Luke 10:25-37

And a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” And He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?” 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.” And He said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.” But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise, a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him. On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’ Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.”^[1]

“Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” A lawyer seeking to test Jesus, and thereby catch Him in error, asks this question. It was answered in such a way as to, in his mind, be left open to interpretation. Perhaps realizing that his subterfuge had been discovered the lawyer now tries to save face by asking a second question, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus promptly answers by telling the story of the Good Samaritan. Without focusing on the Good Samaritan, let us take a look at the lawyer and what he hoped to do with his second question because we are not so very different from him today.

He comes to Jesus, hoping to trip Him up and catch Him in theological error, but has the tables turned on him when Jesus tells him to love God with everything he has, and his neighbor as himself. This is where the trouble begins. Most believers would assert that they have no difficulty loving God with their entire being, but when it comes to loving their neighbor as themselves the story changes. One can almost see the countenance of the lawyer change as he realizes that he has just painted himself into a corner and the only way out is to define who his neighbor is. But we don’t get to create that definition. Our neighbor is that one with whom we would rather not be associated. It is that one that grates against our sensibilities, the who gets on our last nerve, the one we freely and falsely stereotype. But that is the one, those are the ones, to whom we are to show mercy. It is admittedly a tough pill to swallow, but Jesus’ Word to the lawyer is still His Word to us today, “Go and do the same!”

Dear Lord, forgive us for narrowing the circle of those to whom we can show mercy to only those who look, act, speak or live as we do. Forgive us for our refusal to do good to those who need our help just because they are different. Help us to change our attitudes so that we might show mercy to those who need it even as we have been shown mercy. Amen.

^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Lk 10:25–37.