The Virginia enterprise., 1909-12-17

Robert Johnston in The Standard
BY Robert Johnston.
Luke 10:37. Go thou and do likewise"
The city of Jericho lay at distance
of some fifteen miles from Jerusalem,
and at considerably lower level.
The road between the two cities trav-
ersed a wild and rocky country, and
was infested 1000 years ago, as In.
deed it is to-day, by bands of robbers.
st. Jerome tells us that in his day
this road, by reason of the frequent
murders occurring upon it, was known
as "the bloody way" The perilous
character. then, cannot have been un.
known to any one of those four per-
sons, who, on a certain; d<y long ago..
traversed it.
The Traveller.
Apart from what is told us in the in
cident, we know nothing of this "cer-
tain man" who went down from Jeru-
salem to Jericho. But I confess there
are certain things I would like to
know about him. AS, for instance,
after what manner did he commence
that day on which he was to take that
perilous journey? What was his pray
er at his family altar that morning?
Or had he a family altar at all at
which he was accustomed to commend
himself and his family to the care OF
an ever-watchful God?
The Priest Who Passed BY.
"By chance" said our Lord, who
knew, as no one else ever could know.
how foreign is chance to the govern
ment of him without whom not even a
sparrow falls to the ground, but who
accommodated himself to the current
language of his day. by chance" he
said, there came down a certain
priest that way" If the unfortunate
victim of the robbers rapacity and
cruelty was not wholly unconscious,
what hope must have filled his heart
as with fast-dulling ears he heard
steps approaching and in little, rec
ognized in the one approaching him a
priest. "A priest!" he muttered to
himself. "A priest of the temple!"
Here is help he said to himself.
God is, indeed, gracious who has sent
a servant of his own to me in the
hour Of my Distress"
No, I have no excuse for the priest,
with all the press Of his important
temple appointments, and with all his
well-thought-out speech concerning the
necessity of every mans lying on the
bed that he has made for himself.
Nor have any excuse for myself
when in similar hurry and with SINH
lar specious arguments, I follow the
priest on the highway between Jeru-
salem and Jericho, rather than him
who was the friend Of sinners and of
whose life the record is this: HE
went about doing good"
The Levite.
Our tran station gives the impres'
sion that the Levite who came by
after the priest was of the two the
more heartless, for he is represented
as coming and looking upon the suf.
ferer and even then heartlessly pass
ing on. His action, however. was sim.
ply that of the priest who had passed
before him. We take it for granted,
and 1 think rightly, that in our Lord 8
thought, the priest, the Levite and
the traveller were all Jews. The Ro.
man historian Tacitus, though he
paints the unsocial disposition of the
Jews in darkest colors, yet admits
this to their credit, that however un-
friendly to outsiders, "among them
selves their compassion was ever
ready" Even in this grace, however,
the priest and his Levite follower
were sadly lacking. Both of them had
read, more than once or twice, that
law In which mercy even to the
stranger is repeatedly enjoined upon
Gods people. Thou shalt not see thy
brothers OK or his ass fallen down
by the way, and hide thyself from
them; thou shalt surely help him to
lift them up again." And how much
more the brother himself when he
was in distress such as had overtaken
this man by the wayside. Behold"
said Jesus, thinking of such men as
these of the picture, whether of his
own day or of ours, Behold, he that
heareth my word and doeth it not,
will show you to whom he is like. He
Is like a man who built his house upon
the sand. And the floods came and
beat upon that house and it fell"
The Samaritan Who Showed Mercy.
have no modern parallel with
which to illustrate and set forth for
you the bitter hatred and indeed de-
testation with which Jews and Sa-
maritans in our Lords day mutually
regarded each other. The Jew cher
ished it in his heart as an object of
desire that he might never so much
as see a Samaritan. He cursed him
publicly in the synagogue. He prayed
that no Samaritan might have a part
In the resurrection Of life He pub
licly declared that whosoever received
a Samaritan into his house was lay
ing up judgment for bis children. Nor
was the Samaritan any less bitter in
his hatred of the Jew nor any more
reticent in his open declaration of
that hatred. Indeed, It had become
q matter both of national pride as well