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Misunderstanding the Good Samaritan Story

If I asked you whether the parable of the good Samaritan is about Jesus teaching us to love our neighbor, you'd probably say yes. And I can guess a few of you would think, yeah, Jesus is teaching about loving my neighbor in this story.

What if I told you that's not true? That that is not the primary intended takeaway from this story. This is not all about love your neighbor. It really isn't.

It is actually first and foremost about something else. Yeah, sure the principle is there about putting compassion into action. There's no question that that's alive in the story. But the primary reason Jesus told it and the way that he told it and the word pictures and examples he used—well, it means a great deal more than just being compassionate to your neighbor, your fellow made-in-the-image-of-God person.

So what's the something else? Let me just tell you upfront:

If you want to justify yourself, the bar is so high you can't reach it.

The Text: Luke 10:25-37

Let's look at our text today. Luke chapter 10, verse 25:

"And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, 'Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?' He said to him, 'What is written in the law? How do you read it?' And he answered, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, 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 he desiring to justify himself said to Jesus, 'And who is my neighbor?'

Jesus replied, 'A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance, a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring oil and wine. And he set him on his own animal, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And the next day he took out two dinari and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, "Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I'll repay you when I come back." Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?' He said, 'The one who showed him mercy.' And Jesus said to him, 'You go and do likewise.'"

The Familiar Story

We have a story in front of us today that is very familiar to Christians and non-Christians alike. Everyone knows what it means when you call someone a good Samaritan. That's a compliment. The phrase good Samaritan, no doubt over the years, is viewed as virtuous. Our Christian walk with God is honored by that type of kindness.

But that being said, the story of the good Samaritan is used in modern Christianity less for its actual intended purpose than it is for the platitudes of wanting to show kindness, mercy, compassion, and care for someone made in the image of God that is in need. And that's okay as far as it goes.

But I want to show you something deeper today.

See, many people are familiar with the story, but not so familiar with the point of the story. And to some degrees we expect that. Why? Because the truth of our Lord's teaching in storytelling—in parables—is hidden by Jesus himself. He tells us this is the way it is.

Seeing with Eyes to See

Go a little further back into chapter 10 and look at verse 21. Now, you got to keep in mind Jesus before this had fed the multitudes and there had been people pushing up against him to touch his robe. All this was going on. So he's around a lot of people and every time he would start to teach, people would quiet down and listen to him. He was the up-and-coming rabbi that was alienating the religious sect and drawing a lot of sinners to himself.

And so in that gathering in verse 21, many of whom are his followers, many of whom are not, it says:

"In that same hour, he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, 'I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.'"

Then jump just a little bit ahead to verse 23 and 24:

"Then turning to his disciples, he said privately, 'Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see and did not see it, to hear what you hear and did not hear it.'"

That's why the title of the message is what it is today. Seeing with eyes to see. That's the point that we're going to get to today.

Did you get all that? But notice something. For us believers, all the Lord's storytelling, his parables should be clearly understood. We have ears to hear and eyes to see. But we also have to deal with English translations and cultural differences and whatnot. So we do need a little help along the way.

But first, Jesus shows us that his direct connection with us—with him as our Lord and Savior—is he will reveal truth to us all the while it's being hidden from folks that reject him. The parable, then—the storytelling—will be misunderstood by non-believers. That's a common understanding for us to look at.

What will happen is that the story will be taken in the most basic kind of smoothed-out way to be an example for goodwill and concern, kindness to your neighbor. But there's quite a lot more to the story here.

So during this open discussion, many folks milling around, Jesus turns privately just to his guys and tells them that they're going to get stuff others won't. Then the lawyer stands up. Notice he stands up, gets everyone's attention. That is kind of key because when this is all said and done, Jesus is going to put down hard this lawyer's attempt at self-justification.

That's the point of the story. It is after this lawyer trying to put Jesus on the spot that Jesus launches into the storytelling.

So today, let's just take the story bit by bit and see what is actually going down here. Fair enough?

Point Number One: The Lawyer's Arrogance

Let's start with point number one. Let's look at the lawyer's arrogance. This lawyer had both academic arrogance and religious arrogance. And I want you to notice that the good lawyer has memorized the law of God.

Jesus is actually offering the lawyer eternal life if he can indeed keep this commandment. Have you ever thought about that? See, this isn't about a way to loving your neighbor. Jesus is trying to get everyone listening to see how outrageous it is to think you have done enough. Jesus wants you to see your shortcomings and then maybe seek an alternative to salvation apart from your own effort, apart from your own good deeds—which always falls flat.

See, that's what the law of God does. If examined correctly, the law of God exposes our sin and our incredible need from above and beyond our own accomplishments.

I mean, just look back at the reformers, right? There are two main reformers who have influenced our modern-day walk with Christ more than any other, and that was Luther and Calvin. Interesting to note how both Martin Luther and John Calvin were diligent students of the law of God. Why is that important? Because as they studied the law of God, they were driven to the gospel. Why? Because the law left them in despair.

So now Jesus is talking to a lawyer with whom the exact opposite is true. This dude is claiming he does everything in the law. Jesus says, "Okay, you're so special that you can keep it? Then you're good to go. You have nothing to worry about."

Then we see the lawyer guy isn't done. He wants to inquire a little deeper. He wants to double down and make sure that he's the smartest guy in the room sort of deal. Do you see it?

Many times in theology, as questions fly and we run up against some hard truth and we may get our toes stepped on, one of the standard responses is, "Well, what do you mean by that?" Basically saying, "I hope you don't mean what I think you mean"—looking for loopholes to the issue that is right in front of the person. And I think this lawyer guy was looking for loopholes as he is quick to ask Jesus, "Okay, Jesus, well, who exactly is my neighbor?"

Basically saying, I get loving God with all my strength, all that, but what exactly does that mean to love my neighbor as myself?

Notice in the text here, it says something really key: desiring to justify himself.

Then Jesus launches into a pretty simple story. It's easy to understand. We even get the punchline. Who is the neighbor? The man who helped the one who was attacked.

So guess what? Going back to when Jesus says only his peeps with eyes to see will get this and get the stories at the deepest meaning—throughout church history, we have seen the story being misused by church people trying to get deep, find hidden meanings many times that weren't there.

The Problem of Misinterpretation

Let me give you an example of this. You ever heard of a guy named Origen? Origen lived from 185 AD to 253 AD. He had a wild career of writing theologically related things and some of what he wrote was actually profound and helpful. But he is remembered for getting way off base and a big portion of his writings were condemned in the second council of Constantinople in AD 533.

But I digress. This is what his interpretation of the story of the good Samaritan was. Now listen now and I want you to see what academic arrogance looks like. Okay? He said this regarding the good Samaritan story:

• The man is Adam
• Jerusalem is paradise
• Jericho is the world
• The robbers are hostile powers or demonic forces
• The priest is the law
• The Levite is the prophets
• The Samaritan is Christ
• The wounds are disobedience
• The animal is the Lord's body
• The inn is the church
• The Samaritan's return is the second coming

Let me put this as nicely and non-abrasively as I can. And everybody's like, "What's he going to do?"

That is strange and odd at best and has nothing to do with the point.

Let's not miss the Lord's intention regarding eyes to see there. There's nothing in all of scripture that is some kind of hidden meaning that must be mystically uncovered that would need some transcendence in order to discern what is being said. In fact, once I personally crossed over from intimidation to confidence, the Bible is the most profoundly simple book. It is so straightforward in all areas of needed understanding.

I mean, even Paul said there were some things that are mysteries of God. Of course, that's true in some areas. But what is so amazing is how we can see things for years before we actually see them.

Modern Misuses

Just look at how many modern interpreters have missed the point of the good Samaritan as well. Seems like anytime you get into discussions with people who talk about poverty or fairness or socialism or taxing the wealthy to provide for the poor or social justice warriors out there, you will find somewhere in their crescendo of argument the story of the good Samaritan—that somebody cared for people, relinquishing their possessions for the sake of someone else, and a stranger no less.

For example, there is an organization that calls themselves Christian in nature. That's debatable, but they're a global progressive ministry. And this is what they say: "47 million in our country are on food stamps and benefits are decreasing. We need to reflect on the story from Jesus of the Good Samaritan."

So according to this group, Jesus's story of the good Samaritan is about helping people that have less than we do.

Another one of the social justice advocates put it this way: "Getting to know people on the other side of the road so as to tear down the walls between us is essential."

Another progressive pastor—whom I would call a blind guide—said this: "The Good Samaritan is a problem. It seems to promote short-term aid without addressing long-term justice. For example, what were the social conditions that led to the bandits abusing the wounded man? And was it a predictable outcome of a deeper societal illness?" Then he added this: "Was the good Samaritan later inspired to engage this dilemma through advocacy?"

Excuse me.

I mean, I believe in compassion and care and I believe in meeting the needs of poor people, but that has absolutely nothing to do with this story.

But again, don't be surprised. It's going to be misunderstood because Jesus said these things are only available to those who have eyes to see.

The Real Point

Most of us don't go down the roads of social justice like that. We would say, "Sure, it's about helping people and you know, people are suffering. We want to help them. It's about being kind." And certainly God requires us to be kind. God does establish that in his word to be sacrificially kind.

But remind yourself of this: All parables from Jesus are one thing. They're all salvation stories.

This is a salvation story. In fact, this is Jesus discussing personal salvation. Many times that's called personal evangelism. Jesus is doing personal evangelism on a particular man standing in front of him.

All stories, all parables—there are about 40 or so of them in the Bible—all of them are about salvation in one form or another. And they are profound as they are theological and they are doctrinal and they are really presentations of truth that is hidden from those who have no ears to hear, no eyes to see, but it's revealed to those to whom it's been explained. And Jesus in the text of the New Testament, he explains many of them.

For those that aren't explained specifically, when you begin to hear the explanations of some, you now have enough information to explain the ones that he doesn't specifically explain. Right? So by the time you get through the whole of scripture, through the whole of the New Testament, we know enough truth about salvation to interpret them for ourselves.

But make no mistake—these are salvation stories.

Point Number Two: Obtaining Salvation

So let's get to point number two. Point number two is obtaining salvation. What are we actually looking at here?

This is a scene about obtaining salvation. It is absolutely 100% in harmony with the dialogue of Jesus and Nicodemus in John chapter 3. It's parable—its parable is exactly parallel to the dialogue that Jesus had with the rich young ruler in Mark chapter 10. They are all situations where Jesus is discussing obtaining salvation and how if you want to do it on your own, you're in for a steep climb and it can't be done.

I want to show you Mark chapter 10. I want you to listen to the question here and compare it to the lawyer. All right. Mark 10:17-22:

"And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, 'Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?' And Jesus said to him, 'Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.'" (It's kind of like a sidebar. Yeah, you're talking to God right now.) "You know the commandments: Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.' And he said to him, 'Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.' And Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, 'You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.' Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions."

Do you see it? The man wasn't broken. As we see in verse 22, the man still thought he had it all together and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Jesus is setting the bar of our own efforts to obtain our own salvation to be unattainable. He is not suggesting to the rich young ruler to actually sell his possessions to obtain eternal life. He was showing him that if he wanted to justify himself, the cost would be so high no one would do it.

Now, keep that in mind as we look at the good Samaritan story setting a little more closely.

The Lawyer Stands Up

So the lawyer dude stands up just like they always did. The Pharisees, the scribes, the priests—he stood up. He's putting Jesus to the test, hoping Jesus will fail. And he asks him the same question the rich young ruler asked him: What is the path to a right relationship to God that's going to guarantee that I'm going to live forever in the presence of God?

That's a very important question. That is the most important question that any person can ever ask. That's the right question. And that is the right question this guy is actually asking to the very right person. He's asking it to the person who is eternal life himself. He's the very lifegiver.

But he didn't ask for any legitimate intention. He asked to put Jesus in some sort of bad light that maybe Jesus would answer, stumble, maybe even commit a religious crime.

So he says, "What do I do to inherit eternal life?"

Now, please notice today the path Jesus takes with him. He said to him, "What's written in the law? How do you read it? What does it say?" Jesus is telling us, "Go back to the word of God. Look, you have the Old Testament. What does it say?"

Well, this lawyer is a sharp scholar. He combines two scriptures, one from Deuteronomy chapter 6 and the other from Leviticus 19. Two very familiar scriptures. They are two scriptures that sum up the entire law of God.

Jesus in Matthew chapter 22, Jesus said, "There are two things that sum up the law of God. All the law is summed up in these two things." Let me show it to you. It's in verses 36-40:

"'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?' And he said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.'"

See, first half of the ten commandments deal with loving God. The second half of the ten commandments deal with loving others. That is the summary of that, right? All the rest of the law has to do with your relationships to God and with other people. So it gathers up the whole law.

And what does the Old Testament require? What does it actually require of us? Perfect love to God. Perfect love to men. Loving God with all your heart, soul, strength, mind—all faculties, all capabilities. Loving your neighbor in the same way that you love yourself.

He said that's the right answer in verse 28: "You have answered correctly. Do this, and you will live."

So go do it. If you want eternal life, go fulfill the law. Do this and live. Good luck.

Why Not Just Give the Gospel?

Now you say, "Wait, wait a second. Hold on. Why is he telling them that? Where is the gospel here? Why doesn't he say, 'Believe in me. Believe in me and be born again,' or the like? Why doesn't Jesus go down that path?"

Because there's another issue to be confronted here. And that is how the man views himself. There is no good news unless the man accepts the bad news. That's always the way it is in evangelism. That's why we don't debate. We proclaim. Let the spirit break through and do the convicting.

Look, this guy doesn't have any interest in a true evaluation of his condition. Verse 29 makes it clear: "But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, 'And who is my neighbor?'"

Can you just feel the smugness? Open window. Let some smugness out. I mean, he is so self-righteous, so self-justifying that he doesn't even think about how he loves God or how he loves men. All he thinks about is that maybe you've got a different definition of what a neighbor is than what I do. "The only thing I need to work on is maybe you know, you've got this weird spin on a neighbor and I can then therefore reject your opinion."

The guy is oblivious to his true condition. He is hostile to the notion that he is not righteous, that he is not justified, that he does not have eternal life, that he is not right with God. But in his own mind, he loves God and he's doing okay.

Who Counts as a Neighbor?

Look, we know from Matthew chapter 5 when Jesus said, "The rabbis have taught you, love your neighbor and hate your enemy." That's what the rabbis taught. "But I say to you, love your enemy."

So enemies weren't included as neighbors. They did not love their enemies. They did not love strangers. Furthermore, they didn't even love other Jews. All they loved were the people that were part of their very narrow elite group. They loved other scribes. They loved other Pharisees.

And now, how in the world would they justify that? Well, one way which I've learned is that they would just dig in on Psalm 139:21-22. This was a virtue to them. Let's look at it. Psalm 139:21-22:

"Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you? I hate them with complete hatred; I count them my enemies."

So they had turned hatred of the enemies of God into a virtue in which they justified themselves for rejecting people in their own world, in their own society. They were so self-righteous that they had justified hating other people—enemies, strangers, other Jews who weren't part of their elite religious core. They had declassified them as neighbors.

So that's why the condescending statement: "Well, who is my neighbor?" You're going to have to show me a different definition of neighbor, which means he thinks he has passed the test of loving God perfectly, loving who he believed were his neighbors. "I'm okay with God. I'm okay with people. I'm fine." Justifying himself.

And then he says in that mocking tone, "Maybe you better tell me who my neighbor is."

This is a lost dude. This is a doomed guy. This is just another one of the many religious people that feel they have it all together because of their virtue, their morality, their elevated status.

The Purpose of the Story

So then the purpose of this story is to crush this guy's self-righteousness. It's really a wake-up call. The story is to shatter his pride, to shatter his imaginary spiritual superiority. And Jesus drops the hammer on this guy. It's unforgettable.

How does he do that with the story?

Point Number Three: The Explosive Story Details

"A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among robbers. They stripped him and beat him and went away leaving him half dead."

See, Jesus is making up a story. Jesus made up a simple story. Okay?

Now, understand the road Jesus is talking about. Everyone would know this road. They would know the true nature and the danger of this road. Jerusalem is 3,000 feet above sea level. Jericho is a thousand feet below sea level. It is known as the lowest place on earth. You've got a long down road. Now, it's only 17 miles, so you're going down fairly radically. It's a severe, winding road in ancient times, and it's still a very winding road to this day. It's a road that scares people when they go on bus tours, especially if they're driving at night, because the edges go way down these huge deep canyons.

And I first made my first trip to Israel in 2012. And in 2023, the road had greatly improved, but it was still wild. Familiar with dramatic drops and rocks providing ideal hideouts for bandits. It's a scary place and very familiar to everyone in that culture.

Now, it's familiar to me because it is this road—going backwards from Jericho to East Jerusalem—that I took my taxi ride in June of 2023 when I was having my fake heart attack. And my taxi driver, Machmood, was getting after it through these windy roads all uphill. It took a little of the edge off going uphill, but just a little. And this dude was up on the wheel, let me tell you.

And a quick sidebar for clarity for those of you who don't know: I was on some fairly expensive medication to help with many of my issues and I stopped taking it cold at the end of May in 2023. So what I had was a complete muscle lockdown of my left side, which turns out is an actual side effect if you just stop the treatment cold. That would have been good to know in advance. So I was sure, as was Deb Pennington, as was Gary, that I was having a grabber. So off to a Palestinian hospital in East Jerusalem we go. You haven't lived till it's totally possible that that's the day you're meeting Jesus face to face in a Jerusalem Arab hospital with your wife back in the States. It's quite the day. Five hours later, I was released.

Anywho, let's get on to the story details.

The Man in Need

The story Jesus tells us is about a real road and the man was jumped by some thieves. They didn't just rob him. They stripped him, beat him, and left him half dead. Now he's in a desperate situation. He needs help and he can't help himself. And this would create the drama because one could say, "Well, maybe no one is going to come by. Maybe when someone does, it'll be too late. What's going to happen?"

So Jesus immediately says by chance in verse 31: "A priest was going down on that road and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side."

Well, at first, doesn't that sound good? Lawyer, here's a priest is coming by. Maybe he had a little bit of hope. Maybe the others who had been listening to Jesus's own followers thought, "Well, this might actually turn out good." After all, the priest was somebody who, like the lawyer, knew the Old Testament, knew you were to show kindness, knew you were to minister to strangers.

I mean, Proverbs talks about showing mercy. Leviticus 19, the same chapter says, "Love your neighbor," says, "Love the stranger as yourself." Psalm 37:21: "The righteous is generous and gives."

He knew those passages, right? I mean theoretically you would say that what a priest would do—he would do it because the priest would know what to do, right? So here comes the priest and this should provide a little hope in the story as the lawyer listens, right?

But the priest passes on the other side, completely on the other side. The complete ignoring of this man, complete indifference. He shuns him and he's lying there in critical condition. So the priest has zero love, right? Zero love for the man, zero love for God, right? Because if he loves God, he might do something.

Commentators Miss the Point

Now, at this juncture in the story, it's really kind of interesting to see what kind of commentators talk about the priest. Some of them have said, "Well, he didn't go across the road because he didn't want to touch the corpse and become unclean and he'd be defiled and he had to go back to the temple later." Some say he didn't go over there because he thought the robbers might be lurking around there and they might get to him. Another said, "Well, maybe he didn't go over there because the guy was beat up because he was actually sinful and this is God's judgment on his sins."

Guess what? The priest didn't have any thoughts like that. Why? Because he didn't exist. This is a story.

Remember, the point is simple: You would expect a priest who represents God and represents the people to God to love God enough to do a little something. That's the point. He didn't love God.

And then Jesus said, "A Levite came also," in verse 32. "And when he came to the place and saw him passed by on the other side."

Levite from the tribe of Levi. Levites assisted in the temple. They weren't from the family of Aaron. They were actually the descendants of Jacob. So this is a religious man. This is a man connected to the priesthood, connected to religion at its most intimate point. We would expect him to come over and help, but he doesn't love God either, nor does he love people. So he doesn't love God or his neighbor.

So now we've just met a couple of people who don't have eternal life because they don't love their God and they don't love their neighbor.

Will anyone do what's right? Will anyone show this guy love?

The Shocking Twist

Then verse 33 happens and this is the "what did I just hear" moment. This is shock.

"But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion."

Our Lord has just indicted the Jewish religious establishment in the story. And now he introduces a hated person. A Samaritan who was on a journey came upon him. And when he saw him he felt compassion.

This is outrageous to the audience Jesus is speaking to. The very existence of Samaritans was seen as evil. I don't think we as Americans have any idea how hated the Samaritans were. Thinking about it this week, the only thing I could come up with was maybe our parents and grandparents and great-grandparents, depending on how old you are, how they might have felt a few days after Pearl Harbor about Japan.

Maybe to the Jews of the day, Samaritans were a blight on the world. They were evil all the way back to the sins of Jeroboam. They were evil in their sight because they tried to disrupt the rebuilding of the Jewish city and the temple when they came back from the captivity. See, during the rebuilding, Samaritans would harass them by throwing dead pigs into the construction area, and that would contaminate and defile the holy ground. And then the Jews would have to go through a couple weeks of re-sanctifying the site. So the project was put on hold over and over and over again.

The Samaritans were easily the most despised by the Jewish nation of the time. It wasn't even close. There wasn't a close second. Very bad blood between them.

We are told elsewhere that Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans. In fact, it's in our New Testament that Jesus stunned people when he traveled from Judea to Galilee going through Samaria instead of the roundabout way Jews normally did.

In fact, if you wanted to say something bad about someone, you actually would call them a Samaritan. How do we know that? It's in our Bible. It's in John 8:48. Let me show it to you:

"The Jews said to Jesus, 'Do we not say rightly that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?'"

The worst that you could possibly come up with would be to call somebody a demon-possessed Samaritan.

Stunning, then, what Jesus is saying in this story. Their worst near enemy. Despised, outcast, no access to the temple, no access to worship, no access to sacrifice, no access to the living God. And he's the one who does the right thing.

Outrageous.

And Jesus says when he saw him, he felt compassion.

The Real Point

What's the point? Two men representing the Jewish establishment. They thought they loved God and loved others as themselves, but they absolutely had no love. The system was bankrupt. These people are trying to justify themselves and they are deceived.

Two men were religious and failed to meet the requirement for eternal life. They didn't love their neighbor. They didn't love strangers. They didn't even love their enemies. They didn't love anybody but themselves in their little group.

But this one man who is an outcast. This invention of Jesus demonstrates at least for that moment the quality of loving your neighbor as yourself.

The Samaritan's Extreme Actions

Now the Samaritan takes center stage of the story. And this is just really shocking to the one listening because what the Samaritan does is so extensive.

He came to him, verse 34, bandaged up his wounds, and the implication is he would have had to shred some of his own clothes to wrap the man's wounds to stop the bleeding of this guy. Then he took out the oil and wine. Everybody traveled with oil and wine to prepare their food back then and poured on him.

Now, the word for "poured" there is a very rich word. It has to do with a kind of lavish pouring. He just pours out oil and wine—soothing as well as an antiseptic for the time.

Then he puts him on his own animal. The guy can't walk. So he picks him up and puts him on his own animal. The term here for animal means like a beast of burden. Very, very likely a donkey or a camel or similar, right? He lifts him up and placed him on an animal and brought him to an inn.

The man not only took him to the inn, but he stayed with him. He stays at his side all night doing whatever he needed done. Providing food for the man, providing comfort, water, cleansing all night.

You say, "Well, how do you know that he spent all night?"

Because the very next verse, verse 35, Jesus says, "On the next day." See, this is really amazing care for a stranger who is also your enemy. An all-night vigil.

Then the next day he takes out two dinari. Just to let you know how much you had to pay for an inn—not long after this time, about this time frame, there was an archaeological dig and they found a sign board. And the sign board was from an inn in the Roman empire. And it said the nightly cost was 1/32nd of a denarius. 1/32nd of a denarius would mean that the man with two denarii could do the math—he could stay for two months. Two months.

Again, what is the point? The point is that this is extreme. This is way beyond normal or even remotely expected behavior.

So let's review: You go over on that side of the road. You check him out. You tear your own clothes. You bind up his wounds. You pour oil and wine as an antiseptic to soothe him. You put him on your own animal. You take him to the inn. You provide for him to stay for two months in the inn and you stay overnight with him.

And if that's not enough, what do you do next? You say to the innkeeper, "Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, when I return, I will repay you."

Now, what do you have there? Come on. What is in that statement said to a rough inn on the rough road to Jericho? "Whatever you spend, when I return, I will repay you." Of course, you're giving permission and a recipe for corruption and fraud. You're telling an innkeeper, "Whatever you want to spend on this guy, spend on this guy, and I'll pay you when I come back."

This is elaborate love. That's the whole point of this. This is beyond normal and is extreme to say the least when put in context. Amazing generosity to a complete stranger, to one who is the enemy, who is hated by him.

Not About Social Justice

Yet people down through the ages have thought that by giving money to poor people or they have enacted social justice they are fulfilling the principle found here. This is not reality. This is not biblical reality. Folks should look at it again because it would actually condemn them by it. If you think sending some money somewhere, if you think buying a few meals for somebody is what this is, you missed the whole point.

Now, please don't throw the baby out here. That's not wrong to do. It's awesome to do. Yes, please keep being generous. Please help and give and keep churning that way, but don't put yourself into this parable. Make sense?

Like the rich young ruler in Mark 10, the point isn't to go and sell all that you have. The point is you can't save yourself and you need the grace and forgiveness of the Father.

The Question Gets Flipped

So then Jesus asks a question in verse 36: "Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?"

Do you see it? The Lord just changed the question. The question in verse 29: "Who is my neighbor?" You're going to define neighbor for me now. You're going to mess with this neighbor idea. I'm definitely fine loving God perfectly just the way I am, doing fine by my own definition.

And in verse 36, this isn't about who your neighbor is. This is about are you a neighbor? It's not who is my neighbor, who qualifies to be loved. It's about am I a neighbor who loves in an unqualified way, deeply. The point comes to the heart. Forget trying to decide who qualifies for you to love them and demonstrate love that knows no qualifications.

Well, the man answered the question: "The one who proved to be the neighbor was the one who showed mercy to him."

And then Jesus finishes him off: "Go do the same."

You go love like that and you can have eternal life.

What Should Have Been the Response?

Now what should have been the response of the lawyer? What do you think should have been his response? How about some honesty? How about "I've never loved anybody like that. I've only loved me like that. I've never loved anybody like that. Let alone everybody like that."

We all have to say if we're honest: I don't love like that. I can't love like that. I can't love God with all my heart, my soul, my mind, and strength all the time. And I certainly don't love everybody around me that is in need the way I love myself.

If he had said, "I can't—forgive me," it could have turned out like Luke 18, right? Where the dude falls down and grabs his chest and says, "Lord, be merciful to me, a sinner."

When you read the story of the good Samaritan in context, the number one takeaway for us is: I can't love like that.

We need forgiveness. We need mercy. We need the grace that can only come from Jesus.

It's too simple to say this story is about going to the other side of the road and hugging somebody who's less fortunate. This is about salvation.

You want eternal life? You know what God requires? Let me remind you of the score:

God requires perfection. Loving him perfectly and loving others as you love yourself. You don't do that. You can't do that. You need mercy. You need forgiveness and you need grace as do I.

That's why Paul in Romans chapter 7 says, "When I saw the law, it killed me. It blew me away." That's what the law does. Let me show it to you as we bring it home today. Romans 7:9-10. Paul's talking. He said:

"I was once alive apart from the law. I was doing pretty good and then the law came along. But when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me."

And there was this lawyer standing in front of the one person in the world who could forgive him. And he never asked. Never asked. As far as we know.

Do you see how pathetic that is in the proper light? Righteousness is the issue before a holy God. There was Jesus, the personification of heavenly mercy and forgiveness, ready to give it to the lawyer if the man would simply admit his lost condition.

And that hasn't changed for 2,000 years. That's the message. He's ready to give it to us as well. That's the message to you and I. We need to come to him for mercy and grace.

What Happens When You're Saved

Then when you're saved, you know what's amazing? Jesus grows his love in your heart and you begin to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Perfectly? No, not perfectly. But that becomes the direction of your affection. And you begin to love other people as you love yourself. Perfectly? No. But that becomes the direction.

The story is not to make people feel guilty about not giving their money to poor people. It's not to make people feel guilty about not taking care of those that are suffering. The story is designed to make people feel guilty for not loving God perfectly and loving others perfectly.

And then what?

Then causing us to run—to sprint—to the one who alone can provide forgiveness for that sin and give eternal life.

And his name is Jesus the Christ, the son of the living God.