THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on September 30, 2020 under AM Bible Study |

AM Bible Study Group: September 30, 2020 from Luke 10:25-37

Theme: The parable of The Good Samaritan teaches us, most of all, that we are helpless to earn eternal life by our own efforts, and that we need God’s saving grace.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

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This morning, we come to one of the greatest stories of all time. Of the many parables that our Lord taught, few are as well-known and as well-loved—even among non-Christians—as the Parable of The Good Samaritan. In the midst of Luke’s report of our Lord Jesus’ teaching during His Judean ministry, Luke 10:25-37 tells us;

And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” So he 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 ‘your neighbor as yourself.’” And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise” (Luke 10:25-37).

This is a story that has been retold countless times in sermons and in Bible lessons. It has been the inspiration of many novels and movies. Many people have looked to it as a story that teaches us about self-sacrifice, and loving mercy toward those in need. Some, in recent times, have even begun to adapt this story for political purposes—retelling it in such a way as to persuade government leaders toward certain kinds of policies or to move citizens to support certain civil justice programs. There’s no question that it should inspire us to greater acts of love for our fellow human beings. It should teach us to see anyone in need as our neighbor.

But that is not really why Jesus told it. The clue to the real reason for this parable is found in the fact that the lawyer who asked the question was “testing” the Lord, and that when the answer was given, he sought to “justify” himself. Our Lord intended for this story to teach a self-righteous expert in the Old Testament law that he cannot make himself righteous in the sight of God—and earn eternal life for himself—by his good deeds according to that law. It is really intended, most of all, to show all of fallen humanity that those who seek to justify themselves before God by good works cannot do so. It shows us that we are all completely helpless to make ourselves righteous and worthy in the sight of God by our good works; and that we are completely helpless and utterly in need of God’s saving grace as our only hope.

And unless we see this marvelous parable in that way, we’re really not seeing it in the way our Lord intended.

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Now; let’s take a moment to consider this parable in its context in the Gospel of Luke. In the larger context, it’s a story that occurs when our Lord was on His way to Jerusalem. He was going there to present Himself to the Jewish people as their long awaited King. The Jewish leaders, however, would reject Him and crucify Him. He would die on the cross as the substitutionary atonement for the members of fallen humanity; none of whom—neither of the Jewish people or the Gentile people—could ever justify themselves in the sight of God by their own efforts; and who could not become righteous in God’s sight in any other way than through faith in Jesus. Never did our Lord teach that anyone could save themselves by their own efforts; but instead, He always demonstrated to His listeners, by His stories and instructions, that this was impossible to do.

And also, let’s consider this story in its most immediate context. Jesus had just expressed His joy over the fact the Father’s plan of redemption through Jesus’ death on the cross was being revealed to those to whom the Father had graciously allowed it be known. In verses 21-24, we read;

In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” Then He turned to His disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it” (vv. 21-24).

So you see; in both the larger sense of what Jesus was about to do, and in the most immediate context of His words, He was not teaching that anyone could earn eternal life by their works according to the law. No one can. Not even an expert in the Jewish law—who would have been among those considered “wise and prudent”. We can only come to God as helpless sinners; and can only be made just in the sight of God by faith in Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the cross. We can only have eternal life as a gift by faith.

Now; notice how this is shown to us by …

1. THE CHALLENGE FROM THE LAWYER.

The man in this passage is called a lawyer—not because he was an attorney in the sense we think of today, but because he was—in the Jewish culture—a man who was a scholarly expert in the law of God given through Moses. He was a biblical scholar who would have been held in esteem by the Jewish people; and his task in that culture was to study the law of God, correctly interpret it, and rightly apply it to godly living in everyday life. His question in verse 25, then, was a significant one: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”; especially considering that he—an esteemed expert in the law of God—was the one asking it.

But do you notice something very important? In verse 25, we’re told that he was ‘testing’ the Lord. In fact, it’s not the usual word for ‘testing’ someone; but rather an intensified form of the word—’out-testing’ Him. He was testing the Lord in such a way as to trap Him in His words; and perhaps to use those words against Him to discredit Him.

Our Lord answered in verse 26 by turning the question back onto the lawyer himself: “He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” It’s a great question to put to a scholar of the Scriptures. And so, the man answered in verse 27 by quoting the Scriptures; “So he 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 ‘your neighbor as yourself’”. Here, the man was quoting from two Old Testament passages. In the first case, he was quoting from Deuteronomy 6:5; and in the second case, he was quoting from Leviticus 19:18. His answer, by the way, was very much in keeping with something that the Lord Jesus once said on another occasion. A different lawyer once asked Him, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”

Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40).

And so; the lawyer’s answer was correct—as far as it went. Jesus told him in verse 28, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” Those two commandments summarize the whole of the law; and if a man or woman wanted to earn eternal life in the sight of God on the basis of their own abilities, then they would need to keep those two commandments—and all of the commandments that are implied in them—with perfect obedience. But that’s when we again see that the man’s question was not a sincere one. We’re told in verse 29, “But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’”

Perhaps you’ll remember another man who came to Jesus with a similar question—but with whole-hearted sincerity and a desperate sense of need. Matthew 19:16-22 tells us;

Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.” He said to Him, “Which ones?” Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions (Matthew 19:16-22).

The young man in that story knew that he had not kept God’s law fully. He was not perfect. Something was still missing. Jesus set before him the impossibility of earning his salvation by his good works by showing that the standard was higher than he could reach. And so, he went away sad and in despair of his own efforts. And that’s when Jesus taught that what is impossible with man is impossible with God. Only God can do this for us through faith in Jesus’ cross.

Now; that rich young ruler was sincere. But the lawyer in our story this morning was not. He wanted to justify himself by asking, “Who is my neighbor?”—as if the uncertainty of who once’s neighbor might be would invalidate any need for strict obedience to the command.

And that’s when we find …

2. THE CONVICTION FROM THE PARABLE.

Jesus told a story that may have had its basis in an actual event. A man went from Jerusalem to Jericho and was attacked by thieves. They stripped him, beat him, and left him near death. And then, along came two individuals who would have represented the sort of self-righteous confidence that characterized the lawyer. First, a priest—of the family of Aaron—came. It was his duty to represent the righteous requirements of God to his people, and to minister the sacrifices and offerings of God. But when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side of the road. Then a Levite came. He was of the priestly tribe; and was of that lineage that was responsible for the care and worship of the temple. He too looked at the man and passed by on the other side. They represented the law given through Moses. But they were of no help to the man.

But along then came a Samaritan. A Samaritan was a member of a people group who were deeply despised by the Jewish people. They were the product of a mixing of the northern tribes of the Jewish people with the pagan nations that surrounded them. A devout Jew would have no dealings whatsoever with a Samaritan. And yet, it was this despised Samaritan that showed mercy to what was most likely a Jewish man in need.

Jesus said that when the Samaritan saw the man, he did not pass by as the others had. Instead of hardening his heart toward the man, he had ‘compassion’ on him. He actually laid hands on him to minister to him—bandaging his wounds and pouring oil and wine upon them. He set him on his animal and brought him to an inn; and he even apparently stayed with the man in the inn and cared for him for the night. And the next day, he paid the equivalent of two-days worth of wages to the innkeeper; asking him to continue to care for them man with the promise that he would cover whatever costs were left over after he returned. He gave himself sacrificially for the man.

It was a stunning story. It must have had a powerful impact on the lawyer—who would have had to overcome his bigotry against the Samaritan in the story in order to even be able to listen to it. And that’s when we find …

3. THE LESSON TO BE LEARNED.

Jesus then asked the man in verse 36, “So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” Was it the holy priest? Was it the righteous Levite? Or was it the despised Samaritan? And it’s interesting that the lawyer did not say, “The Samaritan!” Instead, in verse 36, he simply said, “He who showed mercy on him.” And to that, Jesus said, “Go and do likewise.”

Would he, though? Could he? It may be possible that the lawyer had such a change of heart from this story that he sought to be more compassionate to someone else in need. But he first would have had to deal with the fact that the frame of his heart was more in line with the hard-hearted priest and the hard-hearted Levite. If that’s what it took to inherit eternal life—having already sought to justify himself by asking, “Who is my neighbor?”—then he would have had to have concluded that he could not save himself by his own good works.

This is something that the Bible teaches us with respect to the law. It was not given to us as a means by which we might earn our own salvation. Instead, it is meant to show us that we cannot do so; and that we must turn to Jesus Christ as our Savior and Redeemer. The apostle Paul, in Galatians 3, wrote that

… the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith (Galatians 3:22-24).

In fact, there’s a sense in which, when we’ve encountered the high demands of the law of God—and when we discover what great sinners we are and how helpless we are to keep God’s standards as a means of salvation—we are left stripped and wounded by it all like the poor traveler. We don’t see, in it, any way to make ourselves righteous before God. The priestly rules and regulations of the law cannot help us. They—as it were—see us, and walk by us, and leave us in a lost condition. But then it is Jesus who comes to us and takes the burden for our sin upon Himself. He heals us. He carries us. He pays for our needs. He even promises to return for us.

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Now; of course, let’s let this passage be an encouragement to us to be like the Good Samaritan to others—seeing how we can be a neighbor to them in their time of need. In that respect, the parable of the Good Samaritan has a lot to teach us.

But let’s not let that be the only lesson we learn from it. It isn’t meant to teach us that we can earn eternal life by becoming what the Good Samaritan was. Rather, it is meant to teach us that we are as broken and helpless as the man on the road—unable to earn eternal life on our own efforts. It’s meant to show us that we must trust the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus alone—accepting the payment He made for our sins by becoming a curse for us on the cross.

If we have embraced the grace of God through Jesus, then we will have learned the true lesson of this parable.

EA