Last night, we read over the portion of Luke on the Good Samaritan. Luke 10:25-37. Every year we go through this passage, new light dawns on our hearts. Andrew brought out some key points including the fact that what the Good Samaritan did is not in us to do. This is so very true.

This recorded conversation is initiated by a lawyer that wanted to put our Lord Jesus to the test by asking about inheriting eternal life. This is very reminiscent of the rich young ruler’s inquiry regarding inheriting eternal life. When the Lord responds with a question regarding what the Law says regarding this, the lawyer quotes Leviticus and Deuteronomy, “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.” And He said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.“ In true lawyer fashion, he responds with, “and who is my neighbor?”

I was considering the state of mind of this lawyer. For him to ask this means that he is quite confident of his “righteousness” according to the law and was challenging the Lord or putting his own righteousness on display. It is most striking that the Lord gives him an illustration of the “eternal life” at the same time. “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a 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. 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?”

In the parable, there is no controversy that Jesus is the good neighbor, the Samaritan. Why does the Lord use a lowly Samaritan in the parable? At that time, Samaritans were like the “scum of the earth,” and the Lord likened himself to the “scum of the earth.” WHY? Especially addressing someone who is quite elevated in society, why would he not liken himself to a doctor (He is the Great Physician), or a ruler (He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords)? The neighbor being loved is the man beaten, robbed, and left for dead. Putting ourselves in the parable, that would be us. Jesus had compassion on us when sin beat us and robbed us of our humanity and usefulness to God and left us for dead. Jesus came to us, bandaged our wounds (by His stripes we are healed) by pouring oil and wine on the wounds, put us on his own beast and brought as to the inn (a type of the church as Agnes so wonderfully brought out), and took care of us. This is the life of Christ, it cannot be done by imitation without His life. There are many in society that have outward good works, but their works cannot bring others to eternal life. And how often is the compassion born out of a lowly spirit like Christ’s?

In the lawyer’s eyes, there is probably no one more lowly than a Samaritan, and I don’t believe that he would aspire to be one. Can we show mercy in such a way that is born out of utter humility and lack of self? Today, charity and self-promotion are primarily inextricably intertwined. How many gifts to hospitals and universities are anonymous? Why are all your university buildings and departments named after someone? We can do good and kind things, but we could not feign humility. I believe the Lord Jesus gave to the lawyer, and therefore to us, an impossible task. “Go and do the same.”

Well, what is impossible with man is possible with God. We can never do as the Samaritan in the parable did, not in ourselves, but He can do this in us. Just as the rich young ruler could not give all his wealth away, neither could this lawyer make himself out to be a Samaritan. When the Lord asked him which of the three proved to be a neighbor to the one who fell into the robbers’ hands, the lawyer’s response was, “the one who showed mercy towards him.” He could have said, “the Samaritan” but he couldn’t. Just as the children of Israel found it impossible to keep the law of Moses, there is absolutely no way we can live according to Jesus’ example as He lived a much higher righteousness than the law of Moses. EXCEPT, that He comes in and lives His life out in us. Glory to God! How does the Lord Jesus live His life out in us? We have a great example in pure-blood Benjamite religious leader, Saul. When the Lord’s life came into him, he gave up his credentials when he saw them as garbage in light of knowing Christ. When we read what he suffered, we wonder how he could go through it all. He actually acknowledged that he had become scum of the earth (1 Corinthians 4) for the sake of the Lord. And yet, the “scum of the earth” addressed king and governors as led by Christ and experienced horrific trials and abuse and miraculous deliverance and healing even as he became all things to all people that he might bring some to the inn. We read in his letters written while imprisoned for his faith in Christ, encouragement, love, and hope. How is that possible… eternal life in Christ. Jesus is the Good neighbor in us. In His time, in His way, for His purpose, He will work out His life in us that will unmistakably be manifested as the life of the One who gave Himself up for us.