The Parable of
the Good Samaritan
25 Just then a lawyer stood up to test
Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal
life?" 26 He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you
read there?" 27 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 given the right answer; do this, and you will live."
29 But wanting to justify himself, he asked
Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" 30 Jesus replied, "A man was
going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who
stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance
a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the
other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him,
passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan while traveling came near him;
and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. 34 He went to him and bandaged his
wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal,
brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two
denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, 'Take care of him; and when I
come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend. ' 36 Which of these three,
do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the
robbers?" 37 He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said
to him, "Go and do likewise."
Grace to you and
peace from God our Father and our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. Amen
“What must I do
to inherit eternal life?” the lawyer asked, “what must I do?”
This was a test.
In the lawyer’s
mind it was more about ‘checking Jesus out’ than it was about a genuine inquiry
into the requirements of the law.
After all, he
knew the answer.
He was wondering
if Jesus knew the answer.
"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."
And Jesus
responded “do this, and you will
live."
The issue here between
the lawyer and Jesus is not the question of what is to be done.
They both know
the answer and agree upon the answer.
Love God.
Love neighbor.
Pretty
simple. Just do it.
Ask anyone here
the same question. We’d probably respond
likewise.
Yup, “Love God
and Love your neighbor” sounds like Jesus.
The devil’s in
the details though.
The devil’s in
the details.
I mean that
literally. It’s in the application that
we face temptation.
But wanting to justify himself, he asked
Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
Implicit in that
question is the conviction that though we are to love our neighbor, we are not
required to love all people.
Just some. Our neighbors.
But who are they?
It struck me as I
wrote this that how we answer that question says a lot about our religious and
political positions.
If you are a
conservative Republican, or a right wing evangelical Christian, you’re going to
tend to answer the question in one way.
For example, you might lift up the unborn child as the one we are to
love and protect. . .
But if you are a
liberal Democrat, or a progressive mainline Christian, you’re likely to answer
in a different way. For example, you
might lift up the cause of one minority or another that has been oppressed.
We all agree that
we are to love our neighbor as ourselves, but we tend to disagree as to who
that neighbor is and is not.
"And who is my neighbor?"
And so Jesus told
them a parable.
We know it well.
One man, half
dead alongside the road.
A priest.
A Levite.
Both passed by.
But then a
foreigner, a Samaritan stopped.
And it was the
foreigner who showed mercy and cared for the unfortunate man.
"And who is my neighbor?"
"The one who
showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
"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."
Now comes the
real question.
Is this an
obligation or an opportunity?
When we respond
to this commandment as an obligation we ask questions such as “who is my
neighbor?” and “who am I required to show mercy to?”. What must I do to inherit eternal
life?
The emphasis is
on ourselves. That and the reward that
we seek—eternal life.
And because of
this we are worried not about the other person, but about whether we have met
the requirement to earn the reward for ourselves.
It’s all very
self centered, isn’t it.
But if we can get
out of ourselves and our preoccupation with our future and reward, then we have
the opportunity to love our neighbor.
“Who is my
neighbor?”
Who do you have
the opportunity to love?
Who do you have
the opportunity to show mercy?
In other words,
who is in need of our loving mercy?
I’m a Mister
Rogers fan, from the days when I cared for our children as they were growing
up.
His theme song
goes as follows:
“It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood
A beautiful day for a neighbor
Could you be mine?
Would you be mine?
“It's a neighborly day in this beauty wood
A neighborly day for a beauty
Could you be mine?
Would you be mine?
“I have always wanted to have a neighbor just like you
I've always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you
“Let's make the most of this beautiful day
Since we're together, might as well say
Would you be my, could you be my
Won't you be my neighbor?”
A beautiful day for a neighbor
Could you be mine?
Would you be mine?
“It's a neighborly day in this beauty wood
A neighborly day for a beauty
Could you be mine?
Would you be mine?
“I have always wanted to have a neighbor just like you
I've always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you
“Let's make the most of this beautiful day
Since we're together, might as well say
Would you be my, could you be my
Won't you be my neighbor?”
Who can we be a
neighbor to?
Who can we show
mercy to?
Who is it that
needs to be loved, today?
Jesus says,
I give you a new commandment, that you love
one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.
Just as I have
loved you, love one another.
“Who is my
neighbor?” We ask.
Who does Jesus
love? Who did Jesus care enough about to
offer his life on the cross for them?
Who is it that
occupies a special place in Jesus’ heart?
Who is it that
Jesus is concerned about?
Jesus loves the unlovable.
Jesus shows mercy
to those who need mercy.
Jesus forgives
those who need forgiveness.
Who is our
neighbor?
Who are we to
love?
Who are we to
show mercy to?
Who are we to
forgive?
Who is welcome in
this place?
I think that if
we want to know who God is calling us to love and show mercy to, we ought to
think about whom it is that we are most uncomfortable showing love and
mercy to.
Why?
Because the reason
that we are uncomfortable showing love and mercy to them, is the reason they so
desperately need to experience the love and mercy of God.
The question is
not “who is the neighbor I must love?” but rather “who is the neighbor that
needs my love?”
And the second
question is, “how can I, by loving the neighbor in need, bear witness to the
love of God that is ours in Christ Jesus?”
Amen
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