Chapter 10 – Be Kind
Jesus answered the call of God to send out seventy
more disciples. These disciples were sent to a much wider geographic area than
the first Twelve, but they were given the abilities to heal and cast out demons
… just like the Twelve. When they
returned to report to Jesus, all the reports were good. They reported that the demons ran from them,
when the heard the name of Jesus. Old
Testament scriptures tell us that God had planned for these 70 well in advance
of the time of Jesus’ ministry.
Luke retells the story of the Good Samaritan in this
chapter. Jesus was tested by a legal
expert. He asked Jesus what he had
to do to to find eternal life. Jesus
answered him and also told him the story of the Good Samaritan as a way to say
that we have to love all people, even our enemies. Jesus essentially said that even our enemies
are to be considered neighbors and we are to be kind to neighbors.
The Samaritan stopped to help a Hebrew after two other
Hebrews had passed him by. What isn’t
always stressed when telling this story is that Samaritans and Hebrews were
culturally enemies. This story has
deeper meaning than just telling us that we should help somebody in need. We should love all people, even our
enemies. In our family, we call this “taking
the high road” when it might seem easier to smack somebody! I refuse to “get in the gutter” with people
who want to fight over things, and this has happened to me in my professional
life more than a few times.
The story of Martha and Mary is told in this chapter,
too. I laugh every time I read that
story because it reminds me of something my mother used to say! She was one of two girls in a big family, so
lots of cooking and cleaning fell on her!
When it was time to do the dishes after a big meal, her sister would
have to go to the bathroom, and she would stay long enough for the
dishes to be done! I hated helping with
dishes and Mama would tell me I was just like her sister … or just like
Mary! Mary found a place at the feet of
Jesus, to listen to his message, while Martha did all the work getting a meal
ready. She was doing the housework! Martha asked Jesus why He didn’t tell Mary to
help her … why did He allow Mary to sit and listen instead of helping her
sister prepare for the meal. Jesus told
Martha that what Mary was doing was more important … to absorb the Word was
more important than preparing to entertain people.
My take-away from this chapter: Love your enemies! Ha! My
dad used to tell me that if I didn’t get along with somebody or didn’t enjoy
somebody’s company, to simply stay away from them. That is easy when you are in 5th
grade and there is a meanie on the playground.
It isn’t so easy when you have an ugly family member, an awful neighbor or
a less than professional co-worker or colleague to deal with. Take the high road. It is that simple. We have to look at ourselves in the mirror
every morning … and we have to be able to sleep at night. We have to be true to ourselves.
Let’s Cook!
Hickory Nut Cake
Cake Ingredients
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup butter
3 eggs
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup hickory nuts, chopped (reserve
a few halves for garnish)
Penuche Frosting Ingredients
1/2 cup soft butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup half-and-half cream
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Cream together sugar and butter for
cake. Add eggs; beat on medium speed of mixer for 2 minutes. Mix dry
ingredients together lightly with fork. Add dry ingredients alternately with
milk. Mix well. Stir in vanilla and nuts. Pour into greased 13-in. x 9-in.
baking pan or 2 or 3 round 8 inch pans. Bake at 325° for 45-50 minutes.
