Neighbors? Luke 10:25-37

One of the hardest things Jesus asks us to do is to love our enemies. The command to love our neighbors seems much easier at face value. But, this is only true if we consider common courtesy enough to fulfill this mandate. Jesus’ command actually goes much further than that.

James 1:27

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

Our love for our neighbor should be self-sacrificing.

Who should we consider as our neighbor?

The Exchange

Luke 10:25-29

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

Everybody is always trying to take a swing at the champ. This contender was likely an expert in religious law. His question was a good one that any of us might have asked, but his intentions were clearly to try and justify himself with Jesus answer.

The wording of his question is interesting. He speaks of inheriting eternal life, which would reflect receiving something as opposed to earning it. But he also asks what action he must take to inherit it. So he had some misconceptions about salvation.

Jesus knew the man’s heart, so he turned the question back on him. Being an expert in religious law, he should have easily been able to answer what the law says.

The lawyer shows his expertise by answering Jesus correctly, but then he thinks he has a loophole. He asks Jesus who he would consider his neighbor.

Do we sometimes try to find ways to justify our actions? Or try to find ways to do good things to balance the scales when we sin?

The Story

Luke 10:30-32

30Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

Most Jews in Jesus’ time believed their obligations were only to their fellow Jews. Jesus wanted them to recognize the bigger reality of God’s requirements. He did this by telling them a story.

A man is attacked by a gang and left for dead. A priest and a Levite come up on him, but pass him by. The wording of the text suggests that they were going away from Jerusalem just as the other man was. Jerusalem was on a hill, so anytime someone left Jerusalem they were said to be “going down” to somewhere.

This is important, because it shows that the two men weren’t headed to Jerusalem, so they wouldn’t have needed keep themselves clean for some sort of temple ceremony. So, they had no excuse to pass the man in the street.

Luke 10:33-35

33But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’

The next man to pass was a Samaritan. The Samaritans were descendants of intermarriage between Jews and pagans during the Babylonian exile. So the Jewish people had a lot of disdain for the Samaritans. It would have been unheard of for one to help a Jew.

However, this Samaritan had compassion for the injured man and saw to his wounds. He then takes him to an inn and pays them to take care of the man. He gave them the equivalent of two days wages, then further commits to come back and reimburse any further costs incurred.

Most people would have been able to excuse themselves from further service after just bringing the man to the inn. The Samaritan promised to return to check on him.

What point do you think Jesus was making by picking the Samaritan as the protagonist of His story?

The Challenge

Luke 10:36-37

36Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

Jesus’ parable helped the lawyer to answer his own question. He helped him understand that a neighbor meant more than proximity, shared ethnicity, or common interests.

The other thing Jesus showed was that being neighborly was more than just a claim. If you look at the question Jesus asked in verse 36, he asks who “proved” to be a neighbor? Being neighborly is an action.

Once the lawyer understood this, Jesus gives him a directive. He tells him to go and do likewise.

How are you challenged by Jesus’ story?

How do you think Jesus would respond to our excuses for not helping others?