The Bill’s On Me

Luke 10:35 (MSG) In the morning he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take good care of him. If it costs any more, put it on my bill – I’ll pay you on my way back’

Josh had really had it with Ken. He was tired of always bailing him from circumstances that were clearly due to Ken’s own doing. He was tired of having to share his lunch with him because he was careless with his and it got spilled, he was tired of having to come to his aid just because he had been conned out of his allowance, again. He was tired of having to spend extra hours trying to get him ready for his exams just because he had been so unserious and is behind in his studies. He took it up with his mum:

Josh: Mom, I know Ken’s my younger brother, but is that why I have to always bear the brunt of his shortcomings and all? You make me pick after him, share my portion with him, help him out even when he clearly got himself into the mess in the first place?

Mom: Josh, what I’m doing is teaching you how to love while I’m at the same time training your brother to grow into maturity. And you know maturity takes time and effort.

Josh: How is it love if only one party is the beneficiary?

Mum: Well, love involves a lot of sacrifices. Love pays the bill for a service it might never receive.

In Luke 10, Jesus taught love as the law of God, he went ahead to illustrate it with the famous story of the Good Samaritan. One thing we see there is that the Samaritan, in his display of love, put the bills for the nursing of the man back to health, on his tab; he was going to pay the price and bear the cost of the man’s recovery. That is a most profound illustration of love.

It is not an easy concept to teach and propound in these times where even relationship has been reduced to transactions, and where everyone who gives something must expect something of equal value or even more in return. But God’s kind of love teaches that we should do good and expect no repayment of our kindness from the recipient. It teaches us to be willing to pay in the hard currency of patience when dealing with a loved one as they still wander about in the wilderness of immaturity on their way to growth.

Love is patient, love is kind, love bears all things, love does not fail (See 1 Corinthians 13:1-13). Can God count on you to pay the price of love in the currency of patience so another can get allowance to grow into maturity?

Go into today asking the Lord for strength to love like He wants you to love.

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