Missed Calls |Pt.1|The Call to Help Others

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Church On The Rock Nashville (COTRN) Show Notes

Date: April 27, 2025

Series: Missed Calls (Week 1)

Title: The Call to Help Others

 Speaker: Pastor Nick BirminghamText: Luke 10:25-37

Opening:

• New series: Missed Calls – exploring overlooked opportunities in our spiritual lives.
• Analogy of missing phone calls and the potential consequences.
• Spiritual "missed calls": Overlooking opportunities to help others, misunderstanding God's plan vs. our desires, focusing on expectations, and not seizing God-given moments.
• Encouragement that God can redeem missed moments.

Message Title: The call to help others, the call we silence when comfort speaks louder.

Introduction:

• Reference to the phrase "woulda, could've" from Psychology Today regarding missed opportunities in life (relationships, career, education).
• Acknowledging that we don't control everything, but God knows best.
• Desire to avoid a life tied to regret and not miss the important "calls."
• Relatable analogy of frustration when a bad call in sports changes the game (especially for Razorbacks fans!).
• Personal reflection: What is my responsibility as a person of faith? Who am I responsible for?
• The struggle of juggling personal struggles with the commitment to follow God and respond to others.
• Pastor Nick's personal anecdote about a missed opportunity to invite someone to church at Walmart and his father's prompting.
• Learning moments: Recognizing opportunities to share the gospel or God's goodness.

The Problem:

• Society's "me, me, me" mentality and the high value placed on individualism.
• Acknowledging a deeper calling beyond self-interest.
• The "me vs. we" struggle is not unique to our time; it's present in scripture.

Scripture Reading and Context: Luke 10:25-37

• The lawyer's question to Jesus: "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
• Jesus' response: Quoting the law – love God and your neighbor as yourself.
• Jesus' affirmation: "Do this and you will live."
• The lawyer, wanting to justify himself, asks: "And who is my neighbor?"
• Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan:
  • A man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho is attacked, robbed, and left half dead.
  • A priest and a Levite pass by on the other side.
  • A Samaritan comes, has compassion, bandages his wounds (pouring on oil and wine), puts him on his animal, takes him to an inn, and cares for him.
  • The next day, the Samaritan gives the innkeeper two denarii and promises to pay any additional expenses upon his return.
• Jesus' question to the lawyer: "Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among robbers?"
• The lawyer's reluctant answer: "The one who showed mercy."
• Jesus' powerful command: "Go and do likewise."
• This text is a challenge to our hearts and our understanding of who our neighbor is.
• It redefines "neighbor" and calls for compassion towards everyone, even those we might not naturally connect with.

Key Principle 1: The Power of Perspective

• Question: In your busy life, who do you really see and pay attention to? (e.g., person with a flat tire, single mom struggling at the grocery store).
• The way we see people reflects the condition of our hearts and our understanding of God's love.
• Sometimes, those who have been in church for a while can forget where they came from.
• Sobering question: If God loved people like you love people, what would the world look like?
• As Christ followers, we should have a different perspective, seeing through the eyes of Christ.
• We often don't know what burdens people carry when they walk through the doors of the church or in everyday life.
• Our job is to reach out and love people everywhere.
• The lawyer's question ("Who is my neighbor?") was likely motivated by a desire to draw a line and limit his obligation to love.
• Jesus challenges this selfish motive.
• Historically, "neighbor" for the Jewish audience would primarily mean fellow Israelites.
• Leviticus 19:34 extended this to foreigners in their land, but not typically to Samaritans or Gentiles.
• Reference to the Qumran community's call to love the "sons of light" and hate the "sons of darkness."
• Quoting Ben Sirach's wisdom literature, which advocated for helping the devout but not sinners, reflecting the prevailing thought that differed from Jesus' teachings.
• The deep distrust and animosity towards Samaritans in that culture (regarded as a half-breed race with perverted worship).
• Jesus' counter-cultural choice of a Samaritan as the hero of the story.
• The priest and the Levite avoided the injured man, possibly due to discomfort or fear of being unclean (though one commentator notes they were leaving Jerusalem, not going to the temple).
• Sometimes, having the right perspective is costly and inconvenient.
• Refusing to help is a moral failure; Christ points out it's morally wrong.
• The priest and Levite missed an opportunity to love.
• The Samaritan's arrival is highlighted, immediately identifying him.
• Pastor Nick's personal confession of driving by people in need due to being in a hurry or feeling uncomfortable, and the justification of a busy schedule.
• Our perspective can be skewed by selfish ambition.
• As followers of Christ, we are called to see things differently – not just the problem, but the person.
• People are hurting and in need, regardless of their differences from us. God loves them, and we should too.
• The Samaritan showed love without concern for repayment.
• Challenge: Learn to look at the world through the lens of grace. Ask God to help us see the unseen and unnoticed. The call to love extends even to those who can't reciprocate.

Key Principle 2: The Courage of Compassion

• Verse 33: "But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion."
• Noticing people is different from having compassion.
• The temptation to think someone "did it to themselves" is the opposite of Christ's compassion.
• Compassion moves us; the Samaritan went to where the beaten man was.
• Compassion is about our heart engaging when it would otherwise remain detached.
• It takes courage to walk towards the mess instead of away.
• Courage to invest time and energy when we could ignore.
• Courage to open our hearts when we could stay safe and protected.
• Reference to a Psychology Today article defining compassion as the willingness to notice suffering and the desire to alleviate it.
• The common phrase "bless their heart" can sometimes lack genuine compassion.
• Pastor Nick's experience in ministry seeing people ask for help, the challenge of discerning genuine need, and the potential for being lied to.
• The priest and Levite (religious leaders) walked by, while the outcast Samaritan stopped.
• Caring for people as Christ commands involves risk and vulnerability.
• We might be taken advantage of, hurt, or disappointed.
• Compassion will cost us time, energy, and sometimes our feelings.
• Remembering that there is a reward beyond the immediate moment; God sees our actions (and inactions).
• Our job is to love people, not to be solely focused on who might be trying to deceive us.
• Question: Where is God calling you to show courage by demonstrating compassion? Who might God be calling you to reach out to, serve, and love?
• If God has chosen you to help someone, trust that He will equip you.
• With open hearts, God can do miraculous things.
• Stepping out in courage and compassion leads to changed lives and transformed communities.

Key Principle 3: The Discipline of Action

• Verse 34: The Samaritan's six actions:
  1. Went to him.
  2. Bound up his wounds.
  3. Poured on oil and wine.
  4. Set him on his own animal.
  5. Brought him to an inn.
  6. Took care of him (and paid for his stay).
• The Samaritan's actions were a committed and intentional investment in someone's well-being, not just a fleeting gesture.
• Intention without action is stagnant; love must be put into action.
• Personal anecdote about helping someone on the worship team going through a difficult separation, being present on the phone during a Christmas party.
• Sometimes, the most powerful action is simply being present.
• The discipline of action means acting like we care, not just saying it.
• It's rolling up our sleeves and asking, "What can I do? How can I help?"
• It's showing up even without all the answers.
• The power of simple actions: writing a note, sending a text message, making a phone call, meeting a tangible need.
• Call to do what it takes to translate compassion into action.

Conclusion:

• Jesus' question to the lawyer: "Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor...?"
• The lawyer's almost reluctant answer: "The one who showed mercy."
• Jesus' direct command: "Go and do likewise."
• The call to love not just when it's easy or convenient, but to reach beyond our comfort zone.
• Question: Who will you encounter today? They are your neighbor.
• Tonight's revive event: Loving and caring for those we may not know.
• Our neighbor includes those who are vastly different from us.
• We are called to lead and love like Jesus.
• Recap of the three principles: Power of Perspective, Courage of Compassion, and Discipline of Action.
• Final challenge to embrace these principles in our daily lives.