A Look Into THE GOOD SAMARITAN

In a world often marked by self-interest, selfishness, and division, the timeless tale of the Good Samaritan offers a beacon of hope in humanity. It transcends religious boundaries, resonating deeply with values of compassion, empathy, and self-sacrifice. It challenges us to look past societal prejudices, and extend a helping hand to those in need, regardless of their background. In this article, we will explore the enduring relevance of the Good Samaritan and how that relates to the sacrificial agape love of loving our neighbor as ourself.

The Ten Commandments

In order to understand this, we must first lay down a plumbline of the Ten Commandments. We are told by Jesus Himself that we are to “love the LORD our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength; and to love our neighbor as ourselves. That on these two commands hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40; Mark 12:30-33; and Luke 10:27) This ties the Old and New Testaments together. The Law being the Ten Commandments:

1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make yourself a carved image of anything anywhere to worship it.
3. You shall not take the LORD’s name in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and mother.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery (even looking with lust is adultery).
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness.
10. You shall not covet.

The first four is loving God. The last six are loving others. These are also thoughts, intentions, motives, and actually committing the act. We covet before we actually commit the sin, which is sin in and of itself. We lie because we want something from another person or we don’t want someone to look at us in the wrong light. But what do all of these have in common? They are all objective truth, not subjective. They are not based on opinions, a person’s feelings, or intuition. They are based on fact. This is love.

The story

Open your Bibles to Luke 10:25-37. Here, Jesus is talking to a lawyer and the young man asks, “Who is my neighbor [that I am supposed to love]? Jesus asks him, “What is written in the Law? What is your reading of it.? The lawyer answered and said, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus then gives him the parable of the Good Samaritan. Please read it now.

If you look at verse 30, it says a “certain man” went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves who beat him up, took everything he had — even his clothes he was wearing, and left him for dead. Who was this man? No one knows. What was he like? No one knows. Was he black or white, gay or straight, republican or democrat? It doesn’t say. It doesn’t have to because love is objective. It’s a half-dead naked man in trouble.

Someone might even say that the man was reckless and that it serves him right because the road from Jerusalem to Jericho was known for thieves and robbers; traveling alone might get you killed. Where I come from there is a saying: “Self-infliction gets no sympathy.” There is another like it: “Do unto others before they do unto you.” This is not love.

We learn that a priest and a levite passed by, probably thinking they can’t touch him for a variety of reasons. David Guzic in his commentary points out a few excuses they might have had:

• “This road is too dangerous for me to stop and help the man.”
• “He might be a decoy for an ambush.”
• “I’ve got to get to the temple and perform my service for the Lord.”
• “I’ve got to get home and see my family.”
• “Someone really should help that man.”
• “If I’m going to serve at the temple I can’t get my clothes bloody.”
• “I don’t know first aid.”
• “It’s a hopeless case.”
• “I’m only one person; the job is too big.”
• “I can pray for him.”
• “He brought it on himself, he should have never been alone on such a dangerous road.”
• “He never asked for help.” (Guzic)

Notice all of these excuses are subjective. They are based on feeling, assumption, intuition, and opinions. They are not objective based on what we know is true: a naked half-dead man needs help.

Then comes along a Samaritan. This must have really angered the Jews who were listening to this story because Samaritans were half-breed Jews mixed with Gentiles. Maybe the Jews who were listening were thinking instead of walking around this man, that he would beat him even further. But no, instead of stepping around him, the Samaritan loved him sacrifically and objectively. He had compassion on him. The wine used was an antiseptic to heal his wounds; the oil was used to ease the pain. He set him on his own animal forcing the Samaritan to walk. He gave the innkeeper two denarii which should have provided for the man’s needs for at least two to three weeks, not asking for any money left over. The Samaritan didn’t care who he was, what his beliefs were, or how poor or rich he was. His feelings and assumptions were irrelevant.

Now, the Samaritan took the wounded man to an inn and took care of him until the next day, when he departed and left him in the care of the innkeeper. So, the Samaritan continued on his journey. It didn’t slow his trip down much. He still had to go to the inn himself and spend the night. Why do we think that if we help someone that we are going to be severely inconvenienced? Sometimes it’s just on the way to where we are going.

What is love?

Love is not, “doing to others or treating others how you would want to be treated.” That is nonsense. That is ultra-subjective based on what I want, not what the other person wants or needs. According to my Myers-Briggs letters I am an INTJ. I’m introverted, intuitive, thinking, and judgmental. What if I treated an ESFP (extroverted, sensing, feeling, perceiving) the way I want to be treated? I want to be left alone; they would want someone with them. I am logical; they are an emotional feeler. If I treated them the way I want to be treated — trust me, I would make things much worse. I need to treat them the way they need to be treated. Sometimes that takes some tough love: saying things that hurt, but are needful to hear. Sometimes it takes a little understanding of the other person to see what they need or want; possibly inquiring of those that know the person better. I find that a good rule of thumb, like the good Samaritan, is to do something you would do for all people at all times. Sharing the gospel and witnessing to people you come in contact with is a great example. It doesn’t matter who you share with, or what time you share Jesus with them, or whatever stage of life they are in. They need the mercy of God, and that only comes through Jesus Christ as the blood atonement for their sin. This is love in action. True love transcends everything. Truth and love go hand-in-hand. 

---

Guzik, David. “Study Guide for Luke 10.” Blue Letter Bible. 6/2022. Web. 28 Jun, 2024. https://www.blueletterbible.org/comm/guzik_david/study-guide/luke/luke-10.cfm.