What prompted this parable? Expert in the law asked the most important question, unpack. Then answered it from OT law. Jesus agreed.
Then he sought to justify himself by limiting the law. Jewish teaching at the time taught your fellow Jew, perhaps the ones in your local community were your neighbour. Perhaps the expert had someone in mind he disliked!
Parable - traveller was a fool, being alone on this road - unpack.
Samaritan, foreigner, lived North of Israel for 700 years. Adopted parts of Jewish religion yet worshipped at different temple, was antagonism and were hated by Jews. So hated the expert in the law couldn't say "Samaritan" in verse 37!
Showed he couldn't fulfil the law he believed in. To inherit eternal life we need to be perfect, or we need someone to save us from the consequences of our sin. Jesus.
Explain gospel. We need to give control of our lives to Jesus or to face eternity without God.
The story of the good Samaritan doesn't show us how we can receive eternal life. It shows that none of us loves our neighour, and, therefore, God in whose image they are made, enough.
For example, we probably take advantage of our neighbour every time we shop. In producing food and clothing workers are exploited. Conditions that amount to slavery are used, yet we ignore the opportunity to buy goods that we know have paid a fair wage to the workers and bear the Fairtrade mark. Bananas, oranges, flowers, tea, coffee, sugar, chocolate, and jams are examples of items that bear the Fairtrade mark. The Co-op is a market leader in some areas of Fairtrade. Sainsbury's, too.
We need to say sorry for not loving our neighbours fully, to change our ways, and to trust in Jesus, not ourselves.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Trinity 7 14/7/2013
The parable of the Good Samaritan is probably the most misunderstood passage of the whole Bible. People think that it is an example of how we are to behave towards others. Now, God does want us to help others, but this is not the point of the story. The point of the story was to show the expert in the law that everyone was his neighbour, especially a foreigner from a nation with a history of conflict and religious disputes with his own nation.
The teacher of the law could not even bring himself to use the word Samaritan when Jesus asked him 36 "Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" He said, "The one who had mercy on him."
The Parable of Good Samaritan was prompted by the expert's question; v.25 "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus pointed him in the law to the law. 26 "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" The expert correctly summarized it as `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, `Love your neighbour as yourself.' Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
If we really think about this excellent summary of God's will for us, we will realise that no-one, except Jesus, has, can and will ever behave like that all the time. Perhaps the expert also realized that he could not live like that... 29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbour?"
If you were a Jew in Jesus’ day, you thought the answer would be, “Your fellow Jew.” But Jesus shocked the man with the story of the Good Samaritan. At that time Jews and Samaritans were as friendly as, say, some Jews and Palestinians, or North and South Korea today. There was a history of aggravation and conflict. So, the last person this expert would have helped, or expected to address as his neighbour, was a Samaritan.
The law of God does not provide us with a way of giving eternal life, a life lived in a right relationship with God. True, it shows us how we should live. But it also shows that we all fall short of God’s perfect will for us.
So, how can we enjoy a right relationship with God? Our epistle gives us some clues. 3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus.
Faith, or trust in Jesus, restores people’s relationship with God. This is something God has done for us in Jesus. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Through his death on the cross Jesus has redeemed us, the word means “bought back”. He has paid the price for our sins. He was separated from God as, on the he took upon himself the punishment for the sins of the world on the cross.
Christians know the forgiveness of God in Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are to accept and forgive everyone, not just in a passive way. The Parable of the Good Samaritan challenges us to practically love those whom are different from us and who we find difficult to relate to. God can actually use this to help us to grow in our discipleship. And we need help to do this. God's word and His Spirit will help us to do this.
Paul prays for the Colossian Christians. He prays for
Their filling - 9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Their living and growing - 6 All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.
Their strengthening - 11 being strengthened with all ( God’s ) power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,
This filling, bearing fruit, and strengthening are to come about through the work of the Holy Spirit within us. We should be praying for one another and encouraging one another. Practically helping one another. Not moaning, condemning, gossiping.
The expert in the law thought he could his way into God’s presence by being good. That was as long as he was allowed to chose who he was to love! None of us are good enough to earn our way to God. The Christian faith is a free gift waiting to be received by trusting in Jesus.
What about us, here today. Where are we with God? Do you know and love Jesus? If so, I would encourage you to continue in being filled, living for God, practically loving everyone, and relying upon the power of His Spirit. Pray for yourself and for others to continue in this way. Be positively loving to those you find difficult.
Also pray for those who do not yet know Jesus as their friend, saviour and master. Pray that they will see that they cannot be good enough for God but that Jesus was, and that by following Him they may know his forgiveness and his kingdom.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
In his parables Jesus reveals spiritual truths to those who have accepted Him, and concealed the real meaning from "the others" - people who have not ( cf. 8:10 ).
Today's reading is an example of this. The word "Samaritan" today is linked by people to being good. So we have "The Samaritans" who counsel people experiencing difficulties. A very important and commendable work. If you asked someone today what is the meaning of this parable they would probably say that it teaches that we ought to behave kindly towards other people, who are our neighbours. Joshua has a Children's Bible which concludes the parable with these words "The stranger was kind - and Jesus said we are to be kind, just as this stranger was." But this is wrong ! I have told Joshua that this is theologically unsound because I don't want a heretic of any age in our home!
You see, as the teacher of the law was leaving Jesus, he would not have thought he had been given a morality tale! Jesus taught this expert in the law that he fell short of the requirements, of the very thing that he was an expert in. Jesus did this in a way that would have embarrassed and condemned the expert.
This expert realised that he did not, perhaps could not, love others perfectly. Perhaps he came to realise that the law, which he studied and held in such high regard, could not put him right with God.
We read in verse 25 that the expert tried to "test" Jesus, perhaps with a degree of hostility. He might have wanted to show off his own learning and status. His question
is probably the most important one that he could have asked v25b, 'Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life ? '.
However, this is a flawed question. It assumes that eternal life, a life lived in perfect fellowship with God, can be obtained by human effort. What we "do". A presupposition that Jesus then disproved.
Jesus referred the expert back to his own field. Perhaps this was just what the expert wanted ! The expert quotes from Deut.6:5 and Lev.19:18, placing equal importance on each. Verse 27, He answered: " `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, `Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
Jesus builds the man up by commending him for a correct answer. But there is a sting in the tail. "Do this and you will live" v28b. The Greek tense of the "Do this" refers to a continuous doing. So, Jesus is saying "Keep on doing this again and again, and then you will live". The word "live", zoe, meant a full life lived with God, uninterrupted by the effects of our sin which is falling short of God's perfect will for us.
Perhaps the expert squirmed here. Realising that he did not have perfect love for God and others he seeks to "justify himself" v29 by moving the goalposts, limiting the demands of the law. Perhaps he hoped that Jesus would uphold the, then current, teaching that your neighbour was your fellow Jew.
So, Jesus tells this parable to answer the question," Who is my neighbour", rather than "How should we act towards people in trouble ?", or similar questions.
That is not to say that we should not act towards others in this way. There are other passages of the Bible that tell us that our faith should lead us to love others in a practical and costly way ( e.g. Matthew 25:31ff. ), but not this one. So Jesus answers the question " Who is my neighbour" with this parable.
The road from Jerusalem to Jericho snakes about 17 miles downhill through hills and rocky terrain. It was the ideal place for robbers and someone travelling alone may have been thought to be rather foolish. Someone might even have said that the beaten-up Jew was asking to be robbed. He was lying on the side of the road and was passed by a priest who is coming from Jerusalem having performed his religious duties there. He avoids the man as does the Levite. The priest's duties included offering sacrifices at the Temple in Jerusalem. The Levite assisted in the maintenance of the Temple. Both were regarded as very religious and higher class. Yet both deliberately avoid the beaten up man. Their faith was not the life changing, radical faith that God requires. It was a formal religion that does not affect the way they lived.
Then along came the Samaritan. In our culture the name is synonymous with good. It was different in Jesus day. The Samaritans had been brought into Israel's Northern Kingdom by the King of Assyria about 700 years before. They had come from Babylon and other places and soon mixed with the Jews who lived there. They partly adopted the Jewish faith and had even built temples to rival the one in Jerusalem. One of these temples had been destroyed by a King of Israel about 150 years before. Only a few years after Jesus was born some Samaritans scattered bones in the Temple at Jerusalem during the Passover festival. So there had been hundreds of years of bitterness between the two races.
In modern day terms we can think of the hostility between members of the I.R.A. and U.V.F., between Serbs and Croats, between Palestinians and Jews, and, recently between some Asian and White youths in Bradford. Perhaps we can think of people that we find difficult, even whom we may regard as 'enemies', and consider how Jesus wants us to share his love with them ?
Yet, ignoring history, racial and social differences, the Samaritan had pity on this man. The word translated took pity refers to a deep feeling coming from ones bowels or intestines. This compassion took the form of practical help. He did not see a Jew but a fellow human being in need and the help he gave was costly. He would have ripped his own clothing to make the bandages, used his own wine to disinfect the wounds, his oil to soothe, his donkey to transport the man, and his money to pay for the inn. His love was not limited by it's object, and it was practical with no thought for any return.
Jesus asks the Jewish expert in the law a question with an obvious answer. Verse 36 "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?". The expert found it difficult to answer. This was because the real question Jesus poses is "Do I behave as a neighbour to those who need my love and help ? "
Such was the inbred hatred inside the expert, he couldn't even bring himself to say the word "Samaritan" never mind consider that he might help a Samaritan in distress. Jesus had exposed this expert as one who failed to live up to the Old Testament law because the expert could not have brought himself to care for a Samaritan in the way that this Samaritan had cared for the beaten-up Jew. Jesus final words, better translated "Go and continue to do likewise" underlined this.
Perhaps this expert had realised that nothing he could "do" could earn him eternal life. Because it is an inheritance. It is about "being" not "doing". We need to BE in a personal relationship with God, through what his son has done , to gain that inheritance.
For example, I expect that when both my parents die that my sister and myself will each inherit half of their estate. We will do this because we are in a personal relationship with them as they are our parents. It is not that Christine and myself have earned our inheritance. We will receive it because of who we are in relation to the givers, not because of anything that we have done.
The expert in the law was really no expert at all. He had failed to realise that observing the Old Testament law is not the way to be put right with God because only Jesus has ever been perfect and kept the law.
The law is there to point out our own imperfection, and therefore our need for a Saviour. We read this in Romans 3:20, ' Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.'
We need someone who can put us right with God. This is what Jesus achieved for us when he took the punishment for our sin on the cross, and we focus on this in this Holy Communion Service. Jesus is the only one who has ever been able to "do" anything to gain eternal life. We can inherit the eternal life secured for us by Jesus if we respond in faith, something that itself is a free gift from God.
Once we have taken the step of faith and put our lives under the control of Jesus this will lead to us loving God and our neighbour. Not because we are told to. But because we want to.
It is like Joshua doing his homework. Most of the time Melanie and myself have to ask if he has any, and encourage him to sit down and complete it. Joshua knows that it will do him good and help him, but we have to ensure that he does it. We act like the Old Testament law, if you like, pointing to what is right. But when it comes to studying dinosaurs, natural history, or Manchester United Football Club Joshua needs no encouragement and will bury himself in books on these subjects. This inward motivation is a little like God's Spirit inspiring his children.
We will not love God and our neighbour until we are motivated from within by God the Holy Spirit working inside us. God is love, Father , Son and Holy Spirit. Once we become a Christian the Holy Spirit lives inside us. Therefore we have the source of self-giving love inside of us.
Even then we will not be perfect. But God's law will be a way OF life to us , NOT a way TO life. We have to become new people, to be 'born again', in order that we can do what is right.
Eternal life is only given to the humble. Those who admit that they need God's love, practically displayed in Jesus' death for us on the cross. In gratitude for this, and as new people, Christians will show this love to others. Those who cannot love others unconditionally have failed to grasp their need for the love of God in Jesus.
Once we have taken that step of faith we will then be able to exhibit the selfless love that the Samaritan showed in this parable.
John Newton the reformed slave trader (1725-1807) said, "I am persuaded that love and humility are the highest attainments in the school of Christ and the brightest evidences that he is indeed our Master."
An example of this is David Livingstone. For thirty years he travelled through Africa, making friends wherever he went. His example and his death acted like an inspiration, filling Africa with an army of explorers and missionaries. In recognition of his sufferings and many compulsory delays in opening up the vast continent of Africa to Christian influence, his words "I never made a sacrifice" have made an indelible impression on men's hearts. Here is his original statement : "People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. Can that be called a sacrifice which is simply paid back as a small part of a great debt owing to our God, which we can never repay? Is that a sacrifice which brings its own best reward in healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny hereafter? Away with the word in such a view, and with such a thought! It was emphatically no sacrifice. Say rather it is a privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering or danger, now and then, with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life make us pause and cause the spirit to waver and the soul to sink, but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall hereafter be revealed in and for us. I never made a sacrifice. Of this we ought not to talk when we remember the great sacrifice which He made Who left His Father's throne on high to give Himself for us: Who, being the brightness of that Father's glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when he had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." Aug. 1963 The Gospel Standard Copyright 1999 Gibson Productions
To conclude, the parable of the Good Samaritan points to ourselves, and then away from ourselves. It points to ourselves by asking the question "Do I love God and other people perfectly ?" The answer is " No"
This prompts the next question, pointing away from ourselves : How then can I be put right with God ? The answer is " through faith in Jesus Christ". We cannot earn eternal life. But, once we have received the love of Jesus we can share that love with our neighbours, near and far.
Year C : Trinity 5/Proper 10 The Good Samaritan : Luke 10:25-37
Have a "Tallest" Quiz
Starting with easier question and getting harder. The last is virtually impossible in case there are any 'know alls'. Once no-one know the answer end the quiz.
What is the Tallest Mountain in the world?
Although Mt Everest is officially the highest mountain on Earth, the sneaky peaks of Mauna Kea have their own height record. Mauna Kea is a volcanic island rising from the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. The mountain's combined height is 10,205 m (33,480 ft), of which 4,205 m (13,796 ft) are above sea level. Mt Everest has a complete height above sea level of 8,848 m. (29,028.8 ft). Mauna Kea began erupting on the sea floor about 800,000 years ago.What is the Tallest Tower in the world?
The world's tallest free-standing tower is the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada, which rises to a mighty 553.34 m (1,815 ft 5 in). The 185-storey, reinforced concrete building was designed by the Australian architect John Andrews. Work began on the 130,000-tonne building on February 12, 1973 and was finished on April 2, 1975. The tower includes a 416-seat restaurant, which revolves in a "Sky Pod" at 351 m (1,150 ft). Two million people visit the CN Tower every year.
What is the Tallest Living Tree in the world?
The world's tallest living tree is the Stratosphere Giant measuring 112.6 m (369 ft 4.8 in) as of 2002. This coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) was discovered by Chris Atkins (USA) in August 2000 in the Rockefeller Forest of the Humboldt Redwoods State Park, California, USA.The precise location of the giant tree is always kept secret by the Park Rangers in case enthusiastic tree fans accidentally damage its fragile environment. The second tallest tree living, known as The Federation Giant, measures 112 m (368 ft) and also lives at the Humboldt Redwoods State Park.
Who was the Tallest Man in the world?
The tallest man in medical history for whom there is irrefutable evidence is Robert Pershing Wadlow. He was born at Alton, Illinois, USA, on February 22, 1918, and when he was last measured on June 27, 1940, was found to be 2.72 m (8 ft 11.1 in) tall.Who grew the Tallest Celery Plant in the world?
Joan Priednieks of Weston Zoyland, Somerset, UK, grew a celery plant that measured 2.74-m (9-ft) tall in 1998. She bought the plant at a school fete in 1997. Joan says the celery is too tough to eat.from http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/
Not everybody got every question right. In today's gospel Jesus met a man who thought he had all the right answers. But then Jesus told him a story that showed he had got something very wrong...
A woman received a phone call that her daughter was very sick with a fever. She left work and stopped by the pharmacy for some medication for her daughter. When returning to her car to find she had locked her keys inside. She had to get home to her sick daughter, and didn't know what to do. She called her home to the baby sitter, and was told her daughter was getting worse. She said, "You might find a coat hanger and use that to open the door." The woman found an old rusty coat hanger on the ground, as if someone else had locked their keys in their car. Then she looked at the hanger and said, "I don't know how to use this. "She bowed her head and asked God for help.
An old rusty car pulled up, driven by a dirty, greasy, bearded man with a biker skull rag on his head. The woman thought, "Great God. This is what you sent to help me?" But she was desperate, and thankful. The man got out of his car and asked if he could help. She said "Yes, my daughter is very sick. I must get home to her. Please, can you use this hanger to unlock my car?" He said, "SURE." He walked over to the car and in seconds the car was opened. She hugged the man and through her tears she said, THANK YOU SO MUCH.... You are a very nice man." The man replied, "Lady, I ain't a nice man. I just got out of prison for car theft. "The woman hugged the man again and cried out loud.... THANK YOU GOD FOR SENDING ME A PROFESSIONAL!"
Can you think of someone who you find difficult to like, or maybe of someone who finds you difficult to like?
What would your reaction be if they did something helpful for you. For example, if they are a neighbour what would you think if they received a parcel for you when you were out or offered to lend you a tool that you needed? Or if they are a colleague, what would be your reaction if they did some of your work when you were away because of sickness or holiday.
What would be your reaction if you had the chance to help that someone?
Until we start to think in this manner we cannot begin to comprehend how the idea of a good Samaritan would be offensive to most Jews in Jesus day.
The road from Jerusalem to Jericho snakes about 17 miles downhill through hills and rocky terrain. It was the ideal place for robbers and someone travelling alone may have been thought to be rather foolish. Someone might even have said that the beaten-up Jew was asking to be robbed. He was lying on the side of the road and was passed by a priest who is coming from Jerusalem having performed his religious duties there. He avoids the man as does the Levite. The priest's duties included offering sacrifices at the Temple in Jerusalem. The Levite assisted in the maintenance of the Temple. Both were regarded as very religious and higher class. Yet both deliberately avoid the beaten up man. Their faith was not the life changing, radical faith that God requires. It was a formal religion that does not affect the way they lived.
This shows that sin is not solely about what we may do. It may also be something that we do not do. If we fail to help someone then we can be guilty. So the robbers perpetrated a sin of commission. They did something wrong. The priest and the Levite's sin was one of omission, failing to do something right and good.
In our culture the name Samaritan' is synonymous with good because of this parable. It was different in Jesus day. The Samaritans had been brought into Israel's Northern Kingdom by the King of Assyria about 700 years before. They had come from Babylon and other places and soon mixed with the Jews who lived there. They partly adopted the Jewish faith and had even built temples to rival the one in Jerusalem. One of these temples had been destroyed by a King of Israel about 150 years before. Only a few years after Jesus was born some Samaritans scattered bones in the Temple at Jerusalem during the Passover festival. So there had been hundreds of years of bitterness between the two races.
In modern day terms we can think of the hostility between members of the I.R.A. and U.V.F., between Serbs and Croats, between Palestinians and Jews. Perhaps we can think of people that we find difficult, perhaps whom we may regard as 'enemies', and consider how Jesus wants us to share his love with them ?
Yet, ignoring history, racial and social differences, the Samaritan had pity on this man. The word translated took pity refers to a deep feeling coming from ones bowels or intestines. This compassion took the form of practical help. He did not see a Jew but a fellow human being in need and the help he gave was costly. He would have ripped his own clothing to make the bandages, used his own wine to disinfect the wounds, his oil to soothe, his donkey to transport the man, and his money to pay for the inn. His love was not limited by it's object, and it was practical with no thought for any return.
Jesus asks the Jewish expert in the law a question with an obvious answer. Verse 36 "Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?". The expert found it difficult to answer. This was because the real question Jesus poses is "Do I behave as a neighbour to those who need my love and help ? "
Such was the inbred hatred inside the expert, he couldn't even bring himself to say the word "Samaritan" never mind consider that he might help a Samaritan in distress. Jesus had exposed this expert as one who failed to live up to the Old Testament law because the expert could not have brought himself to care for a Samaritan in the way that this Samaritan had cared for the beaten-up Jew. Jesus final words, better translated "Go and continue to do likewise" underlined this.
If you were asked by someone, "What is the meaning of life?", how would you answer?
If we acknowledges the existence of God the answer may have something to do with what we think God's purpose is for us and other people.
The Westminster Catechism answers this question. It states, "Man's chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him forever."
This parable of Jesus was prompted by the question. "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" verse 25.
By 'eternal life' the expert was probably thinking about what would happen to him once he died. In John 17: 3 Jesus said, "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." So eternal life is about a relationship that starts in this life.
Perhaps, through this parable, this expert had realised that nothing he could "do" could earn him eternal life. Because it is an inheritance. It is about "being" not "doing". We need to BE in a personal relationship with God, through what his son has done , to gain that inheritance.
The Samaritan showed mercy to the Jew. He could have ignored him, he almost deserved it and it would be costly in terms of time, energy and money to help.
God has shown his mercy to us by sending Jesus to rescue us.
God is holy, morally perfect and cannot have a right relationship with those who reject Him and His ways. Even religious, generally respectable people like the expert in the law could not be good enough. The man started off wanting to justify himself, to establish that he was good enough for God. He thought that loving one's neighbour was limited to his fellow Jews. He ended up realising he was not good enough. He needed a saviour. We all need a saviour. Someone who will save us from the consequence of our sins. The Bible says that 'All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.' Romans 3:23. Note, the standard is not being a nice person but the glory of God. The glory of God is the pass mark and we all fall short of it. Some less than others but that doesn't matter. We all fail. The pass mark is 100% and it doesn't matter if you've got 50% or 80%, it is still a fail.
The only person who got 100% is Jesus. He loved God with His whole being all of the time. He always loved others more than himself. This is what led Him to the cross. There, he not only endured terrible physical pain and humiliation, He also suffered the bereavement of being cut off from God the Father. This was because He took upon himself the punishment for the sins of the world. He received the punishment for the times you and I have failed to love God and failed to love other people. For the times we have harmed people, for the times we have failed to help people. For the times we have rebelled against God and the times we have ignored Him.
The Jew was half dead when he received mercy from the Samaritan.
The only requirement for anyone to receive the mercy of God is to realise that their relationship with him is dead. That in itself is a work of God. He gives life through Jesus. Jesus rose from death on the third day. This showed that His self-sacrifice on the cross had been accepted by God the Father. It showed that death had been defeated and need be feared no more. It showed that the way to eternal life is open. And because Jesus is alive forever we can know Him as our friend and Saviour today and into eternity.
We need to be united with Him. We need to have died to our old way of living. Turning from a life following our own way to a life devoted to following God's way. Then we will know resurrection life, a right relationship with God forever and a day.
That is the invitation. What must I do to inherit eternal life? You receive an inheritance. You receive it because you have a relationship with the one who gives you the inheritance. Eternal life is just a prayer away for those who want to receive God's mercy.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Parable of Good Samaritan prompted by question; v.25 "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus pointed the expert in the law to the law. He summarized it as `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, `Love your neighbor as yourself.'
Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
Perhaps the expert realized that he could not live like that... 29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
If you were a Jew in Jesus' day, you thought the answer would be, "Your fellow Jew." But Jesus shocked the man with the story of the Good Samaritan. At that time Jews and Samaritans were as friendly as, say, some Jews and Palestinians today. There was a history of aggravation and conflict. So, the last person this expert would have helped, or expected to address as his neighbour, was a Samaritan.
The law of God does not provide us with a way of giving eternal life, a life lived in a right relationship with God. True, it shows us how we should live. But it also shows that we all fall short of God's perfect will for us.
So, how can we enjoy a right relationship with God?
Our epistle gives us some clues. 3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus.
Faith, or trust in Jesus, restores people's relationship with God.
This is something God has done for us in Jesus. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Paul prays for the Colossian Christians ( 1:1-14 ). He prays for
Their filling - 9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Their living and growing - 6 All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.
Their strengthening - 11 being strengthened with all ( God's ) power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,
The expert in the law thought he had to know God by doing good. Earning his way into God's presence.
The Christian faith is a free gift waiting to be received by trusting in Jesus. These verses from Colossians show this.
What about us , here today. Where are we with God?
Do we know and love Jesus? If so, I would encourage you to continue in being filled, living for God and relying upon the power of His Spirit. Pray for yourself and for others to continue in this way.
Also pray for those who do not yet know Jesus as their friend, saviour and master. Perhaps you would like to be praying people you might be able to invite to the "Christianty Explored" Course we are starting here in September.
Have you yet to trust in Jesus? Perhaps you need to opportunity to ask questions and discuss the Christian faith in an informal, relaxed way. If so, perhaps Christianity Explored is for you. See video.