meet indifference. The priest passed by on the other side. There are many representatives of that priest living today, even in our community and in our midst. These are the people who are completely cold and unfeeling where their fellow-men are concerned. Those who do not attend church are among the representatives of this clan. They care neither for God nor for their fellow-men.
And we meet unconcernedness . The Levite looked on, but he did not help. Perhaps he muttered to himself, that it was too bad, or perhaps he thought the government ought to send some agency to bring relief to the poor wanderer who had come to grief. Many people are doing just that today. The needs of others seem unreal and not at all a personal matter. This cold, unbrotherly , anti-social feeling is found even in the Church. There are many who come to look on, but no to help. And many who claim to be Christians don't even deign to attend church and worship their God.
In their unwillingness to assist a fallen brother, these indifferent and unconcerned folk are a real menace to us and to everybody. They represent the citizens who won't vote, the folk who are without civic pride, the dim-eyed multitude that cannot recognize injustice in society when they see it. From the robbers we expect nothing more than robbery. But from priests and Levites, of this or any other generation, we have a right to expect more than cool unconcern. They are a menace.
But on the Jericho road we meet good Samaritans. When we least anticipate it, there will be a word of cheer, a deed of kindness and a friendly greeting. Some friend will arrive when our need is keenest and pour oil upon our wounds. Deep in the human heart there lies a feeling of brotherhood and of common need. Even the most hard-boiled of our neighbors will not allow suffering to go unalleviated, if he is able to help. Somewhere along our Jericho road there will walk a Good Samaritan.
3. What shall we do about the Jericho Road ? Let us look at the beautiful story. One man had fallen by the wayside, attacked and wounded, dying. A priest, a “man of God,” passed by indifferently. A Levite, a man learned in the law, looked on with unconcern and then passed by. But a Samaritan stopped and helped. Why? The Priest and the Levite were going away from home. They were on their way from Jerusalem to Jericho. They were in strange country. But the Samaritan was on his way home.
The stories of Jesus are complete in themselves, and here it is obvious that Jesus means for every Christian to be a good Samaritan. On the path of life, the Christians are going home. We sing
“Here we but as pilgrims rove,
For our home is there above.”
“Here in the body pent, absent from God I roam,
Yet highly pitch my moving tent, a day's march nearer home.”
So we, as professing Christians, are called of God to be the Good Samaritans. And it's not hard!
There's so much to be done! Everybody needs help, everyone needs a friend. Recently a family moved here from the middle West, and gladly moved back to the prairies again after a few months, because they said “Here in the East friends are so hard to make.” Where were the friendly Good Samaritans there?
Youth needs encouragement. In school, in college, or starting a career, a little kindness will help them over obstacles that may seem small to older folk, but which are huge impediments to the young. The sick need help. Do you have a bedridden neighbor? There is no torture worse tan the interminable wait of one who must lie abed, ill, for a long period of time. Then seconds drag like hours and a friendly visit is a God-send. Strangers need a friendly nod. Do they come and go unnoticed? Visit that family next door, speak to the stranger at Church. Your friendly words may brighten someone's whole day.
And if we Christians fall among thieves on the hard, rocky ascent to Jericho we need not fear. For we will not be left lying by the roadside. There is One who watches over us, who is with us always. He was on the road to Emmaus, to Damascus and to Jericho . The blind and the beggars found His help. “Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.”
So we all have our Jericho roads. For some it is the pinch of poverty, for others the pain of suffering. Whatever may come in the tragic days of hardship that life always brings, be it sorrow or suffering, let us never despair for some will turn to help us through. And in our days of health and strength, when the going is not too difficult, let us be the Good Samaritans who support and heal and help.
“Which one of these three was neighbor to him that fell among thieves?” “He that showed mercy on him,” responded the lawyer. Then our Lord said the words that must be ringing in the ears of all Christians to all eternity: “Go thou and do likewise.”
AMEN