Sermon 27 July – Luke 10:25-37
The Good Samaritan
In this passage, Jesus is approached by an expert in the Jewish Law, and is asked, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus responds by asking the lawyer about his love God with all their heart, soul, strength and mind, and one’s neighbour as yourself. When the lawyer then asks, “And who is my neighbour,” Jesus responds with the parable of the Good Samaritan.
In this parable, a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho is attacked and robbed by thieves, who leave him half dead. Eventually, a priest and a Levite happen to travel by, but they ignore the man, and cross to the other side of the road (probably because examining the man would have made them ritually unclean). But then a Samaritan (a bitter rival!) comes, and he – at a considerable cost to himself – takes care of the man, and brings him to an inn.
Jesus then asks the lawyer a different question than the lawyer had raised; not who is his neighbour, but which one acted as a neighbour. The lawyer has to admit that it was the one who showed him mercy. Jesus then replies, “You go, and do likewise.”
This parable hopefully taught the lawyer some significant lessons. First, the issue is not about a legal technicality about who to define a neighbour; rather, the importance is acting as a neighbour to anyone in need. That would have enlarged his definition of a neighbour. Second, it should have taught him more about what it means to love a neighbour as one’s self. Third, it should have caused him to doubt whether he could actually “inherit eternal life” on the basis of the Law, since he was seemed not to be obeying the second great commandment. And finally, it should have challenged him to realize that the attention to the details of the rules and rituals of the Law were the reasons why the priest and the Levite (and probably himself) had failed to obey the greater obligation of the two great commandments.
Questions to Consider:
1. Have you ever received help from someone else that demonstrated a self-sacrificing love? What did that mean to you?
2. Do you ever find a tendency in you to try to separate your love for God from your love for other people? (See 1 John 3:16-18 and 4:7-12)
3. Are you ever tempted to define your Christian faith by a list of “dos and don’ts”, rather than practicing love toward God and to others?
4. How can you be a better neighbour?
