May 24, 2007

“’But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’” Acts 1:8.
Jesus’ last words to His disciples speaks of the empowerment that is to come within the next few days, when the promised Holy Spirit is poured out on and reside within each disciple. This empowerment is to be the comforting, ever-present Counselor that Jesus promised would be an even greater presence than Jesus had been. They would be motivated…driven…compelled to proclaim the good news of Jesus with the lost and dying world around them. And this empowerment would mean that they would not only take the message to all Jerusalem and Judea, where they would be more comfortable sharing the message, but also to Samaria, a place in which they held a deep-seated, cultural prejudice, and where Jesus knew that they were not at all comfortable telling the story of God’s love.
If the disciples were able to take the message, under the power of the Holy Spirit, to where they had to break through their personal prejudices, they would, then, be more prepared to take this good news anywhere throughout the world. But first, Jesus needed to make sure that they could do this and that they could love people – all people – as God loves them.
I must admit that I am challenged by this verse every time I read it. The “all Judea and Samaria” part really pushes me. At first, I usually just brush it off by saying something like, “I’m not prejudiced. I love all people equally.” It doesn’t take me long to realize that I am really uncomfortable with certain individuals or certain groups of people, and that I “look down my nose” at them. It doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with race or religion or other clear prejudices, necessarily. It may be the way someone is driving their car or the way that I observe that they treat other people. It usually has to do with the filters or lenses through which I “observe” others (and not necessarily objectively!). But I am sure that I am alone in this behavior, and you cannot relate to this! Take some time today to reflect on the “Samaria” in your life. Notice, I am not asking you whether or not you have them. I am taking for granted that each of us have them in our lives. Ask God to help you process what they are and how you should deal with them. Your application is between your heart and God, and I pray that each of us will allow God new access to our hearts, so that we will never be the same as a result of taking some time to open ourselves up to the “Samaria” in our lives.