Luke 10:25-37 The Parable of the Good Samaritan
“And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?”
So, he answered and said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’”
And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise, a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So, he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ So, which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”
And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.”
Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
Many of us know this story; in fact, it is so well known that there are phrases referring to “being a good Samaritan.” In the U.S., there are even “good Samaritan laws” to protect those rendering aid in emergencies from being sued if problems arise during the rendering of that aid. But why is Jesus telling this story in the first place?
Jesus is standing there with his disciples, including the seventy who have just returned from acting as advance men throughout the area. These men are basking in the glow of a job well-done when a popular lawyer in the crowd sidles up and begins to test Jesus. While Moses gave the laws originally embodied in the first five books of the Old Testament, in the ensuing years, myriads of other smaller regulations have been developed. The debate over these regulations is an on-going one, and this man questioning Jesus is an expert in legalities, including such thorny questions as how much mint and dill and cumen a believer should tithe.
“And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?”
So, he answered and said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’”
And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
Wow! This guy is really good. He’s just quoted Deuteronomy 6:4-5 and Leviticus 19:18. Of course, the passage from Deuteronomy is the Shema that observant Jews repeat at least twice a day. This passage is also one of the first pieces of Scripture given to children to memorize, but Jesus smiles encouragingly and acknowledges it as part of the correct answer.
“But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Ah, now we’re getting down to the real reasons for this discussion. Not only does this man desire to test Jesus, but he also wants to justify himself. After all, why waste time helping someone if your efforts don’t result in divine credits with the Lord God Almighty?
Jesus smiles some more. This man has just handed him the perfect entry into one of his most memorable stories. Jesus proceeds to narrate a tale of an unfortunate traveler, presumably a Jew, beset by robbers on the deserted road between Jerusalem and Jericho. That road is narrow and rocky and has a bad reputation due to roving bands of thieves. As this poor man is lying there, bleeding and gasping for help, two professional Jewish leaders pass by, a priest and a Levite. Surely, these men will stop and aid this poor fellow! But no. These men are important people bent on a mission. If they stop and help, they might soil their clothing with his blood and if the man dies while they are helping, they will immediately become ritually unclean until evening. Besides, the robbers might return at any moment and assault them. No, far better to mutter a pious prayer and pass by on the other side of the road at a safe distance. The only person who stops to help this unfortunate sufferer is a (gasp!) SAMARITAN!
The Samaritans were a racially mixed group composed of people brought in by the Assyrians after their conquest of the Northern Kingdom. “The Samaritans, being a mix of already spiritually corrupt Israelites and pagan foreigners, created a religion for themselves that the Jews considered heresy.
They established as their center of worship a temple on Mount Gerizim, claiming it was where Moses had originally intended for the Israelites to worship. They had their own unique version of the five books written by Moses, the Pentateuch, but rejected the writings of the prophets and Jewish traditions. The Samaritans saw themselves as the true descendants of Israel and preservers of the true religion, while considering the Jerusalem temple and Levitical priesthood illegitimate.
When Jews returned to rebuild Jerusalem, they were opposed by Samaritans. This led to further ill-will as the two sects were established in the land in opposition to one another.
To the Jews, a Samaritan was more revolting than a Gentile (pagan); Samaritans were half-breeds who defiled the true religion.” https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/the-samaritans-hope-from-the-history-of-a-hated-people.html#google_vignette
By this point, this lawyer is wishing heartily that he never embarked on this conversation in the first place. Who is this carpenter from Nazareth, that he answers so wisely and pointedly? How has this attempt to discredit Jesus gone so wrong? Meanwhile, those in the crowd are snickering. For years, this lawyer has paraded himself around as an expert in religious law, but today he is getting his comeuppance. And Jesus is right; the despised Samaritan is the only one who actually demonstrates mercy.
While it’s quite satisfying to consider Jesus deflating a pompous individual, we must apply this story to ourselves. Recently, I saw a Facebook post. A woman waiting for an airplane entered the ladies’ restroom, only to hear someone weeping. Upon further investigation, she realized that a poor immigrant woman and her children were forced to stay in the restroom overnight because they were to catch a bus the next day but had no money for a place to stay while waiting for the bus. This lady quickly got them a hotel room and gave them money for food. The question at the end of the article was this: this woman and her children had occupied one stall in that restroom for hours. How many other women had entered, listened to the weeping, and had left without helping?
A few days ago, we operated on a seven-year-old girl from a remote village. Although we had high hopes that we would be able to save the girl, she went into cardiac arrest and died. The girl had already accumulated a large hospital bill, and now the family was facing the challenges of paying that bill so they could send their beloved daughter’s body home for burial. Using donated funds, I quietly settled the bill. This family had already suffered enough. Why force these people to give up whatever little money they had? Paying that bill might have left the family with nothing to live on for weeks, adding starvation to grief.
Kindness and mercy cost very little but pay big dividends spiritually. One of the laws of the Kingdom of God is that the measure you give out is the measure you will receive. Be like the Samaritan! Help someone who can’t pay you back.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, give us eyes to see the needs around us and hearts that will care so that we will minister as Your hands and feet. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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