Have you ever read a passage in the Bible, assuming you understood its interpretation, only to be surprised that, in fact, you didn’t? That happened to me—again—as I read Luke 10 this week. To be specific, I was reading the account of the lawyer who, trying to evade his moral obligation before the Lord, asked the Lord Jesus to clarify just who he should consider to be his neighbour (vv. 25–37).
You are perhaps familiar with the scene. A lawyer (not the “High Court” kind, but rather the biblical law-interpretating kind) asked Jesus the all-important question: “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (v. 25). Rather than a sincere question, Luke tells us that he intended to trap Jesus in an attempt to discredit him. However, Jesus turned the tables on him, trapping him in his own folly. Lesson: Be careful who you try to ruin.
Anyway, Jesus responded, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” The no-doubt now-uncomfortable legalistic interlocutor answered (conflating Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18), “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all you soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself” (v. 27). “Spot on!” Jesus said. “As long as you continually do this you will flourish eternally” (v. 28).
Hmm. Now what? After all, from what follows, it’s clear that this man wasn’t very neighbourly. As he squirmed under Jesus’ searching gaze, he pressed the matter. (Sometimes, it is best to quit when you are so far behind!) The hapless lawyer, “desiring to justify himself,” said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?” What he thought was a “gotcha” moment turned into his own rude awakening.
In answering his legalistic question, Jesus told a story and concluded with a probing question (vv. 30–36).
A man travelling from Jerusalem to Jericho was robbed, beaten, and left half dead. His perilous plight was ignored by a priest and a Levite (i.e. the tribe of biblical lawyers! [30–32]). But a Samaritan, forsaking his nationalism and sacrificing his time, goods, and money, mercifully cared for him (vv. 33–35). At the conclusion of the story, Jesus asked the lawyer (a Levite!), “Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbour to the man who fell among the robbers?” (v. 37). He answered, “The one who showed him mercy.” Perhaps there was hope for this lawyer after all.
Previously, I assumed that the issue was identifying one’s neighbour with the obvious conclusion being, in this case, the wounded individual, whom the Samaritan cared for as his neighbour. But that is neither the point nor the emphasis. Rather, the point that Jesus makes is that the Samaritan saw himself as the neighbour.
Though it is true that anyone whom I encounter in need is a neighbour, the point here is that, rather than looking for legal loopholes about who qualifies to be one’s neighbour (i.e. the lawyer’s question), each of us is rather to focus on being a neighbour—a good and compassionate neighbour. Anyone whom I come across who is in need provides an opportunity for me to be a good neighbour. Jesus was saying to this man: “If you love God (Deuteronomy 6:5), you will be a good neighbour (Leviticus 19:18).”
Let me share two lessons I learned from meditating upon this passage.
First, “Pay attention, Doug!” How I missed the point of this story for the past several decades is a bit embarrassing, but I hope it will prove to be a constructive embarrassment. I should not assume or presume when it comes to the Bible. I must read carefully, slowly, and thoughtfully.
Second, “Pay attention, Doug!” I need to pay attention to those around me with a view to showing mercy. In other words, I need to pay attention to the opportunity and responsibility to be a good neighbour.
It’s all too easy to be selectively compassionate. This seemed to be the modus operandi of this biblical lawyer, both the one who asked Jesus the question and the one in the story (i.e. the Levite). Rather than a litmus test to decide who qualifies as my neighbour, I need to simply love as the Lord loves—to love sinners who are in need. In the closing words of Jesus, I need to “go and do likewise” (v. 37). I’m pretty sure that, if I open my eyes, I will likely come across someone today who is need of mercy. And when I do, I need to obey my Saviour, show mercy, and prove that I love the Lord whom I cannot see by loving someone whom I can see (1 John 4:20).
Brothers and sisters rather than being distracted by debates about who are our neighbours, let’s focus on our being good neighbours.
Doug