Luke 10:25-37 Commentary

The story of the Good Samaritan is so ubiquitous that most of the world, Christian or not, knows it: we’ve used the title to describe people who put themselves in harm’s way or help out strangers in need. So how do we preach a text that is so familiar and is already being used in positive ways? That is to say, the way most people talk of being a Good Samaritan is not a bad thing, but it is not the whole call that Jesus is giving here.

A lawyer tests Jesus about the law and how God would have us live. This lawyer knows the answer and gives it, citing the shema and the call to love neighbour that had rightfully come to summarize all of God’s laws for the people of Israel. Jesus says it’s simply a matter of living with compassion, which is an act of righteousness: “Do this, and you will live.”

But like most of us, the lawyer wants to know the extent. How far does compassion have to reach? Who is he beholden to as a neighbour? He wants to vindicate whatever lines he’s drawn in his own mind on these matters.

And Jesus tells a story that turns it all upside-down. Instead of defining who our neighbour is based on who we want to be able to help, we ought to define it based on who we would want to be helped by in our greatest time of need. Spoiler alert, for any sane person, that’s anybody.

The victim in Jesus’s story is from Jerusalem: he is just like the lawyer. Also just like the lawyer are the first two fellow Jewish people who come upon the victim and have reasoned out why helping shouldn’t be their job. I explored this the last time we were here with the lectionary and invite you to read that commentary for more detail. Needless to say, these two characters appear to have also “justified” themselves in their decision to pass by the man in need.

But then comes the one who is compassionate, the one who has pity, the one who could have come up with reasons not to help—maybe even thought about them—but helped anyway. The Samaritan man bandages the victim’s wounds, uses oil and wine to ease the pain and disinfect, then brings the man to an inn where he can recuperate. The Samaritan man ensures that what this beat-up man needs is provided for, promising to come back and pay the bill. We have no reason to doubt that this compassionate man will not keep his word.

“Who was a neighbour?” Jesus asks. The lawyer cannot even summon up the courage to say “Samaritan,” but he does tell the truth: the neighbour is the one who showed mercy. Having put himself in the shoes of the one in need, the lawyer must reckon with the fact that the people who he would have expected to be neighbourly were not, and the one he did not want to have as neighbour was the righteous one. (See textual point below for more on this verb.)

The only parameter Jesus gives for who is our neighbour is need. Who needs a neighbour? Who needs someone to be compassionate towards them? Who needs help? Who needs healing? Who needs support—both short-term and sustained? Jesus sees us all not just as his neighbour, but as his family. May his compassion lead the way!

But in a world full of need, how does one begin? How do we avoid the trap of justification for our inaction? What is possible? This answer will be different in each of our contexts, but that shouldn’t stop us from thinking together about it as the church. We have opportunities to partner locally and globally. We have power as citizens of free countries to petition our governments about how our resources are used. We have our own attitudes and views about who is our neighbour to unlearn and relearn. This is a calling we will spend our whole lives trying to sort out. But may Christlike compassion, rather than self-justification, be our guide.

Textual Point

There are two pairings of note in this passage.

First, there are two perfect tense verbs in this passage. The first is when Jesus asks the lawyer, “What is written in the law?” The second is when Jesus asks, “Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” The law has lasting calling and consequences is matched the lasting impact of our obedience.

Second, the command to “do” is given twice; and again, both times it comes from Jesus. First, Jesus tells the lawyer he has summed up the law of God well and that what he needs to do now is do it (v 28). Then, at the end of our scene, after the lawyer has admitted that the Samaritan is the one who has fulfilled the law, Jesus tells him to “Go and do likewise.”

Illustration Idea

As our scope of awareness has grown in real-time via the internet, the global scale of our action has become all the more forefront. Often, large aid organizations like Compassion International, World Renew, World Relief, International Justice Mission— which exist because in the Kingdom of God everyone is our neighbour– can help us effectively carry out Jesus Christ’s command. They are joined in this work by governments that provide aid to other nations, giving Christians another avenue to support this important work through advocacy and tax dollars. Canadian Foodgrains Bank, the Red Cross, International Rescue Committee and Doctors without Borders, and other groups who use their resources and skills to serve people around the world help us to treat and love our neighbours as we would want our own selves and loved ones to be treated in similar circumstances. Plus, as Jesus’s story makes so clear, it is the righteous thing to do.