Most of us are familiar with the parable of the Good Samaritan as it stands. We know about the priest and the Levite who saw this beaten, wounded man by the road and passed by on the other side, even though he was a fellow Jew. We also know that there was no love lost between Jews and Samaritans. Nonetheless, when a Samaritan came by, he acted to help the victim, getting directly involved and even paying for his follow-up care. We also know that in telling this story, Jesus broadened the definition of whom our neighbor is. In fact, the whole human race is in the neighborhood Jesus had in mind.
We are familiar with the parable, but do you recall the incident that caused Jesus to tell this story? According to Luke, a certain lawyer asks Jesus, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life. This lawyer was not the only one to pose this particular question to Jesus. On another occasion, the man we call the rich young ruler asked Jesus the same thing, and in reading that account, we get the impression that the rich man sincerely wanted to know the answer. In the case of this lawyer, however, there is a devious motive involved. As Luke explains it, this man wants to “test” Jesus, put him on the spot, see how he will handle himself in a public debate.
Jesus responds by saying, in effect, “That’s a good question. How would you answer it?” The lawyer then spouts the answer any Jewish schoolboy would have learned in the synagogue, a quote from the Old Testament: “You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself.”1
Yes, says Jesus, that’s right. You know the answer to your own question. Then Jesus adds the kicker: “Do this, and you wi
