18 Oct 2024
My neighbour
To the question of "who is my neighbour?", Jesus compared the responses from a priest, a Levite, and a Samaritan. Recorded in Luke 10, the story is titled "the good Samaritan" in most Bibles. But what is "good"?
"Goodness" was not even the question! The "teacher of the Law" asked “what must I do to receive eternal life?”
To which both the teacher and Jesus agreed. “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind’; and ‘Love your neighbour as you love yourself.’ ”
The teacher's follow up question was "who is my neighbour?"
And to this question, Jesus contrasted the Samaritan to the priest and the Levite. As devout observers of Torah, by not touching the robbed man, they maintained purity as called by the God of Moses that they worship. They qualify as "the good Jews". But Jesus was not teaching "what is good"; he was teaching "who is my neighbour?"
And Jesus concluded, “In your opinion, which one of these three acted like a neighbour towards the man attacked by the robbers?” The teacher of the Law answered, “The one who was kind to him.” Jesus replied, “You go, then, and do the same.” (Luke 10.36-37 GNB)
Jesus implied that to "receive eternal life", not only do I need to love the Lord, but I also need to love my neighbour like the Samaritan in the story.