Introduction…For the past few weeks we have been reading and learning about loving those that are around us. We spoke of the love that Jesus has for us; the love we have for our spouse and our children. Last week we spoke of loving our friends. Today, we have read a story told by Jesus regarding loving those neighbors that are in need. Last Sunday night was a highlight of my ministry at Micro OFWB. The Deacons have a vision for working in this community and the membership approved opening an outreach center to serve the needs of the people who are our spiritual neighbors. The former Micro Fire Department building that we purchased last year will be renovated that we might provide programs and services to those that cannot afford it or make services more convenient to an aging and economically depressed population. Part of this project will also be to provide a youth activities center for our church youth and for youth outreach in our community. Why is this important? Because, Jesus has told us that when we show mercy to our neighbors, we shall be in His will and will inherit eternal life. It is our obligation as the universal church of Jesus Christ to provide for those in need. This facility should prove to be a venue where people can come for assistance and from which we administer loving aid that will only be limited by our imagination. And who will we love by serving? Letâ€"s look again at this parable to see to whom Jesus advises us to love. Love Even Those Who Have Been Careless (v. 30). It is so easy sometimes to be judgmental when it comes to giving aid. And certainly, we can look at the lifestyles that people live and decisions that they make and see that they are suffering the consequences of bad judgment. In the parable, the victim was traveling alone on a road that was known to be extremely dangerous. Our first response might be, “he was an idiot to be there in the first place.â€� But, how many times in our own lives have we made careless mistakes? How many times have we done things or been in the wrong places that, if we had been caught, could have certainly put us in danger either physically or socially? I suspect that everyone here over the age of fifteen can think of those lapses in good judgment. You see, Jesus didnâ€"t tell the lawyer to judge the wisdom of the traveler, He told him that he must show mercy to him. Paul wrote often in his letters of becoming like those to whom he was ministering. Empathy is an important part of witnessing. In every situation I pray that each one of us will look upon any other person and say to ourselves, “What if that were me, my wife, my child, my parent, my friend…â€� Maybe then we would be more loving if we try to be more understanding. We are to love even when those we love are different and possibly disgusting (v. 34a). The Samaritan offered his love to a man that was his social enemy…to a man that had been beaten and left to die. He was seeing a man who was dirty and bloody and could not do one thing for himself. He helped him anyway. As we reach out to others, this “hand upâ€� cannot be a qualifying hand. It needs to be a loving and compassionate hand. If we try to decide who merits help and who doesnâ€"t, we will have an extremely difficult time making those decisions. Our neighbor in need is the one that we might not even know today because they donâ€"t travel in our social circles; they donâ€"t attend our church…or possibly any church. They donâ€"t know us. But the only way that they can see Jesus Christ and His love is through the good Samaritans of this World. If the Christians do not reach out to those that might be different, then we are no different from the priest and the Levite that passed on the roadway. Someone once wrote: “What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like.â€� We must be sympathetic to the needs of our neighbors.