Session 7: The Samaritan

Session Overview

Creedal Statement

Coming soon.

Key Elements

• Key Passage - Luke 10:25–37
• Scripture Memory - In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16
• Catechism - Q: What loving actions make the gospel appealing to others? A: Good works.

Introduction

Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul. Conduct yourselves with such honor among the Gentiles that, though they slander you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us. 1 Peter 2:11–12

To do good to others in necessity keeps up the credit of religion. Works of mercy adorn the gospel, as the fruit adorns the tree. When “one light so shines that others see our good works,” it glorifies God, crowns religion, and silences the lips of gainsayers. Basil says nothing rendered the true religion more famous in the primitive times, and made more proselytes to it, than the bounty and charity of Christians.

The Christian life is meant to be a life overflowing with love. Good deeds of charity flow out of a Christian’s life as a natural stream sourced from a transforming and loving relationship with God. When people encounter God’s life-altering rescue and respond to God with full devotion, caring for others is something native and intuitive to the new nature God has formed in us. Not only are good works of love a sign that we have a genuine relationship with God (not a means to gain a relationship with God), but they are a powerful testimony that can make gospel proclamation credible. Said another way, God wants his people to meet the needs of others in concrete acts of love as a part of their gospel witness to the surrounding world.

We need to refine our thinking (and practice) of good works from a biblical perspective. Longstanding prejudices, deep-rooted apathy, firmly fixed affinity groups, and prevailing misunderstandings of God’s character can obstruct people from performing loving acts toward others. For some, caring for the needs of others is something they resist with fierce aversion. Others may more generally live in ignorance of others’ needs. Many feel the compassionate pull to help others, but have not seen how such acts of love connect with discipleship and mission. Unfortunate as these oversights may be, many disciples and churches feel these realities. To remedy this problematic situation, we need to allow the Bible to reconstruct our understanding of the Christian life and witness.

In Luke 10:25–37, we observe Jesus skillfully interacting with a lawyer who hoped to gain clarity on how a person knew if they would inherit eternal life. In the course of their conversation, we learn about the centrality of love to the Christian life. Summarizing the entire law, the legal expert discussed with Jesus the fact that loving God in full devotion and loving others in selfless care is a summary of the entire duty of a disciple. Knowledge of this duty, however, is not sufficient. Jesus expected his disciples—those who have truly placed their faith and trust in him—to show the genuineness of their faith by performing concrete acts of love toward others. Disciples of Jesus love their neighbors as themselves. In order to showcase this kind of love, Jesus told the lawyer a parable about a man assaulted on a journey to Jericho. Jewish religious leaders avoided the man, refusing to help him in his half-dead condition. Surprisingly, a Samaritan came to the man’s aid and provided for his care. In an amazing narrative turn, Jesus confronted the lawyer with a powerful teaching. He challenged the lawyer, who originally wanted to know the limits of his neighborly responsibility to others, to consider what it meant to be a neighbor to others.

This narrative is of great importance for our Christian faith. It clearly defines full devotion to God and highlights the importance of good works for Christian witness. By using a parable as a pedagogical tool, Jesus excites our imaginations for how we might express love toward others and meet the urgent needs of people we encounter through the journey of life. This narrative will challenge our prejudices that fetter willing hands of service and restrain a broad care of those in need. Moreover, if we are attentive to its teaching, this powerful story can transform the culture of our whole church community. May we not only listen to its instructive voice but also be ready to follow the simple command by Jesus to “do likewise” (10:37).

Biblical Interpretation: Hearing the Word

Study the Text: The Bible is God’s inspired word to his people. Christian disciples mature in the faith when they are grounded in God’s word. In this movement, you will study the basic details of the biblical text.

Observation Questions

Read (or listen to) the whole passage of Scripture. Discuss the questions below for each section of the story. Pay attention to the details of the text to recall what the passage is saying. Use the focus verses to guide your conversation.

Storycraft

Retell the story in your own words, recounting the overall flow of the narrative, the main segments of the story, and the major developments that take place.

Narrative Elements

Story Retell

Theological Dialogue: Discussing the Plot

Explore the Text: God’s word is his trustworthy and sufficient revelation to his people. We grow as Christ’s disciples by rooting our lives in God’s unchanging truth. In this movement, you will explore vital teachings of this biblical passage.

Discussion Questions

Summarize the biblical story. As a community, discuss the following questions. Be attentive to the truths taught in this text. Use the commentary on the next pages to uncover core principles this passage teaches about the Christian faith.

Biblical Commentary

Use this commentary to help you understand the meaning of the text. Refer to the infographic on the next page to think through how narratives work.

Passage Introduction

Key Idea

Through concrete acts of love toward others from all backgrounds, Jesus’ disciples should love others as a natural overflow of their love for God.

Passage Overview

When disciples place their faith in Christ, they enjoy many blessings. So strong is the love of God that it has an irresistible pull to draw sinners out of their rebellion and transform them into faithful servants of Christ. One of the great blessings of a disciple’s life—indeed, a deep privilege—is the call to minister to others in need. In God’s great redemptive work, God rescues people from a dire condition of sin and a grave sentence of condemning punishment and employs his devoted followers as agents who lovingly care for others in deep need. Transformed from hopelessly needy to Spirit-empowered caregivers, Christians participate in bearing witness to God’s love by performing concrete acts of love and charity to others. In the present biblical narrative, we learned about the central importance of love. Through Jesus’ conversation with the lawyer and his masterful parable, we witness the nature of good works as a natural expression of our love for God. In fact, as we imitate the actions of the Samaritan example, Christians and churches can embrace a neighborly lifestyle of good works as a means to promote gospel witness. Reflectively read the following commentary as a means to apply the teachings of this passage to your personal and community life.

Passage Outline

A Testimony of Good Works

And our people must also learn to devote themselves to good works in order to meet the pressing needs of others, so that they will not be unfruitful.

You cannot heal all the sick, relieve all the poor; you cannot comfort all in distress, nor be a father to all the fatherless; you cannot, it may be, deliver many from their misfortunes, or teach them to find comfort in God …. But if there is a love and tenderness in your heart, that delights in these good works, and excites you to do all that you can: if your love has no bounds, but continually wishes and prays for the relief and happiness of all that are in distress; you will be received by God as a benefactor to those, who have had nothing from you but your good will, and tender affections.

Introduction

Christian witness is galvanized by genuine acts of love. While believers are called to boldly and clearly articulate the gospel to others, oral proclamation of the gospel is only one aspect of our witness to the world. Verbal testimony about Christ should be supported, energized, and validated by visible and concrete expressions of love toward others. Loving concern for people—especially toward people in need—is a telling sign that the gospel has accomplished a transformation in a person’s life. Christians do not believe that good works result in a person’s salvation. No person can perform or merit their way into eternal life. Paradise is only for those who surrender their lives in full belief of and trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord. Nevertheless, a person who places their faith in Christ will adorn their lives with good deeds toward others.

Acts of charity, mercy, and compassion should be inherent in the life of a Christ follower. Genuine faith in Christ involves a dispossession of selfish ambitions, inspiring an attitude of selfless sacrifice and self-denying care for others. However important this newfound attitude is to the Christian life, many find it difficult to express love toward others, especially those in need. At an individual level, personal gain, apathetic emotions, and pursuits of comfort become impediments to genuine expressions of care. At a social level, animosity and hatred obstruct the streams of love flowing to others. Even if people are inclined to help others, we often draw a tight circle around those for whom we feel responsible. In many places around the globe, racial division, ethnic hostility, and class elitism cause people to narrow their sphere of care to a limited group of people.

Stifling the embers of love can endanger the flames of Christian witness. Thankfully, God’s Word teaches us about the importance of good deeds to the Christian life and witness. After sending seventy-two of his followers on a missionary journey (cf. 10:1–16) and receiving them upon their return (cf. 10:17–24), Jesus had an important discussion with a lawyer. Often labeled as the story of the Good Samaritan, this account in Luke 10:25–37 is one of the most well-known narratives in the Bible. In this narrative, Jesus’ dialogue with the lawyer resulted in a powerful telling of an instructive parable. This parable focused on how God’s people should love others as a natural expression of love for God. Confronting a lawyer’s misguided question, Jesus showed his inquisitor that the nature of true faith transforms the way disciples treat people from all different kinds of backgrounds.

As we will see, this passage records a story within a story. When Jesus answered the interrogating lawyer with a parable, he was doing him and us a favor. The surprising plot in Jesus’ parable should awaken (and if need be, startle) us toward our responsibility to the needs around us. In fact, if we are alert and attentive, we will find that this narrative can even broaden our sights to look for needs we may not normally see. Called to engage a lost and dying world with the truth of the gospel, we must be armed with the powerful and compelling testimony of active love toward others. May this biblical narrative expand your vision, fuel your imagination, focus your actions, and mobilize your church community toward a more fully orbed and holistic mission.

You Shall Love: Naming the Central Importance of Love

Biblical Narrative (Luke 10:25–28)

After seventy-two of Jesus’ followers returned from their mission (cf. 10:1–24), Jesus had an especially significant conversation with a lawyer. This conversation would echo through the ages, and up to the present day, as a discussion fundamental to the Christian life and witness. At the beginning of the narrative, Luke records that “an expert in the law stood up to test [Jesus]” (10:25). While the lawyer may have had a sincere desire for his religious question to be answered, he also held enough skepticism toward Jesus that he wanted to interrogate him in a discrediting manner. Schooled in the law, this man applied his training and skill by asking Jesus a question of monumental religious significance. Respectful on the surface, inquisitive in appearance, but cynical in intent, the lawyer asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (10:25).

Responding with masterful discernment and a redirected focus, Jesus responded to the lawyer’s question with two questions: “What is written in the Law?” and “How do you read it?” (10:26). Jesus asked the lawyer to recount what the law said in order to answer his own question. Then, Jesus asked how the lawyer interpreted what the law meant. In essence, Jesus was asking the lawyer to answer his own question about eternal life based on what was recorded in the law. In this way, Jesus turned the tables on his interrogator and placed his questioner under scrutiny. For Jesus to ask a lawyer to reflect on the law was simultaneously a means of connecting with his inquirer and exposing the lawyer’s own limited expertise. Exemplary in his conversation, Jesus demonstrated the superlative skills of a master teacher (10:25).

The lawyer responded with an adequate answer to Jesus’ question. He stated that to gain eternal life, a person must appropriately love God and love others. Quoting Deuteronomy 6:5, the lawyer summarized the Law: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind” (10:27). Then, quoting Leviticus 19:18, the lawyer added an additional summary: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (10:27). The lawyer joined these two Old Testament quotations as a combined summary of the whole duty required of a person to gain life without end.

Jesus told the lawyer that he “answered correctly” (10:28). Then, he added a simple but direct command, “do this and you will live” (10:28). Guiding the lawyer in the answer to his own inquiry, Jesus wanted the lawyer to consider the implications of his question at a greater depth. Understanding the law was not the same as obeying the law. Therefore, Jesus’ affirmation of the lawyer’s knowledge was followed by a challenge to this same expert’s lifestyle. It is at this point in the conversation that Jesus clearly turned the lawyer’s examination of Jesus’ religious legitimacy into a personal challenge of the lawyer’s spiritual condition.

Biblical Principles

Total Love. The essential, encapsulating theme of this narrative is the call to love. Specifically, this narrative enjoins people to love God in full devotion and to love others selflessly. When the lawyer recalled the Old Testament commands from Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, he summarized the law by stating “Love the Lord your God” and “Love your neighbor” (10:27). God’s people were to love God “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” and to love neighbors “as yourself” (10:27). The specific terms heart, soul, strength, and mind describe various facets of human makeup. Listing out these faculties reinforces that true devotion to God involves a complete devotion—a self-surrendering faith—to God. When people truly love God, they give themselves wholly to God: emotions, will, abilities, and intellect. Without a full-orbed and all-consuming love, sincere love toward others will be impossible.

Christians are also called to love their neighbors as they love themselves (10:27). Normally, neighbors represent those people who live in proximity to us. As we will see later, Jesus surprisingly expands our understanding of neighbors and neighboring. In essence, however, Jesus wanted his followers to be ready and eager to care for others. The kind of love God wants disciples to show their neighbors is a love that they would show themselves. Usually, people do not have to be told to look out for their own interests. Naturally, people tend to want the best for themselves. Care and concern for oneself is instinctual. God empowers his people to develop an instinct to care for others in the same way. Sincere love of God is the source of genuine love for others. The supernatural reflex to care for others as oneself, to look out for their interests, and to want the best for another comes when we have fully devoted ourselves to God.

Knowledge and Doing. Christian love involves knowing and doing. While the lawyer correctly answered Jesus’ question (10:27), Jesus commanded the lawyer to put his knowledge into action (10:28). Certainly, Christian love requires that disciples understand what it means to love God and others. However, adequate knowledge about love is not the same as expressing this love toward others. Therefore, one of the major themes of this narrative is love expressing itself in action (10:25, 28; 37 [2x]). The lawyer asked Jesus what he needed to “do to inherit eternal life” (10:25). After providing an accurate biblical teaching, Jesus told his inquirer to “do this and you will live” (10:28). The end of the narrative reiterates the practical application of the law. After Jesus told the parable, he upheld the Samaritan as an example and told the lawyer to “do likewise” (10:37). While love certainly involves emotions, true Christian love expresses its care with concrete and definitive actions. In fact, as the rest of the narrative unfolds, we will discern that love is not only active in its display but also proactive in its intent.

Eternal Life. The focus of the lawyer’s question is about how to “inherit eternal life” (10:25). Importantly, the answer to this question is a matter of one’s devotion to God. The lawyer correctly answered his own question by quoting from the Old Testament Law: love God fully and love others as yourself (10:26–27). Jesus affirmed that loving God and loving others is a marker of true Christians. This passage, however, does not teach that a person inherits eternal life by doing enough good deeds or by having a sufficiently righteous character. As has always been the case, humans are saved (receive eternal life) by faith alone. Saving faith means full and total devotion to God. This is the essence of the quotation from the Old Testament: be fully devoted to God with your whole being in a way that causes you to love others. Genuine faith will produce God-honoring behavior. When people are faithful and devoted to God in this way, they are promised eternal life.

While the lawyer’s focus was on his own eternal destiny, Jesus refocused his attention on his present responsibility. The joy and bliss of everlasting life with God should never be underestimated. It is of great importance that people consider what happens after they die. Encouraging people to receive eternal life is vital to the work of Christian witness. But eternal life is not simply a spiritual promise to inherit; it begins at salvation and is a new lifestyle to embrace. The life of love is the natural outflow of a life that is securely and unchangingly anchored in everlasting life.

Who Is My Neighbor: Paying Attention to the Marginalized Along the Way

Biblical Narrative (Luke 10:29–30)

Pressed into a corner, the lawyer asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” (10:29). Just as the lawyer’s initial question came from a testing spirit (10:25), this question came from a self-vindicating motive. Luke records that in asking this question about the identity of his neighbor, the lawyer was “wanting to justify himself” (10:29). Something in Jesus’ response struck a sensitive nerve within the lawyer. At some level, he must have felt inadequate, challenged, or exposed. What might seem like a natural question to clarify understanding was, in actuality, a reactionary response that sought to recuse himself from responsibility (at best) or culpability (at worst).

Earlier, Jesus responded to the lawyer’s question with further questions. Now, Jesus replied to the lawyer’s question with a parable. This tactic again reveals Jesus as a masterful teacher, using a variety of teaching methods in order to convey eternal, unchanging truths. Further, Jesus’ storytelling methodology also compelled the lawyer (and future readers like us) toward honest self-examination. One is hard-pressed to read this narrative and not hypothesize how one would respond were one a traveler along the road. The plot of this parable—a story within a story—was used to teach about a disciple’s responsibility toward others.

Commencing his parable (and his official reply to the lawyer), Jesus narrated a story about a man who “was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho” (10:30). The man’s journey took an unfortunate and dangerous turn as he was violently assaulted and robbed. Jesus told how the traveler “fell into the hands of robbers” who “stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead” (10:30). Beaten, humiliated, and dispossessed, the man was in desperate straits. Not only was the man without his dignity or possessions, but his assailants had so brutally attacked him that he was close to dying. As we will see, the action-packed and dramatic opening to this parable is a fitting response to help answer the identity of one’s neighbor.

Biblical Principles

Neighbor Awareness. Christians treat others like neighbors. The lawyer intended to “justify himself” (10:29) and limit the scope of his responsibility to care for others. Christian love does the opposite. Human instinct is self-preserving and self-serving, yet genuine disciples love others in a self-sacrificial manner. Christian love does not seek to defend or justify oneself; rather, it recognizes one’s weaknesses and seeks to serve others in humility and meekness. Christians do not aim to fulfill a bare minimum threshold of neighborly love; instead, they look for opportunities to expand their neighborly influence to others. Jesus’ followers do not limit their care and concern to those who are easy to love, but they extend themselves into difficulty and danger to help those in need. Born out of self-denial and Christlike humility, Christians do not look for an excuse to escape the responsibility of love but look for God-appointed opportunities to share their love with others. Amazingly, disciples learn to tune their hearts toward the painful circumstances others are enduring.

Many people think that neighbors are exclusively those who live in the adjacent vicinity of their home. Preferring a life of solace and convenience, still others view the reality of neighbors as an unfortunate inconvenience and an unlucky burden. Often, people will limit their interaction with neighbors. And when people do engage with their neighbors, these relationships are often superficial. The lawyer’s question and Jesus’ opening line of his parable radically transform these perspectives. Christian love in a neighborly mode is not limited to those who live around one’s residence. Rather than a burden to bear, neighbors are a blessing to enjoy. A love for God leads us to be involved in the difficulty and disarray of others’ lives rather than seeing them as superficial acquaintances. This being the case, there is a particular kind of neighbor Jesus wanted the lawyer (and us) to be aware of and attentive toward.

Empathy for the Vulnerable. The vulnerability of the man in the story is enough to evoke empathy within most readers. It can be easy to love the lovely, but difficult to love the disfigured and abused. Christian disciples are sensitive to the vulnerable, hurting, and destitute. While Christians bear a responsibility to love everyone, they maintain a particular responsibility to care for the needy because of Christ’s command to love them as neighbors. Jesus depicted this unnamed Jewish traveler as a quintessential needy person. At the hands of vicious opportunists, the man was beaten, stripped, robbed, and wounded. The man experienced great physical abuse, such that he was “half dead” (10:30). Adding to this bodily anguish, the man had his possessions stolen. Physically beaten and materially impoverished, the man endured humiliation when the robbers removed his clothes. At the moment of his traumatic experience, he became a social outcast, isolated and alone on a road to Jericho. In his parable, Jesus provided more detail about the suffering of this man than about his personal identity. In this short but detailed description, we witness a man whose suffering was greatly felt and should be deeply lamented. Christian love pays careful attention to specific details of others’ needs, especially the vulnerable, helpless, and unprotected.

Let us remember that Jesus told this story in order to answer the lawyer’s question about who qualifies as one’s neighbor. The fact that Jesus’ parable opened with such a dramatic and traumatic event is telling. Some may hear the man’s plight and respond with a token and superficial pity. Others may have a sentiment of disgust toward the injured traveler who was beaten and bloody. Some may secretly blame the man, asking if he did something wrong to deserve this kind of punishment. Many will likely be drawn to the man’s helpless condition, but will not have thought about whether they would take action to help him. With every evaluation of the man’s condition comes an evaluation of our own heart condition. Lying half dead on the road, the injured traveler in the parable scrutinizes us: What do we feel toward this man? Why do we feel this way? What do we hope can be done? The answers to these simple but probing questions are important in our pursuit of genuine love for the vulnerable and hurting.

When He Saw Him: Evaluating Our Attraction to People in Need

Biblical Narrative (Luke 10:31–33)

As Jesus’ parable unfolds, he narrates what took place as several passersby encountered the battered man. The first person to pass by the victim was a priest. In the Jewish community, priests represented God to the people by teaching the law and living a life of purity. They also represented the people to God as they offered sacrifices and performed temple rituals. One would expect a Jewish religious leader responsible for leading the Israelites in devotion to God—a pious and sacred leader—to care for a person in a dire, life-threatening situation. Rather than being drawn to the victim and providing for him in his time of need, the priest acted with extreme aversion and “passed by on the other side” (10:31).

In a similar way, a Levite approached the man. Levites were specially appointed spiritual leaders in the Israelite community. From the tribe of Levi, these assistants of the priestly and temple system served the Israelite community in important religious matters. Like the priests, they also represented purity, godliness, truth, and service to God. Rather than expressing concern for the assaulted man, the Levite also reacted in a similar way to the priest. Jesus explained, “So too, when a Levite came to that spot and saw him, he passed by on the other side” (10:32).

The third person who came down the road was a Samaritan. At this time, Samaritan and Jewish hostility impaired relationships between these two groups. Samaritans developed as a people from the intermarriage of Jewish exiles and foreign peoples. Samaritans also had beliefs different from the mainline Jewish community. Therefore, Jews viewed Samaritans as ethnic half-breeds who did not fully follow all of God’s law. In the context of Judaism, Samaritans were cultural, ethnic, and religious outcasts. Therefore, the appearance of a Samaritan as an example in this story would come as a great surprise. The Samaritan’s response to the wounded traveler is markedly different from that of the Jewish religious leaders. As the Samaritan journeyed along the road, he came to the injured man, “looked at him and had compassion” (10:33). The clear aversion (and perhaps revulsion) expressed by the actions of the priest and Levite are surprisingly contrasted by the heartfelt compassion of this unlikely figure.

Biblical Principles

Heeding Negative Examples of Carelessness. In Jesus’ parable, the priest and the Levite are negative examples. When Jesus introduced the priest in his parable, he said that “by chance a priest was going down the same road” (10:31). For a moment, one would think the unexpected arrival of the priest was good news for the battered victim. Certainly, a religious leader, inclined toward God’s law and embodying pure character, would demonstrate care for a brutalized victim. In fact, one might assume that the appearance of the priest in the narrative is divine providence caring for the injured man. Contrary to these expectations, the potential hope of priestly aid was quickly shattered. He was not the protagonist of this narrative. When the priest became aware of the man in his desperate situation—“when he saw him” (10:31)—he passed on the other side of the road. Things were no better when the Levite acted in kind (10:32). On their own, one would expect the priest and Levite to be potential heroes in this narrative. Their negative examples are warnings for us to heed and narrative characters that encourage our introspective self-evaluation.

Naming Personal Aversions to Care. We are not told the reasons for the priest’s or the Levite’s aversion to helping the bruised and beaten man. Perhaps they thought contact with the man would have compromised their pure and pious status before God and their faith community. Firm in self-righteousness, maybe they thought the man received a just punishment for his sins. Or, since this road led to Jericho, a city on the eastern border of Israel, perhaps this man was of a different ethnicity than these Jewish leaders. Had they stopped to help the man, maybe they would have risked defilement by inappropriately crossing cultural boundaries. Whatever their reasons, Jewish leaders, who were appointed to be servants of God and examples to the Israelite community, failed to demonstrate their true piety with an act of love.

Before we move to the positive example of the Samaritan, we must seriously reflect on the inappropriate responses by the priest and the Levite. Perhaps the fact that the narrative does not specify the reason for their aversion is helpful in and of itself. The lack of specificity allows the reader to fill in reasons they might avoid helping such a person in need. Our own aversion to caring for others may simply come from a desire to hold on to comfort and convenience. Certainly, stopping to help the man would have interrupted the plans of the priest and the Levite. We may feel inadequate to come to a person’s aid, especially when the needs are great, and circumstances are dire. When whole societies have been ravaged by war, genocide, or civil strife, our meager efforts of assistance may seem unable to help rectify the situation. Sometimes we can even claim piety as an excuse to keep our hands clean from the muck and mire of another’s painful ordeal.

It is important for us to take the time to name our aversions. What causes us to pass “on the other side” when we see people in need? What prevents us from “seeing” people in their needy conditions? How much do we resemble the priest and the Levite in the story? Such reflective questions are not meant to layer a burden of guilt upon us. Instead, by naming our aversions, we can renounce them and open ourselves up to the godly example of the Samaritan traveler. Through confession and repentance, we can abandon habits of self-preservation, self-justification, and self-righteousness and take up the more risky and God-honoring lifestyle of loving self-sacrifice.

Take Care: Embodying Definitive Expressions of Loving Care

Biblical Narrative (Luke 10:33–35)

The Samaritan’s empathy was translated into definitive actions of care toward the wounded man. The exemplary caregiver in Jesus’ parable married sincere emotions with actionable care. Rather than passing by the Samaritan on the other side (cf. 10:31, 32), the Samaritan “came upon him” (10:33; cf. 10:32) and then “went to him” (10:34). The Samaritan’s intentional approach to the wounded man is in stark contrast to the intentional avoidance by the priest and Levite. When the Samaritan approached the man, he “bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine” (10:34). In this act, he cared for the immediate needs of the severely beaten man.

Then, the Samaritan did something that involved great self-sacrifice. Demonstrating the genuine compassion he felt toward the man, the Samaritan “put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him” (10:34). The Samaritan used his own animal to transport the man. He found shelter and provided for the injured man’s well-being. The next day, the Samaritan extended his concern for the man by paying the innkeeper money to provide ongoing care for the man’s recovery. Jesus narrated that the man “took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper” and instructed him to “take care of him” (10:35). In fact, the Samaritan was so concerned for the well-being of the man that he told the innkeeper that “on my return I will repay you for any additional expense” (10:35). The Samaritan wanted to make sure the man had the best possibility of recovery.

Biblical Principles

Love in Action. The appearance and actions of the Samaritan in Jesus’ parable serve as a climax for the entire biblical passage. Through the Samaritan’s unexpected (but godly) example, Jesus provided an answer to the lawyer’s question, explained the nature of Christian love, and clearly demonstrated what it looks like when disciples express love toward others. While love has already been confirmed as a central summary of the Christian life (cf. 10:25–28), the Samaritan shows this love in action. Concrete actions of care for the injured man are one of the first (and more obvious) details of the parable. The Samaritan’s example closed the gap between knowledge and action. The Samaritan tended to the man’s injuries when he took care of his wounds (10:34). The Samaritan brought him to the shelter of an inn and continued to take care of him there (10:34). Then, the Samaritan paid money (and pledged ongoing financial support) for the innkeeper to keep caring for the man (10:35). As an act of love, the Samaritan employed his resources, time, skills, and money to care for this wounded victim.

All of this demonstrates a simple but profound truth: true love must be translated into sincere action if it is to be deemed true love. Love is not merely a moving feeling for someone; it is a deep and abiding concern for someone that moves us toward action on behalf of that person. The action of the Samaritan was costly. In all likelihood, his hands got dirty, his animal was soiled, his pockets were emptier, his time was used, and his resources were a bit more depleted after this unplanned detour. But these actions were also fruitful. Love does not simply take any action toward another. As was clearly done in the Samaritan’s case, so should we act in a way toward others that helps to alleviate their suffering, relieve them of their hardship, and provide for their needs. In this way, taking action to help those in need is an expression of love for God and a powerful witness to the surrounding world.

Compassion. This action-packed scene recounts the caring actions of a Samaritan to a man in deep need. The loving actions performed by the Samaritan in Jesus’ parable flowed from his compassion toward the injured man. This is clearly identified in the story when Jesus narrated, “He looked at him and had compassion” (10:33). Compassion is a heartfelt and earnest concern for those in deep need, and this mercy (cf. 10:37) desires to do something to mitigate and eliminate their hardship. A heart of compassion is the genesis of loving actions and good deeds toward others. Without compassion, actions of care will be superficial at best and injurious at worst. But when God’s people are equipped with compassionate hearts, seldom do we need motivational and inspirational orations to mobilize people to good works.

When a person is truly compassionate toward another, the needs of the other are elevated to a person’s consciousness and focus. A compassionate person desires to bring relief to a hurting person because he has assumed a neighborly responsibility for that person. Even if the person is previously unknown, a disciple will feel compassion for a new acquaintance to the extent that this disciple views his own life through the experience of his hurting neighbor. Compassion tenderizes our hearts, making them sensitive to the pain and hurt that others are experiencing. This is the power of compassion: it causes us to feel sincerely toward others because we have entered into their suffering. Additionally, a heart that is genuinely merciful and authentically compassionate becomes formidable against misguided ambitions, misplaced motives, and misaligned priorities. Compassion has a purgative quality. To the extent that it is possible in this fallen world, compassion purges us of impure intentions that would compromise the ability to freely love another with the love displayed by the well-meaning Samaritan.

Neighbor. Jesus’ parable broadened the typical definition of neighbor. By making a Samaritan the hero of his narrative, Jesus compelled the lawyer to recognize neighbors across ethnic, cultural, and geographic boundaries. Normally, people consider the people who live near them to be neighbors. Others may define neighbors as those with a shared solidarity in class, lifestyle, or ethnicity. However, the Samaritans’ actions showed that neighbors are people that we encounter throughout our daily lives, even those we happen upon in the normal course of life (10:31–33). To want to constrain acts of love only toward those who are like us (affinity groups) or exclusively toward those who reside close to us (geographical proximity) is to misunderstand the way Jesus wants Christians to approach their relationships with others.

Entering into Suffering. The radicality of the Samaritan is further demonstrated by how he approached the injured man. The priest only “saw him” (10:31) and then passed on the other side. In a similar way, the Levite “came to that spot and saw him” (10:32) and then passed on the other side. The Samaritan “came upon him” (10:33), “looked at him” (10:33), “had compassion” (10:33), and “went to him” (10:34). The religious leaders’ purposeful evasion of the wounded man starkly contrasted the Samaritan’s proactive advance toward him. The Samaritan was willing to enter into the hardship, pain, and suffering of his fellow traveler. In Jesus’ parable, the Jewish leaders “saw” the man but did not really “come” or “enter” into his difficult straits. On the other hand, the Samaritan “saw” and “went.” One of the greatest means of Christian witness is the selfless care of the needy and vulnerable. This kind of care can only happen if we are willing to notice the pain of others and to enter into their hardship.

Relief, Stability, and Recovery. Another detail worth noting is the variety of care the Samaritan provided for the hurt and humiliated man. The Samaritan responded to the man’s urgent need with immediate relief of his physical pain (10:34). Then, the Samaritan transported the man to a place where he could stabilize his condition (10:34). Last, the Samaritan used his own money to provide for the man’s ongoing recovery (10:35). Additionally, the Samaritan was heavily involved in the man’s initial relief, but was less directly involved in ongoing recovery. Christians must be wise and discerning in offering care to others. There are times when our direct and immersive involvement will be required to provide relief to a person’s situation. There will also be moments when we need to get people into a stable condition of rehabilitation and repair. Then, we should also consider how to invite others in for the longer-term, ongoing care (even in our absence). As believers engage in good works—love of God expressed in love for neighbors—we must wisely calibrate our care to meet the need appropriately. What may begin as immediate relief must eventually transition to stabilizing rehabilitation and ongoing recovery. To specifically tend to each of these phases is to put the other person’s well-being at the forefront of our caring minds and actions.

Which of These: Refocusing Our Identity as True Neighbors

Biblical Narrative (Luke 10:36–37)

After Jesus narrated this parable, he posed another question to the lawyer. Jesus asked this inquiring legal expert to identify “which of these three” people in the narrative “was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers” (10:36). This question served as an important transformation of the lawyer’s original question. While the lawyer wanted to know how to appropriately identify his neighbor (10:29), Jesus emphatically depicted what it means to be a neighbor. So compelling was Jesus’ story that the lawyer had only one answer to give. Jesus’ parable made it obvious that “the one who showed him mercy” was a real neighbor. In a kind of repetition of Jesus’ earlier instruction to “do this and you will live” (10:28), now Jesus told the lawyer, “go and do likewise” (10:37). While the lawyer had hoped to limit his responsibility to people with his narrow, self-justifying question (10:29), Jesus ultimately broadened and deepened the lawyer’s responsibility.

Biblical Principles

Neighbors and Neighboring. Jesus’ parable challenged the lawyer in a number of unexpected ways. The disappointing failure of the Jewish leaders, the broadening definition of one’s neighbor, and the heroic example of a Samaritan were some of these unexpected plot twists in Jesus’ short parable. One of the final surprises in the story was the way Jesus inverted the lawyer’s question. While the lawyer sought to define the identity of his neighbor (i.e., whom he should be responsible to love) (10:29), Jesus concluded his parable by teaching the lawyer (and us) what it means to be a godly neighbor (10:36). Jesus did answer the lawyer’s original question by broadening the lawyer’s understanding of neighbors. In his answer, however, Jesus was more concerned that his followers acted as neighbors to others than trying to clarify the specific people they were responsible for helping.

Subtly, Jesus invited the lawyer to judge for himself which character was the most neighborly. The lawyer’s conclusion—a correct answer affirmed by Jesus—was an indictment of his all-too-limiting perspective on caring for others. In fact, as an unlikely protagonist, the Samaritan became a standard by which Christian disciples evaluate their relationships with others. The habit of neighboring others with helpful acts of love should form a key part of our Christian witness to the wider world. Inasmuch as faith in God is a matter of full devotion and love of God, so our love of God results in love toward others. In a reverse manner, our acts of love toward others can lead people toward faith in God. When God’s people adorn themselves with good works, their verbal proclamation of the gospel becomes a powerful and compelling message of good news.

Exemplifying Mercy. The act of neighboring involves concrete acts of mercy to others in need. The expert in the law summarized this best in his answer to Jesus’ question. Importantly, the man did not say the “Samaritan” was the real neighbor. He described the Samaritan as the real neighbor by describing him as “the one who showed him mercy” (10:37). The kind actions and sincere motivations of the Samaritan toward the injured man were further accentuated by the fact of his ethnicity. But his neighborliness was not based on his ethnicity. Easily, the practice of neighboring can be impeded or stymied by such natural affinities as language, ethnicity, or any other kind of human-based affinity. What was most defining about the Samaritan was not his ethnicity but his superlative mercy. When Jesus told the lawyer to “go and do likewise” (10:37), he was saying that the Samaritan’s characteristic compassion toward the injured man was to become a mark of all true disciples of Jesus. Those who truly love God will love others by performing concrete acts of care, compassion, and mercy to care for those in need.

Conclusion

Although brief, this biblical narrative conveys truths of great spiritual significance. The inquiring lawyer serves as a caution for us all, guarding our hearts from self-justifying and self-vindicating attitudes. The dialogue of this narrative—both Jesus’ questions and answers—compels us to evaluate our own spiritual condition. Built on a short but unforgettable plot, the parable of the Samaritan displays an exemplary love for all disciples to imitate. On the one hand, the revulsion of the priest and Levite confronts our own apathy and indifference toward others. On the other hand, the desperate condition of the beaten traveler sensitizes us to the dire needs of others (and reminds us of our own). In the end, Jesus’ final question and concluding command seal the poignant teaching of this passage: broaden your definition of who your neighbor is and focus on your responsibility to be a neighbor to others.

Christian witness is an honor and a responsibility. After giving us salvation and eternal life, Jesus does not remove his people from his world. Instead, Jesus deploys his disciples as his witnesses. One of the powerful ways Christians can give credibility to our verbal proclamation of the gospel is to perform acts of love toward others. Far from these acts being means of obtaining eternal life, loving concern for others is a concrete expression that shows our faith in Christ is authentic. Further, this biblical narrative about the loving Samaritan transforms our Christian identity and mission focus. While our love for God should cause us to view people across all ethnicities and cultural barriers as our neighbors, we should also proactively seek to be genuine neighbors to all we encounter. In sum, Jesus commands us (like the lawyer) to follow the Samaritans’ example—to go and do likewise—making sure our efforts of Christian witness are a Christ-centered neighboring work.

Session Synopsis

SESSION 7 SYNOPSIS
Good Works in Gospel Witness	In this passage, we learn about the importance of good works in Christian witness. At the beginning of the story, a lawyer asked Jesus a question about how to inherit eternal life. Jesus discussed with the lawyer the teachings of the law: loving God and loving one’s neighbor. The lawyer desired to justify himself, and so he asked Jesus to define who his neighbor was. In response, Jesus told a story of a man who was attacked and robbed on his way to Jericho. Both a priest and a Levite passed the man without helping him. A Samaritan traveling along the road helped the man. He bound his wounds, brought him to an inn, and paid for his care. Jesus asked the man which of the characters in the story acted as a neighbor. Clearly, the Samaritan was the true neighbor. Jesus then told the lawyer to go and imitate the Samaritan. This narrative helps us see the importance of good works and acts of mercy in our gospel ministry. A summary of this story’s principles is outlined below.
Double Love	The essence of the Christian life is to love God and love others (10:25–28; cf. Deuteronomy 6:5; Leviticus 19:18). This is a summary of the Christian life for those who have truly placed their faith in Jesus and pledged their allegiance to him.
Love in Action	Genuine love puts itself in action—knowing and doing (10:25, 27–28, 37)— performing deeds to concretely meet the needs of others (10:34–35). Genuine love demonstrates a willingness to enter into the hardship and suffering of another person (10:31–34).
Love and Compassion	For Christians, the love of God motivates good works (10:27). True concern for one’s neighbor will manifest itself in love (10:27), compassion (10:33), care (10:34–35), and mercy (10:37). Christians should be moved with empathy for the desperate situations of people in need (10:29–30).
Relief, Stability, and Rehabilitation	We should think of good works as caring for people in various stages of their need: relief, stability, and recovery. In relief, we help bring immediate assistance to alleviate need (10:34). In stabilization, we help to put a person in a sustainable and survivable condition (10:34). In recovery, we help to rehabilitate a person to a functioning condition (10:35).
Neighbors and Neighboring	In this narrative, Jesus changes the focus from identifying one’s neighbor (10:29) to describing what it means to be a godly neighbor (10:36). Both questions are important. Jesus’ parable teaches that any person in need whom we happen to come across in the normal course of life is our neighbor (10:31–33). Christians do not just try to define their neighbors—identifying those we are responsible for loving—but seek to embody the lifestyle of a neighbor to any and all they encounter (10:34–37).
Heeding Godly Examples	Christians are to model their lives after the Samaritan’s example (10:37; cf. 10:28). We should also be warned by the negative examples of the priest (10:31), the Levite (10:32), and the self-justifying lawyer (10:25, 29). These negative examples expose common aversions to caring for those in need.

Personal Reflection: Entering the Story

Apply the Text: The word of God is binding and authoritative, the only reliable guide for faith and godliness. True disciples submit themselves to God’s word. In this movement, you will apply God’s word to your lives.

Reflection Questions

Encourage one person to share a testimony about how this story has impacted them so far. Use the reflection questions to examine your life in light of this biblical passage.

Spiritual Practice

Good Works

Take time as a church to prayerfully consider people with urgent needs to whom your community can minister. Consider walking through your neighborhoods and asking people if there are any special needs for which they need help. Record these needs and a plan for your community to meet these needs.

Ministry Practice: Rehearsing the Script

Minister the Text: God’s word is living and active. Through God’s word, the Christian community is edified. In this movement, you will utilize the biblical passage to minister to other believers and build them up in their faith.

Application Questions

Look at the infographic below. Use the questions to think about how to minister this text to other believers.

Missional Outreach: Publicizing the Truth

Witness the Text: The Bible is a message of God’s gracious salvation to the world. In word and deed, God’s people proclaim the good news of the gospel. In this movement, you will use this biblical passage to reach out to unbelievers.

Strategy Questions

Reflect on the infographic below. Consider how you can use this passage to witness to the surrounding world. Use the suggested ideas to prime your imagination. Then, put together a plan to share this passage with unbelievers, Afterward, reflect on this mission experience.