Have you ever been sure you knew something, knew you were right, but it ended up that you were mistaken and had missed the point? I think we all have. We can read about this type of correction throughout the Bible. There were those whose entire jobs centered around being experts in the scriptures (Scribes, Pharisees, lawyers, priests, etc.) who would challenge Jesus since His teaching was very different from theirs, and they were convinced they knew better. Jesus’ answers left them speechless and unable to argue their original point (Matthew 22:46, Mark 12:34, Luke 20:40). These people put themselves forward as experts, but were not. We can certainly see application for us today.
In one such incident recorded in Luke 10:25-37, we read where Jesus is asked a very important question, “...what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” This question is profound and one we should all ask. Unfortunately, this ‘expert’ wasn’t genuinely seeking an answer…he was well versed in the law (God’s Old Covenant with Israel) and was testing Jesus (v.25) to undermine or invalidate His ministry. The lawyer’s attitude of self-justification (v.29) also speaks to his motive. Jesus let the lawyer answer his own question about inheriting eternal life. The man was technically right, in answering we must love God with our whole being and love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves (v.28). Shortly after this the lawyer, seeking a loophole in the law, asked Jesus who his ‘neighbor’ was, and Jesus responded with the famous parable of the Good Samaritan (vv.30-37) which we all can learn lessons from. It is easy to look harshly at the lawyer, but instead a self-examination might be warranted to keep us from this type of attitude. How is our service to God and our fellow man? Are we really on the right track?
Commonly, the parable of the Good Samaritan is preached about on Sundays as a tool to help people see that we shouldn’t be selfish and need to help people. This teaching isn’t wrong of course, but there is much more to this parable to help us in our walk of faith. As background to the story, it may be helpful to note that the ancient Israelites despised the Samaritans. They were considered half-breeds, unclean, and unrighteous in their worship since they did not worship God in the temple in Jerusalem. Jewish people traveling north would often avoid Samaria and cross the Jordan River twice, adding significant time to a journey due to their disdain. Also of note is that the Jewish city of Jericho was the home of a great number of Levites (the tribe of ancient Israel which took care of all that went with temple worship), so there was much travel on the road between Jericho and Jerusalem. This road was relatively short (~17 miles) but famous for being dangerous because of robbers.
In the parable, a traveler on the road is mugged and left half dead on the road. The first two people to come near are a priest and then a Levite, who pass by without helping. These men are both from the tribe dedicated to serving God in worship, yet they don’t stop and even make an effort to distance themselves. A Samaritan man comes by next and does stop though. He provides first aid, takes the victim to a place where he can recover, and pays for his care. Notice carefully that this isn’t just a moment where someone says to themselves, “well, the right thing to do is help”, it is much more than that. Verse 33 reveals that the Samaritan had compassion, which here literally means to be moved in the inward parts. Are we moved in our ‘inward parts’ when we help others? The Samaritan had real feelings that moved him to action. Verse 37 records what he did was ‘mercy’, that his help was heartfelt and true.
Recall that the parable from Jesus is in response to the question of “who is my neighbor?”, which the lawyer rightly understood was someone to which God expected him to have agape love for (v.27). Agape love is unselfish, ready to serve, values and esteems the person in question (W.E. Vine, vol. 3, p.22). The lawyer may have understood ‘neighbor’ to be someone who he had affinity with, someone in his chosen nation, who may have lived next door, worshipped like him, someone he might have had tender affection for. However, Jesus taught by this parable that our ‘neighbors’ include people who may not be worshipping according to God’s law, might not belong to ‘our people’, may have mistreated us, and may even be classified as enemies. Agape love is not only an obligation we need to complete, it is heartfelt and involves esteem, true compassion, and real mercy. We all know what it’s like to be helped from obligation, to feel like you are a burden to someone, to be on the receiving end of this type of ‘help’. This is not agape love. How is that “moved in our inward parts”? If we help people just because we must, an attitude change is needed.
We learn from the parable that being an expert in the law of God or being from God’s chosen people (like the lawyer, priest, and Levite were), doesn’t mean that we are being righteous. This still applies today. Christians are now designated as God’s chosen people and a nation of priests (1 Peter 2:9). God has blessed us with all the knowledge needed to be faithful Christians, but are we missing the point of who we are to be? Are we just collecting the knowledge and missing the point? How to achieve eternal life was the original question in Luke 10:25, and it’s still pertinent today. God teaches us that the pathway to eternal life involves complete and total dedication to Him, as well as heartfelt love, involving an inward deep compassion and mercy to our fellow man.
Jeff Mullen
Minister
Blanco Hills Church of Christ
830-554-0701
blancohillschurch.com