A Sad Encounter Luke 10:25-37
[25] And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? [26] He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? [27] And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. [28] And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. [29] But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? [30] And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. [31] And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. [32] And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. [33] But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, [34] And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. [35] And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. [36] Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? [37] And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
This text describes one of the saddest encounters in the life of our Savior. He came face to face with an unbelieving Jewish lawyer who tried everything in his power to get Jesus to break the law of God. Just as a lawyer today has at his disposal a wall full of books describing legal precedents and trials that might assist his client, so this man knew every jot and tittle of Mosaic Law. He knew how far one could walk on Sunday, he knew what one could eat and what one couldn’t eat, and he knew every detail of religious worship. Without doubt, he felt himself vastly superior to that unlearned and uneducated carpenter’s son, Jesus from Nazareth, a man who had been creating a stir among the common people by pointing to Himself as the way to heaven.
What better way to discredit Jesus than by questioning him about the law! He asked, “Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” If this lawyer had been sincere about what He asked, Jesus would have answered, “Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” Matthew 4:17, and again, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. This is the answer the lawyer must have expected. There is nothing in the 10 Commandments about Jesus being the way to heaven. If he could get Jesus to say He was the way to heaven, he would have no problem pointing out that Jesus’ teachings were contrary to the 10 Commandments. He was tempting our Lord, says the text. Jesus knew the lawyer’s evil heart and didn’t answer his question. Instead, he asked one of his own. “You are the expert!” he said. “How does the law say you shall inherit eternal life?” The lawyer responded with a perfect answer, and he backed it up with Scripture. He quoted Deuteronomy 6, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and with all thy soul and with all thy might,” and again Leviticus 19,”Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Much to the surprise of the lawyer, Jesus replied, “You have answered your own question very well. Keep this law and you shall live.” He who keeps God’s law perfectly shall live by it, as it is written,”Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD. Leviticus 18:5.
The Savior had embarrassed the lawyer. If he knew the answer to his own question, why did he ask it? In order not to look altogether foolish in front of Jesus and His disciples, the lawyer cleverly responded, “And who is my neighbor?” “If I am to keep the law as you say, I surely need to know whom to love. There must be some rules and regulations about this that I don’t know. I don’t want to make a mistake and love the wrong person.” This question led Jesus to tell the parable of the Good Samaritan.
This account is about three people who met a traveler going from Jerusalem to Jericho, a man who had been robbed and beaten to within an inch of his life. Who were these three people? One of them was a priest, much like a pastor today, the person who conducted the worship service in the temple. The second was a Levite, much like a seminary professor, a person whose job it was to interpret the Bible. The last was a Samaritan. We know from church history and the New Testament, that Samaritans hated Jews and that the Jews hated the Samaritans. The Jews rightly maintained that the religion of the Samaritans was a unionistic religion, a combination of Jewish theology with the false religions of their heathen neighbors. The Samaritans had their own temple on Mt. Gerazim and refused to come down to the temple at Jerusalem. What the Jews failed to realize, however, was that Samaritans, in spite of their false religion, were human beings. The Jews had such an exalted opinion of themselves that they couldn’t find it in their hearts to help anyone in trouble, much less a Samaritan.
We don’t know whether the badly injured man was a Jew or a Samaritan, but it doesn’t really make any difference. The point is that the two people from whom we would have had every right to expect compassion, showed no compassion at all. They were so unfeeling that they approached the wounded man, looked at him, and crossed the street. One of the Old Testament laws that they claimed to keep, demanded what they had failed to do, namely, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Leviticus 19. “Compassion” literally means to love your neighbor so much that you put yourself in his place, that you feel in your heart his pains and his sufferings, and that you are so concerned about him that you forget about yourself. Of the three, only the Samaritan showed that kind of compassion. He was willing to put himself in personal danger to help this poor man. He leapt from his beast and treated the injured man’s wounds as best he could. Then he placed him on his own mule and walked to the nearest inn where he could find better care. The next morning before he left the inn, he paid the innkeeper for their lodging and promised to pick up the tab for however long the man might have to stay. The Samaritan was so concerned about this injured man that he placed his time and his money at the injured man’s disposal.
Now Jesus asked, “which of the three do you think was a neighbor?” The lawyer was quick to answer, “The one that showed mercy.” The question really is, “To whom can you be a neighbor?” We all know the answer. Our neighbor is everyone and anyone we are able to help, and we will never run out of people like that. Jesus one time said, “The poor ye have with you alway.” Mark 14.7
The sad part of this text is Jesus’ final word, “Go and do thou likewise.” Jesus’ encounter with this lawyer ended without a word of Gospel. This man went away confirmed in the self-righteous notion that he could do every thing the Lord demanded. He considered himself the perfect Good Samaritan. He felt he could love his neighbor as much as he loved himself! You or I might have said to this lawyer, “You cannot work your way to heaven; look to Jesus Christ for forgiveness.” Remarkably, however, Jesus had sent him away without once mentioning faith. Hadn’t He been teaching His disciples and the people, “No man cometh unto the Father but by me? John 14:6 If Jesus had said that to this lawyer, do you think this he would have been convinced? There was nothing that Jesus could do or say until this man recognized his own depravity, namely, that no one can love his neighbor as much as he loves himself. It would have been casting pearls before swine to speak of forgiveness of sins to someone who believed he did not have any.
What Jesus said to the lawyer He also says to you and me, “Love your neighbor as yourself” Matthew 22:39 “[Be] kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; ‘Let no man seek his own, but every man seek another's welfare.’" Romans 12:10. Now who can do that? We love ourselves too much, as St. Paul reminds, “For no man ever hated his own flesh.” Ephesians 5:29. We have inherited a heart that loves itself above all else. In a sense, we are much like the wounded man of the parable; we are dead in trespasses and sins, without even the strength to cry for help. The wonder of it all is that our Lord, with even greater compassion than the Good Samaritan of the text, not only risked His life to save us. He gave it. Through faith He constantly forgives us our thanklessness and lack of compassion, and warms our cold hearts with His undeserved goodness. He, who would never go past someone in need, continually reaches down, lifts us up, and strengthens us with His holy word. This morning when He says to us, “You go and do likewise,” He is telling us, “Show your thankfulness for my mercy by being merciful to each other.” That doesn’t mean we always succeed. In fact, we fail daily. Nevertheless, though we may never get to the point where we will love each other as much as we love ourselves, He, to whom all power is given in heaven and earth, gives us, through faith in Him, the power to try.