Luke 9: 51-56
The people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem.
The Samaritans of the town had been passed over, treated unfairly, discriminated against time and time again. On a normal day this would occur, but more so when the special times of the year came around and people who traveled to Jerusalem were seeking to “keep themselves pure”. No one could blame them for being fed up, not wanting to take it anymore. And so when another traveler comes to town looking for a place to stay the night on their journey to Jerusalem they decide to put their communal foot down and turn him out of their city. We are not going to help you in reaching your destination, you are not welcome!
Little did they know that this was Jesus; the Son of God, God with us, and the Promised One. To them they only saw his disciple with a hand out and a request. They could not know that this was to be the Lamb of God who would take away their sins as well as Israel’s. They could only see another Jew on his way to Jerusalem. And as a result of their prejudice they turn away He who would be the most important visitor that would every grace the gate of their city.
There have been times in my life when, with good reason, I have been less than welcoming to another person. The sum total of my experience with “their kind” has taught me to be wary of “them”, is what I tell myself. But what if in my passion to protect SELF, to express my displeasure, to do right by ME I have turned my Savior away?
Prayer: Lord, you are welcome in my soul today, and every day. And may it be that when you enter that your first order of business will be to place a sign in the doorway of my heart that says, “Prejudice, Not Welcome Here!”