Luke 10:25–37 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” 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.’” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Jesus told this parable to answer the question, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus was showing us that we should be like the outsider, the Samaritan, who showed mercy and compassion to the one who was in need.

Think of all the characters Jesus mentions in this story: the traveler who gets beaten, the robbers, the priest, the Levite, the Samaritan, and the innkeeper. When you read or listen to this account, with whom do you identify? If you are honest with yourself, you must admit times when you have behaved like the priest and the Levite. Maybe you have been the innkeeper in some situations. Unfortunately, we have all had times we have all played the part of the robbers. And hopefully you can recall instances where you have acted like the Samaritan, following the example of our Lord Jesus Himself.

However, first and foremost I think we need to see ourselves as the one who was robbed and beaten and left for dead on the side of the road.

Ephesians 2:1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins…

Left on our own, we would be dead forever, separated from God forever, identified as His enemies. But God was not content with that. He came down here to reconcile the world to Himself.

Ephesians 2:4–5 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

Jesus was to us the Good Samaritan, doing everything necessary to rescue us from our dire situation and circumstance. We live because of what He did for us. And our Savior encourages us to follow His example in how we treat others, even those we would consider “enemies.”