Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm20090708.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Luke: Jesus, The Son Of Man For All Mankind
Part XXXVII: Christ's Identity As God's Savior By His Love For All Men
(Luke 10:25-37)
  1. Introduction
    1. If Jesus Christ truly is God's Savior of the world, His care for mankind should be universal, not limited to people in one's nationality, ethnicity or to his immediate circle of friends.
    2. The universality of Christ's love for all men is evidently seen in Luke 10:25-37 as follows:
  2. Christ's Identity As God's Savior By His Love For All Men, Luke 10:25-37.
    1. Christ's famous "Parable of the Good Samaritan" was introduced by a discussion Jesus had with an expert on the Law on who was the neighbor he was to love as himself in order to fulfill the Law, Lk. 10:25-29:
      1. One day, an expert in the Law tested Jesus, asking what he needed to do to gain eternal life, Lk. 10:25.
      2. Jesus replied by asking the questions: "What is written in the Law? how readest thou?", Luke 10:26.
      3. The expert replied that one needed to love the Lord his God with all his heart, soul, strength and mind, and to love his neighbor as himself, Luke 10:27. This answer combined the commands of Deuteronomy 6:5 on loving the Lord this way, and Leviticus 19:18 on loving one's neighbor this way!
      4. Jesus replied that the lawyer had answered correctly, Luke 10:28a. Indeed, this answer reflects the Lord's own teachings on the two most important commandments in the Law in Matthew 22:34-40. Accordingly, Jesus told the law expert to practice these and so live, Luke 10:28b.
      5. Yet, Jesus' reply left the law expert condemned since he knew he was not heeding these commands, so he sought to justify himself by asking, "And who is my neighbor?", Luke 10:29. This answer sought to deflect attention from his guilt by quibbling over who he was to love, Bible Know. Com., N. T., p. 234.
    2. Thus, the Luke 10:30-37 "Parable of the Good Samaritan" does NOT answer the lawyer's question of "Who is my neighbor?", but it replies to his ungodly effort to limit his love to a narrow group of people:
      1. Jesus replied to the question, "Who is my neighbor?" by giving a parable about how three different people responded to a stranger they met who was in great need of their help, Luke 10:30-35:
        1. Jesus told how a certain man left Jerusalem for Jericho, and he fell among robbers who stripped him of his clothing and beat him, leaving him half dead, Luke 10:30.
        2. In response, a priest passing by who was "expected to love others, avoided the wounded man, probably a fellow Jew," Luke 10:31; Ibid. This violated the spirit of the Law at Exodus 23:5, for there, if the animal of one's enemy suffered under a heavy load, a Jew was to rescue the animal. (A. Edersheim, Notes on the Parables of Our Lord, 1974, p. 111) Yet, the priest who dealt with the Law (Jer. 2:8) and knew this command didn't help a suffering Jew who was worth more than an animal!
        3. After the priest, a Levite passed along the road, one who assisted the priests (Ibid.) and knew the Law, but instead of helping this man in need, he also sinfully passed by on the other side, Lk. 10:32!
        4. The third traveler to meet the wounded Jew happened to be a Samaritan, one who was at deep religious and cultural conflict with him, Luke 10:33a; cf. John 4:9. However, he had compassion on this Jew, and extensively helped him at significant cost to himself, Luke 10:33b-35.
      2. After giving this parable, Jesus asked the law expert who had asked who was his neighbor just who was the neighbor of the man in need in the parable, Luke 10:36.
      3. The lawyer replied that the one who had shown mercy on the needy stranger was the neighbor, 10:37a.
      4. Jesus then replied that the lawyer was to do likewise, Lk. 10:37b. Thus, one's love for his neighbor is NOT to be RESTRICTED in any way, but is to be extended to HELP ANY HUMAN BEING in the WORLD whom WE CAN HELP and who is in NEED!
Lesson: Jesus revealed in His conversation with the law expert and in His "Parable of the Good Samaritan" that one's LOVE for his NEIGHBOR was NOT BOUND by ethnic or cultural entities, but that our "neighbor" whom we are to love as ourselves is ANYONE we MEET who WE can HELP!

Application: (1) Jesus is the WORLD'S Savior as seen in His LOVE for ALL the WORLD. (2) May we follow His lead to love ALL men, HELPING ANYONE we MEET whom WE can HELP!