BBD 10.16.13 Not My Problem (Classic)
Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>
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The Burning Bush Devotional
14,000 Subscribers
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Classic from 2006
10.16.13
Not My Problem
Now as they went out of Jericho, a great multitude followed Him. And
behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was
passing by, cried out, saying, "Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!"
Then the multitude warned them that they should be quiet; but they cried out
all the more, saying, "Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!" So
Jesus stood still and called them, and said, "What do you want Me to do
for you?" They said to Him, "Lord, that our eyes may be opened."
So Jesus had compassion and touched their eyes. And immediately their eyes
received sight, and they followed Him. - Matthew 20:29-34.
Near West Milford, West Virginia at a dam, a dead cow was
caught on a tree branch. The dead cow did what dead cows do, it began to decay
and it did so for several weeks. Five governmental organizations or
jurisdictions refused the many requests from those who lived nearby for
something to be done. The West Virginia Department of Natural Resources could
have done something but alas, they only have the authority to act in the case
of wild animals. The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
checked out the situation and determined there was no apparent ecological
threat. The Agriculture Department declared the issue to be local in nature. A
Water Board also felt that it should be handled by local authorities.
Thankfully, some local volunteer firefighters and some Highway Department
workers decided to take care of the problem.
On a day long ago, Jesus was walking out of the city of
Jericho when two blind men began shouting at Him. Jesus asked them what they
wanted and they responded that they wanted their eyes to be healed. The Bible
records that Jesus had compassion on them and healed them. However, Jesus was
not required to give compassion. He could have looked at them while he
continued walking and simply said, "That’s not My problem." He
could have but He didn’t.
There does seem to be something in us as human beings
that wants to avoid complications of any kind. The incident with the dead cow
is typical of many when confronted with avoidable problems. The typical
response is "That’s not my problem." Our desire to avoid such
complications has required many states to enact laws requiring that motorists
involved in accidents to stop and render aid. It was necessary because many
people would simply drive off to avoid a ticket or other complications from an
accident.
Of course, all of this brings to mind the story of the
Good Samaritan. If you remember the story (Luke
10), robbers attacked a man leaving him to die
along the road. A couple of religious people passed by that would have been
expected to stop and render aid. The priest and the Levite must have both said,
"That’s not my problem" as they passed by. The Samaritan was the only
one who stopped and demonstrated compassion. As a result of rendering aid, the
Samaritan experienced some complications. Rendering aid resulted in the
Samaritan exposing himself to possible danger from the same robbers who had
left the man half-dead; it caused a major loss of time, and the expenditure of
funds to assure the care of the wounded man.
There are so many situations when encountered in life
that we are tempted to say, "That’s not my problem." However,
as Christians who know the example of Jesus we are called upon to render
compassion even when it may result in complications. We should always remember
that Jesus saw us in trouble in our sins and He did not say, "That’s
not my problem." No, He took time out from the glories of Heaven to
come down here to Earth for thirty some years to live a perfect life in a
difficult time, becoming the perfect sacrifice while dying on the cross on our
behalf. Talk about complications!
Copyright © 2006-2013. Ed
Wrather. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On
June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.
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