Parable of the Good Samaritan, Part 5
This Week's Bible Reading: Luke 10:25-37 (focus on verse 37)
Supporting Passage: John 13:31-38; Philippians 2:1-11
As a Christian, I am sometimes tempted to view life through a "God and me" lens.
It's just God and me over here doing our thing, so I don't need to worry about what's going on in the world. Put me on a secluded island with a Bible and some firewood, and I'll be content!
But as I've studied the Good Samaritan parable, I've learned that the commands to love God and love neighbor are linked together. My vertical relationship (with God) is tied to my horizontal relationships (with others). Believe me, there are days when I wish I could untangle them! But in God's Kingdom, we express our love for God through our love for others.
This is a truly beautiful thing when I ponder it. But it is also hard to do. We are messy, broken humans dealing with other messy, broken humans. If loving our neighbors as ourselves is vital to living out God's Kingdom, is there any hope for us?
No. Not if we try to love others in our own strength.
But with Jesus, there is always hope!
A few weeks ago, I mentioned that some people interpret the Good Samaritan parable as solely an illustration of how Jesus saved us. We are the injured man beaten down by the thieves (who, in this case, represent the devil). Jesus is the Good Samaritan who saved us when we couldn't save ourselves.
If we only view the parable this way, I believe we miss Jesus' main point in telling it. We need to remember the context Luke placed it in: Jesus told this story because a lawyer wanted to know who his neighbor was. And once the lawyer understood that mercy matters more than labels, Jesus gave him this parting command:
Then Jesus said, "Yes, now go and do the same." (Luke 10:37, NLT)
Jesus wanted this parable to move the lawyer—and everyone else who hears it—into action. The lesson is to "go and do the same" to everyone we meet, even those we find hard to love.
But once we understand this truth, there is no reason why we can't also see Jesus as the ultimate Good Samaritan.
These two interpretations are not at odds with each other. Far from it. They depend on each other! If the call is to love others, then we need the love of Jesus to help us do it. We can only love because he loved us first.
Jesus is the one who saw we were in trouble and helpless to save ourselves.
Jesus is the one who chose to enter into our mess and become a servant so that he could relate to us.
And as he walked this earth, Jesus was the one who taught us what love looks like. He had compassion for everyone, including those forgotten and overlooked by others.
On the night before Jesus performed the ultimate act of love—dying a death he did not deserve so we could be set free—he washed his disciples' messy, stinky feet. And after he did so, he said these words:
So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. (John 13:34, NLT)
As we've discussed, God always desired for his people to love others. So why does Jesus call this a "new" commandment?
Because Jesus knew we would have trouble living it out. He knew we couldn't "go and do the same" on our own. And so he adds a new piece to this command that completes the puzzle:
Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. (John 13:34, NLT, emphasis mine)
How do we love others when everything in us would rather walk right by them?
We look to Jesus. We follow his lead. We remember how he loved us when we were at our most unlovable. And we ask him to help us love through the power of the Holy Spirit.
It's hard to believe, but our journey through Jesus' parables is coming to a close. Before we end, we need to ask our question one final time...
What does the parable of the Good Samaritan teach us about how to live out God's Kingdom in a messy, broken world?
I find it amazing that God shows me something new in this parable every time I dig into it! Here is what I've learned this time:
In God's Kingdom, there are no boundary lines when it comes to showing compassion and mercy.
In God's Kingdom, being a good neighbor goes beyond seeing the needs of others. It requires us to draw near to a person's pain and be present with them in their mess.
And, when loving others seems like too great a task, we look to the king of God's Kingdom: King Jesus. He loved us when we were impossible to love. His sacrifice healed us from the brokenness of sin. And his Spirit gives us the strength to go out and love others.
So let's follow King Jesus into his Kingdom as we now "go and do the same"!
Questions to Ponder:
When are you most tempted to take on a "it's me and God and nobody else" attitude? How does our relationship with others affect our relationship with God?
What are some ways Jesus has shown compassion to you? How can you follow his example as you seek to love others this week?
Think about the person (or group) you wrote in the blank in the previous part of this series. Take a few minutes to ask Jesus to give you the strength to "go and do the same" for them.
What did the parable of the Good Samaritan teach you about how to live out God's Kingdom in a messy, broken world?
—
Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this devotional, click here to subscribe to my free newsletter and receive more content like this delivered directly to your inbox.