And so, we see that Jesus was doing a blessed thing for us when he taught the parables which show his love for sinners.

A third thing taught us by some of the parables of Jesus is—­THE DUTY OF KINDNESS.

One day, while Jesus was on earth, a young man came to him with the great question, what he should do to obtain eternal life.  Jesus referred him to the Ten Commandments; and reducing them to two, he told the young man that these commandments required him to love God with all his heart, and his neighbor as himself; and then said if he would do this he would be saved.

This is perfectly true.  Any one would be saved who would do this.  But no one ever has done this except our blessed Lord Himself.  He “magnified the law and made it honorable” by keeping it perfectly.  I suppose that Jesus intended to give this young man some lessons about the commandments of God which would lead him to see that he never could keep them himself; and that he would need some one to keep them for him, and that this was the only way in which he, or any one else could be saved.  It may have been that the young man did not want to hear any thing more on that subject, and so he gave the conversation a different turn by asking—­“who is my neighbor?” when Jesus said he must love his neighbor as himself.  And then, in answer to this question Jesus told the parable of the “Good Samaritan.”  We have this parable in St. Luke x:  30-37.

Here we are told of a certain man who was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves.  They robbed him; and wounded him; and left him half dead.  While he was lying there helpless and suffering, a priest and a Levite came, and looked on him, and passed by on the other side, without giving him any help.  Then we are told that a certain Samaritan came by, and when he saw the poor wounded man lying there, although he was a Jew, and the Jews and the Samaritans hated each other very much, yet he pitied him, and went up to him, and bound up his wounds, and set him on his own beast, and carried him to an inn, and told them to take care of him, and said that he would pay all his expenses.  Then Jesus asked the question, “Which now, of these three thinkest thou was neighbor to him that fell among thieves?  And he said, he that showed mercy on him.  Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.”

Thus Jesus taught the duty of kindness.  This kindness we must show, not to our friends only, but to our enemies. Kindness to all is the duty that Jesus teaches.

Let us look at one or two illustrations of the way in which we should do this.

“The Honey Shield.”  It is said that wasps and bees will not sting a person whose skin is covered with honey.  And so those who are exposed to the sting of these venomous little creatures smear their hands and faces over with honey, and this, we are told, proves the best shield they can have to keep them from getting stung.  And the honey here very well represents the kindness which Jesus teaches us to practise.  If kindness, gentleness, and forbearance are found running through all our words and actions, we shall have the best shield to protect us from the spiteful stings of wicked people.