THE GOOD SAMARITAN
TEXT: LUKE 10:30-37
FOCUS: JESUS ILLUSTRATES TO THE LAWYER WHAT A GOOD NIEGHBOR IS LIKE.
FUNCTION: TO PROVIDE THE READERS THE ATTRIBUTES OF BEING A GOOD NEIGHBOR.
INTRODUCTION
One day during March break when I was in Brown Trail school of preaching, I went to the Garnett’s for my time off. One day while there The two girls and I went to visit an older gentleman on the back roads in southwest Texas. In Southwest Texas, dirt roads mean that you drive through pastures and rivers in the car. After we visited this guy we left but I got us lost on the way home. There is no road signs. We were starting to run out of gas. Finally, the car stopped in the middle of the river. We all got out and started walking for home. Very few people drove by on the way home. There were a few Suburban that went by and a few nice cars but no one stopped. We were giving up hope. I am sure that we did not scare people, two young girls and one guy. I hope we did not look like bank robbers.
Finally, a truck full of Mexicans drove by and stopped for us. We told them of the situation and they remembered seeing the car stuck in the river. They let us ride in the back and they went back to the car and hooked up the car and pulled it out. They were pulling the car down the road when the rest of the Garnett clan came looking for us.
This is a modern day story of this parable in Luke 10:30-37. Jesus replied and said, "A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went off leaving him half dead. "And by chance a certain priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. "And likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. "But a certain 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. "And 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." And Jesus said to him, "Go and do the same."
Jesus is telling the story of the Good Samaritan in response to his conversation with the lawyer. A lawyer comes to Jesus to test him on a religious matter. Now this lawyer is not a judicial lawyer that we have today in the court of law but a lawyer of the religious law. He could have been a scribe. He asked a popular question for that day and for today. He wants to know what he has to do to receive eternal life. Jesus states the two greatest commandments in the Bible that sums up all the other commandments. He says “And he answered and said, "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." Then Jesus tells him to do this and he will live. The lawyer knows that he has not kept the law perfectly and desires to justify himself by asking “Who is my neighbor. In many debates people want others to define their terms. Jesus changes the whole directions of the question by getting the lawyer to see that one should not ask “Who is my neighbor but “How can I be a neighbor?”
A couple were a neighbor to me when I was in Canada. Charity and I were heading to the Beraden family’s house for a visit and supper. We were on the mountains and extremely lost. We were running late. Finally, I stopped at a house and walked up and knocked on the door. A man answered and I told him my situation. He let me use the phone and phone book and then provided directions to the destination. This man was a neighbor to me.
In the story of the Good Samaritan, people can see other people as a nuisance or a neighbor. The priest and the Levite saw the robbed Jew as a nuisance.
The Priest and the Levite had two reactions to the helpless Jew. They Abhorred the Jew. They Avoided the Jew.
They disliked the Jew. As these men were coming from Jerusalem they saw the beat up Jew in the ditch. He would have been dirty, bloody, and unclean. To a religious Jew in the day, the Jew would have been unclean. He would have been hated by the Priest and Levite because they may have felt like if they touched him he would have made them unclean.
Maybe they thought he was a poor Jew or beggar. They may have felt like he got what he deserved. We sometimes feel this way against those who life in the inner city. We say, “What do you expect if you life in the part of town.” Or how about the drug dealers, “If they get hurt we assume that they deserved that treatment.” The priest and the Levite had negative feelings toward the poor Jew.
The Priest and the Levite also Avoided the Jew. The text indicates that the Priest and Levite were going down from Jerusalem. Culture tells us that Jericho was the place that the Priest would go for a break. More than likely, the Priest and the Levite finished performing their religious duties and were on their way to some rest and relaxation. The text also states that they cross on the other side. They saw the beaten Jew on the ground and wanted to avoid any contact with him so they cross over the street to miss him. The Priest and the Levite had time to spare but did not have enough love in their hearts to provoke a response.
Many of us have crossed the road to avoid giving. In many big cities there are numerous beggars on the street. I always very uncomfortable walking by them. Now I am not saying that we should always give money to those who are begging because many of them are just wanting money to buy drugs and drinks. Though is a see a large group of beggars I would prefer to just cross the street so I do not have to deal with them.
One day I was riding back from school with Henry. We were almost to the apartment complex that I was living end when we saw a guy’s car that was broken down in the middle of the street. Everyone around us was just flying by or avoiding the situation. He needed help. Henry stopped the car and he and I got out, I have to saw that I was hoping that Henry would just pass by too, because the day was super hot and I was tired from school. Nevertheless, we pushed the man’s car off on a side street and Henry who knew a lot about cars got his car going again. I wanted to be like the Priest and the Levite and pass on by but Henry was like the good Samaritan who stopped and gave a hand.
On the other hand the behavior of the Good Samaritan was more positive. The Good Samaritan responded to the Jew as a neighbor. The way the Good Samaritan reacted to the Jew can be described in three “C” words.
The good Samaritan was compassionate. In verse 33, the text says that he felt compassion. This is the major difference between him and the Priest and Levite. Instead of turning a blind eyes, the man felt compassion for the man in his horrible situation. In order to be a good neighbor people have to begin to feel the pain of those who are hurting. It is too easy to pass by because many of us are complete cared for and lack the basic necessities of life. Many of us do not know what it is to be hungry or cold. We don’t know what it is to be robbed and left for dead.
Jesus was the perfect example of someone who could feel compassion for those who were hurting. Matthew 9:36 states “And seeing the multitudes, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and downcast like sheep without a shepherd.”
When a person experiences compassion they will be moved with mercy. There was no logical reason why the Samaritan should interrupt his plans to help this man but because he had compassion he offered the man his help.
The Good Samaritan was caring. In verse 34 tells us how caring this man was. He bandaged his wounds, poured oil on him, and put him on his on donkey to the inn. The Good Samaritan was kind to this man. The man took special care of him. There is one thing to feel compassion but it is even better to care for one in his or her time of need. It is easy to stand in the crowds and say that you hurt for the person but it takes true love to reach out and begin to care for a person. It never seems appealing to reach out and touch people who are dirty and bloody. But this man gave of himself.
Listen to what James has to say on the topic. James 2:14-18 “What use is it, my brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, "You have faith, and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works."
While I was working with the Granbury Street church of Christ a lady by the name of Betty Williams was a Good Samaritan to me. Every time I needed something she got it for me. My fist room left and take the microwave and she got me a new one. I needed some dishes and she got me some new ones. I needed a lamp in the living room and she got me a new one. I had to be careful about what I mentioned that I needed because she would get me a new one. She was a beautiful example of the caring nature of a good Samaritan.
The Good Samaritan was commendable. In the next verse in 35 we learn of why the Good Samaritan is commendable. The man has already gone beyond the call of duty but before he leaves for his travels he insures that the Jew will be looked after. He pays the inn keeper and gives him some more to provide for his care. He was helping him in his today problems and was helping him in the future also. The Good Samaritan went the extra mile.
Jesus talks about this principle in Matthew 5:40-41 “"And if anyone wants to sue you, and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. And whoever shall force you to go one mile, go with him two.”
We have to learn to start helping people more than just where it is convenient for us. It is easy to give of our time when there is nothing use going on. But when we have to sacrifice our own plans to help others, we are becoming more like the example of the Good Samaritan. As Christians we should provide that extra mile service.
We must treat strangers in this fashion. The Phone rang in a high society Boston home. One the other end of the line was a son who had just returned from Viet Nam and was calling from California. His folks were the cocktail-circuit, party kind. The boy said to his mother, “I just called to tell you that I wanted to bring a buddy home with me.” His mother said, “sure, bring him along for a few days.” “but mother, there is something you need to know about this boy. One leg is gone, one arm’s gone, and his face is quite disfigured. Is it all right if I bring him home?”
His mother said, “Bring him home for a few days.” The son said, “ You didn’t understand me, mother. I want to bring him home to live with us.” The mother began to make all kinds of excuses about embarrassment and what people would think… and the phone clicked.
A few hours later the police called from California to Boston. The mother picked up the phone again. The police sergeant at the other end said, “we just found a boy with one arm, one leg, and a mangled face, who had just killed himself with a shot in the head. The identification papers on the body say he is your son.”
Beware how you see the stranger, you could mistakenly see him as a nuisance but he is really a neighbor
