Who is Your Neighbor?
“… love your neighbor as yourself …” Matthew 22:39
One of the Bible’s most familiar parables is the Parable of the Good Samaritan. In the parable, Jesus begins to describe a traveler:
“… a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead …” – Luke 10:30 (ESV)
The parable continues with two additional travelers who see the hurt stranger: a Priest and a Levite. Both titles imply religiously pious people who, for whatever reason, overlooked the wounded man and continued their journey, rendering no assistance. We have no way of knowing why they overlooked the injured man, but the parable certainly implies a negative connotation to their reasoning.
The third traveler, a Samaritan, noticed the injured man and rendered aid. He tended his wounds and took him to a place where he could get further care. The Samaritan traveler goes beyond all expectations in caring for this stranger.
“… saying to the innkeeper, take care of him, and whatever you spend, I will repay you when I come back…” – Luke 10:35 (ESV)
We see his level of care for this stranger goes far beyond expectations, even for us today. Certainly, we can see ourselves stopping and calling for help. Maybe even dressing wounds and/or transportation to a hospital. However, we can’t imagine taking a stranger to a hospital and then signing the intake forms to cover the financial responsibility for their care, but …
That is not what was being taught here. The parable answered a question posed by the audience: “Who” qualifies as our neighbor (Luke 10:27-29)? A question relevant today. Of all the people we interact with today, “who” qualifies as our neighbor? Is it friends, church family, co-workers, strangers, etc.?
It’s easy to want to restrict our love and kindness to the people that we love and those who are kind to us. Therefore, in response to their question about “who” qualifies as a neighbor, Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan. Jesus concludes that parable with the question (Luke 10:36-37):
Jesus Asks: “… of these three [travelers], who do you think proved to be a neighbor…”
They Answered: “… He that showed mercy unto the stranger…”
Jesus Commands: “… You go, and do likewise…”
As God-fearing Chaplains and First-Responders, we are called to love God as our first-priority and then show that same godly-love to our neighbor as our next priority (Matthew 22:37-40). Thus, the Parable of the Good Samaritan matters because it defines “who” is our neighbor (Luke 10:36-37). Our neighbor is the person we encounter and in that moment we have the opportunity to show godly-mercy. The Samaritan had a God-ordained appointment with a stranger in need. In that moment, he demonstrated total compassion and mercy, using the resources he had to help without prejudice or bias; thus, he met the standard of God’s expectation. When you get the call and you make every effort to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of those in need, with all godly compassion and mercy we are able to bestow, then in that God-ordained moment, “… you fulfill the royal law … [and] you are doing well.” James 2:8.
Prayer:
Our most gracious and merciful Father, we give to you all praise and honor. We pray for spiritual eyes to see those in need, and we pray for the courage to help, with all the mercy and compassion you have bestowed upon us. May we glorify you by our actions and words. Forgive us when we make mistakes, and restore in us right spirit. Amen.