Counter-Cultural Kindness
Good Morning,
- - Counter-Cultural Kindness
“Make sure you never pay back one wrong with another wrong. Instead, always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.” 1 Thessalonians 5:15
One thing that consistently marks a life focused on and fueled by Jesus is being kind. In simple terms we can define kindness as Love in Action. A spirit of kindness in our outraged world will stand out. People may even be shocked by it. Because choosing not to pay back wrongs with wrongs is increasingly uncommon. To do this there are some things that have to shape our lives and our behaviors.
In the familiar story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10, we learn some critical aspects of counter-cultural kindness. First, the Samaritan saw the hurting man. “But a Samaritan who was traveling that way came upon the man, and when he saw him, his heart was filled with pity.” (Vs. 33). One of the things that gets in the way of kindness is busyness. We can become so locked in on our agendas and calendars that we don’t even notice things or people right in front of us. The Samaritan took the time to notice.
But noticing wasn’t enough. Afterall, the Priest and the Levite had noticed the hurting man too. They just made the conscious choice not to get involved. In contrast, the Samaritan chose to do more than just notice. For a variety of reasons, we sometimes decide not to put our love into action. Sometimes we are too busy (a recurring theme, isn’t it?), sometimes we are afraid of what it will cost us, and sometimes we make judgements about the people in need. We tell ourselves that their bad decisions brought their trouble on them. And I would ask, “What if it did?” How does that diminish their need and our call to respond to it?
Thirdly, there is a willingness to pay a counter-cultural cost. The Samaritan paid the cost of time invested. He stopped and administered care, then took the man to get help, and then took the time to come back and check in on him. He paid a financial cost. He told the caregiver essentially, “Do what it takes and I’ll pay the bill”. Finally, he paid the price of risking his reputation. Jews and Samaritans hated each other. When news of his actions got back to his friends and family he may easily have been ridiculed. Others are not always thrilled when we act in ways that make them uncomfortable. He acted anyway, willing to pay that price.
As we see in this story, kindness often gets messy. It interrupts our schedules, gets into our wallets and exposes us to potential disdain from peers. Yet for this Samaritan, love trumped all those things. He acted out of a love that was willing to risk not knowing how far his journey of kindness would take him. This is a hard teaching I know. But in a world where kindness, beyond mere words, is diminishing, this kind of counter-cultural behavior is another way for us to “shine like stars in the sky” (Phil. 2). And in doing so, Christ will be put on display.
Live on purpose,
Ron Klopfenstein
