Good Samaritans
In this post, I invite you to examine with me one of the great parables taught by Jesus recorded in Luke 10:25-37 of the New Testament. The parable is evoked when Jesus is asked a deeply important question by a lawyer, an expert in the Law of Moses.
25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?
27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.
28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
This initial exchange is remarkable on its own. Jesus courteously recognized, acknowledged and even acquiesced to the experience, expertise and knowledge of the lawyer. He was aware that the lawyer knew the right answer to his own question and side-stepped what was, apparently, an effort to set a trap and get a "gotcha moment" against Jesus. And sure enough, the lawyer understood the law well enough that in answer to what to do to gain eternal life, he quoted what Jesus would elsewhere point to as the two great commandments in the Law. And Jesus commended him and promised that if he would do those things, keep those two commandments, he would live.
But the lawyer seems to have recognized that Jesus may have outwitted him and so asked another question to justify asking the first when the answer was so obvious to those of his background and expertise.
29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbout?
Isn't this a perfect example of human nature? We want to do well, we want to love, but showing love to everyone is hard. It would be easier if we can find a justification to limit who we need to love. Surely, those who hate us can be exempted. Surely those who persecute us don't count. Surely those who would steal from us, lie about us, harm us, or otherwise treat us poorly should be excluded. It is possible that the lawyer had not heard of the Jesus' admonitions in the Sermon on the Mount at the beginning of his ministry
"Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." Matt 5:43-45.
Now returning to the account in Luke 10, Jesus answered the lawyer's question on who is your neighbour by telling a story, a parable:
30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
The route described was notoriously dangerous in the days of Jesus. Thieves and robbers, highwaymen, were known to infest the way and to take advantage of travelers. This man was going alone. Whether because of ignorance, necessity, or foolishness doesn't matter, this was the road he traveled, and the likely consequences befell him. Others traveled this same road for their own reasons and by chance the man was seen by different travelers, who then had to decide how to respond to the sight which they happened upon.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
The two strangers in this story are interesting. They carried a responsibility to be holy men, officiators in the temple, those closest to the ordinances given by God to help the people make and keep their covenants, to obtain atonement, remission of sins, and purification. But according to the Law, if the priest or the Levite touched the blood, or a dead body, they would be ritually unclean and may not have been able to fulfill their duties and obligations to so many others. The needs of the many outweighed the needs of the few, or the one. A perfectly logical, perfectly reasonable consideration, but one that lacks the understanding of what God spoke in Hosea: "For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and knowledge of God more than burnt offerings." (Hosea 6:6; see also Matt 9:13). Alternatively, they may have just been in a hurry, for safety's sake, through that dangerous stretch of road, or because they had pressing matters to attend at the other end of their journey. Whatever the reason, they surely felt justified to be on their way and not "get involved," so they chose to give the wounded man a wide berth.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him.
This person from Samaria was the man's "enemy." There was historic animosity between the Jews of Jesus day and the people of Samaria. They fought; they avoided each other; they cursed and spat on each other. Yet, here, this supposed enemy of the Jews seeing a man, lying in his gore, on the side of a dusty road, set animosity aside and followed the deep instincts of his heart to show compassion.
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
The compassion was enough that the Samaritan willingly inconvenienced himself. He spent his own resources to do what he could to address the immediate needs, to stanch the bleeding, to cleanse the wounds. Then he put in the great effort to pick him up, place him on his own animal - possibly depriving himself of a faster, safer and easier mode of transport - and walked him to a place where he could better tend to him. This likely took additional resources as he likely had to pay for two guests in the inn.
35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
The Samaritan had his own obligations to tend to, so he arranged for his ward to be attended while he was away. Giving two full day's wages to the innkeeper he trusted his new friend to the care of another. Surely, he knew the host given the level of trust shown between the two. Not only did the Samaritan entrust the wounded man into the care of the innkeeper but he trusted he would not take advantage of the situation. Likewise, the host believed the Samaritan when he promised future recompense for any amount that was spent in caring for the wounded that might go beyond the amount provided.
Jesus then closed the parable by reminding the lawyer of his original question.
36 Which now of these three (the priest, the Levite, and the Samaritan), thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
It is common at this stage for those who discuss this parable to state that Jesus is demonstrating that everyone is our neighbor and that we should love everyone. And while I agree with the sentiment, I think Jesus is saying something much more important. Consider the logic of the situation:
Lawyer: Who is my neighbor? Who do I need to love as myself?
Jesus: Tells the story of the Good Samaritan and asks who was neighbor to the wounded man?
Lawyer: The one who showed mercy
Jesus: Go and do the same.
If we exclude Jesus' admonition to "Go and do," the logic would suggest that only those who show mercy are our neighbors, and perhaps, if you identify with the wounded man, only someone who show mercy to me is my neighbor and so I only need to love such people. But Jesus did not exclude his admonition to go and do likewise, and this is where I think the greater lessons come in. The lawyer was asking the wrong question! Jesus rephrased the lawyer's question to what he should have been asking "Who was neighbor to ... ?" We should not be seeking to limit the scope of those we must love, we should be asking "How do I love? How am I to be a neighbor?" Then we must go and do.
Jesus' parables can be nice stories with morals, or for those with eyes to see and ears to hear, they can carry deeper meaning. We ought to strive to explore those deeper meanings. My views on this particular parable are these: Jesus himself was hated by most of the Jewish leadership in his day, and under their influence by many of the common people. He was cursed, rejected, spat upon, called a blasphemer, etc. and it is natural to associate him as the Good Samaritan himself. We, as spiritually and sometimes physically wounded and bleeding travelers through life, set upon by the brutalities of the world and its demands, the unfairness and robberies of men, often ignored by others who could help, and perhaps who should help, especially if they can assist us in the ordinances and covenants and becoming clean, but who, rightly or wrongly, justify not getting involved - we, who are in this state, are not overlooked by the Good Samaritan. He comes to us, binds up our wounds, stanches our bleeding, and starts the healing process. But he also gives others a chance to help and to serve, so he takes the wounded souls to the inn and asks the innkeeper and those working with him to tend to them. For me, this is a clear reference to the Church. We are the innkeepers. We are those he trusts to tend to others and help them recover and heal. We are to look after each other. And when He returns, he promises recompense for all that we have expended in doing so. Further, we must "Go and do likewise!" We are to follow the example of the Good Samaritan, be a neighbor, go to those hurting, wounded and bleeding because of the harshness of life, to tend to their needs so that they can heal. Then they can, in turn, "Go and do likewise!"
There are times that our ministering to others in various Church assignments can very much reflect this great parable. It certainly has been so for our MLS missionary service. In helping others, in their various states, with their various needs - some needing a little more oil than wine, others needing more binding than salve - a less obvious aspect of the parable has become apparent to me. The Good Samaritan did more than just tend to the wounded man; he became his advocate. How often when we struggle, feel alone, or scared, or uncertain, do we simply need a trusted friend at our side who will act as our advocate. One who will take our side, plead our cause, or help us see things clearly - things as they really are, as they really were, and as they really will be (see Jacob 4:13) - to counsel with us, reason with us, and provide some guidance, even correcting us when needed. I appreciate and treasure Jesus Christ in his role as our Advocate and so I close this post with one of my favorite scriptures on the topic, Doctrine and Covenants 45:3-7
Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him - Saying: Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified; Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life.
Heaken, O ye people of my church, and ye elders listen together, and hear my voice while it is called today, and harden not your hearts; For verily I say unto you that I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the light and the life of the world - a light that shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not.
