Through the Good Samaritan, Jesus Reveals Who Our Neighbors Really Are—and It May Surprise You

 

Jesus had a way of telling a story. In Luke 10, a lawyer asks Jesus a very important question: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus asks him what the Law says.

The man gives the right answer: Love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind—and love your neighbor as yourself.

Okay, cool.

But then he asks the question that changes everything:

“And who is my neighbor?”

Now, you already know when somebody asks Jesus a question like that, it’s going to get interesting.

Jesus tells him about a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho who is attacked by robbers. They beat him, strip him, and leave him lying there half dead.

Then comes a priest.

He sees the man.

And keeps walking.

Then a Levite comes along.

He sees him too.

And keeps walking.

Now here comes a Samaritan.

And THIS is where Jesus' audience probably leaned forward.

Because Samaritans and Jews had a complicated and hostile relationship. The Samaritan wasn't the person they expected Jesus to make the hero.

But this Samaritan sees the wounded man and has compassion on him.

He doesn't just say, “Oh, that's terrible. I'll pray for you.”

He gets involved.

He bandages the man's wounds.

He puts him on his own animal.

He takes him to an inn.

He pays for his care.

And he even tells the innkeeper that if there are additional expenses, he'll cover those too.

Jesus then asks:

“Which of these three was a neighbor to the man?”

The lawyer responds:

“The one who showed him mercy.”

And Jesus says:

“Go and do likewise.”

Whew.

Let’s Talk About This.

Jesus essentially flipped the question.

It's not just:

“Who deserves my love?”

It's:

“Am I willing to BE a neighbor?”

Because let's be honest.

Religion Without Compassion Isn't the Flex We Think It Is

And this part gets uncomfortable.

The priest saw the man.

The Levite saw the man.

They were religious people.

They knew the Law.

But knowing Scripture and living the heart of Scripture are two different things.

You can know every Bible verse and still walk past somebody bleeding.

You can have a title and still lack compassion.

You can look holy and still be completely unavailable when somebody needs help.

And Here's My Favorite Part...

The Samaritan's compassion cost him something.

It cost him time, money, and interrupted his plans.

And that's something we don't always like to talk about.

Because sometimes loving people is inconvenient.

Sometimes compassion interrupts your schedule.

Sometimes helping somebody means giving up something you could have kept for yourself.

And sometimes being a neighbor means crossing a boundary that society told you not to cross.

Love Is An Action….

So Here's the Cultural Question:

“Whose neighbor am I willing to be?”

Now THAT is a question worth sitting with.

Luke 10:37 — “Go and do likewise.”