By Scott Bush, D.Min.
Executive Director, Ministry Training Institute, Samford University
SHOWING LOVE
Luke 10:25–37
Your childhood afternoons may have included a ride on a magical trolley to the Neighborhood of Make-Believe as you visited “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.”
The program ran on public television from 1968 to 2001, and nearly every episode opened with a musical invitation from the host: “Please, won’t you be my neighbor?” Neighborliness may seem like a quaint idea sometimes, but it does speak to something deep in us, and Jesus links it to nothing less than eternal life.
Loving others starts with loving God. (25–28)
An expert in Jewish law once asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus responded by asking this “lawyer” what the law says. Love God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind (Deut. 6:5), and love your neighbor as yourself (Lev. 19:18), the lawyer replied.
“Do this,” said Jesus, “and you will live.” Jesus’ response is provocative, if not terrifying. Could any reasonable, honest person claim to love God perfectly, to say nothing of always loving others unselfishly?
The Apostle Paul tells us that before we were reconciled in Christ we were enemies of God (Rom. 5:10). But God loved us when we were unlovable and unloving.
By grace and through faith, we are made alive in Christ (Eph. 2:5), able to love God and those who bear His image. (That’s everyone!) John says that we love because God first loved us (1 John 4:19). So love for God both precedes and enables genuine love for others.
Loving others looks beyond any biases. (29–32)
The lawyer seems confident in his love for God — which raises many questions — but he seeks to justify himself where his neighbor is concerned.
Our devotion to God may be debatable, but our treatment of others is all too evident. Knowing this, the lawyer seeks to limit his responsibility by asking, “Who is my neighbor?” This prompts Jesus’ famous parable.
The victim in the story is attacked by robbers who leave him naked and beaten nearly to death. A priest and then a Levite, who are religious professionals, pass by without showing mercy — perhaps for fear of being robbed also.
Finally, a third traveler, a Samaritan, stops to render aid. Jesus’ hearers would’ve been scandalized by this. Jews hated Samaritans for ethnic and religious reasons. How could a Samaritan be the hero of this story?
It’s hard to imagine courage and compassion in the people we hold in contempt. God’s grace in our lives can take away our bias and prejudice (2 Cor. 5:16). In humility, we see ourselves as we are and others as fellow image bearers, worthy of respect and love.
Loving others is not always easy or convenient. (33–37)
The Samaritan risks his own life to help the fallen man and then spends his own money to care for him. The Greek word for his response describes a deep, visceral compassion, not shallow or self-serving but from the heart.
It’s hard not to see what Jesus has done for us in this story. He rescues us (2 Pet. 2:9), heals our wounds (1 Pet. 2:24), clothes us in His righteousness (Isa. 61:10) and gives us a home and a future (Heb. 12:28).
“Which … proved to be a neighbor?” Jesus asked. “The one who showed mercy,” the lawyer replied, unable to even utter the word “Samaritan.” “Go and do the same,” Jesus commands. By His grace we can.
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