Archive for July 24th, 2009
August 2, 2009: The Parable of the Good Samaritan
The text for this lesson is Luke 10:25–37.
Key Points
- Jesus calls us to show mercy to everyone in need because He Himself is the Good Samaritan to us.
- Law: We are in desperate need of forgiveness because we have often passed by on the other side when we have seen our neighbor in need.
- Gospel: We are forgiven because Jesus had mercy on us, paying for our sins with His life.
- Law: We are sometimes selective in whom we love, loving those like ourselves but keeping our distance from those who are different.
- Gospel: Jesus equally loves Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female, young and old, and even each of us.
- Law: We are commanded to help and support our neighbor in every physical need.
- Gospel: We truly desire to love and serve our neighbor because Jesus first loved us.
Context
When the Lord revealed Himself to Moses, He described Himself as “a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Exodus 34:6). His covenants with Israel were motivated by His grace, mercy, and love. Therefore, the love shown by individuals in Israel was to be understood as a gift from the Lord; any mercy they showed was animated by the mercy already shown by God.
When Jesus came, He found that many Jews were getting things backwards. Instead of saying, “God has been merciful to us, so now we live grateful lives of limitless mercy toward all others,” they said, “Let’s codify how much mercy we need to show—and determine to whom we need to show it.” The lawyer in the story of the Good Samaritan was a legalistic Pharisee and held to the latter attitude. Jesus used the story to call Israel back to the proper attitude.
