Love Your Neighbor

Love Your Neighbor As Yourself
Luke 10: 25-28 (September 28, 2008)

1) The Text

25Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 27He answered, “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.” 28And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”

2) The Context

The parable of the Good Samaritan which follows this text, is the fifth episode in a group of six dealing with the meaning and acceptance of the kingdom's message (Luke 9:51-10:42). The long awaited kingdom of God has dawned in the person of Jesus. God, in his kindness has freely offered entry into the kingdom; we need only ask Jesus. This offer from God is proclaimed for all to hear and those who believe are blessed. Yet beware, kingdom membership is neither gained, nor maintained, by obedience to the law. Our passage exposes the heresy of nomism that had infested second temple Judaism. Religious Jews of the day believed that by obedience to the law they were able to maintain their standing before God and thus guarantee their place in heaven.

Of course, the law itself proclaims the opposite in that the law's prime purpose is to expose sin. The law serves to expose human corruption and its consequence, namely, divine judgment, and thus drive us to God for mercy. The "expert in the law" was obviously dulled to this function of the law, since he saw himself as a good law-keeper. Yet, this religious Jew did not need a legal definition for "neighbour", he needed to act in a neighbourly way (with mercy, love) to inherit eternal life. The problem was he had never loved as the Samaritan loved, nor could he. In the parable of the Good Samaritan Jesus confronts the "expert in the law" with full weight of the law and thus leaves him without excuse. It is from such gospel stories that the apostle Paul builds his doctrine of justification, "my gospel" - the divine gift of righteousness, of right standing before God, neither gained, nor maintained, by obedience to the law, but as a gift of grace appropriated through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

3) Interpretation

“Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25) the lawyer asks Jesus. The entire interaction between Jesus and the lawyer stands on this question, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Even the parable of the Good Samaritan later in Luke, though it might not seem this way, hinges on this question.

Since the lawyer asked for a list of things to do in order to be declared worthy to inherit eternal life, Jesus points him to the list. “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” (Luke 10:26). In other words, how do Moses and the prophets answer this question? How does the Law direct you to attain eternal life? “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” (Luke 10:27). “You have answered rightly,” Jesus answers (Luke 10:28). This list is unattainable. No one can accomplish this list. But, “Do this and you shall live” (Luke 10:28).

The lawyer wants to know who his neighbor is so that he can be justified in believing that he loved his neighbor. Therefore, he might have expected Jesus to tell a story about a gracious and kind Jew who went out and found a poor Samaritan lying on the street and cared for the Samaritan. He might have expected Jesus to tell the story of a Jew being kind and gracious to someone else, especially another Jew.

Jesus tells the story of a man, probably a Jew, who is cared for by a Samaritan. A Samaritan. How can he be a neighbor? Or, perhaps, how can I be a neighbor to a Samaritan? Samaritans desecrated the Temple by throwing human bones into its courts. They are heretics and schismatics, the worst of the worst. How can I be a neighbor to this man? How can I love those who believe such erroneous things? How can I? You can't.

Jesus reversed the question. Instead of asking “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus wants you to realize He is the neighbor. Jesus asks, “Which of these was the man's neighbor?” because Jesus wants the lawyer to know that Jesus is the neighbor. He can't love others as himself. You can't love others as yourself either, because you are the one lying beaten and broken next to the road.

The Old Testament prophets foretold of the One who would come to bind up the wounds of Israel and to heal her of her transgressions. He would pay the price and more, whatever was required to care for her and heal her. This Christ has done. He is the real neighbor. He is the Good Samaritan. Jesus has seen you lying in the ditch. He has seen you stripped, naked, beaten, and half–dead. Seeing you in this condition, He felt gut–wrenching pain and had compassion on you. The word literally means to feel pain as though your insides were coming out. In response to this gut–wrenching compassion, He knelt down and bound up your wounds, pouring on oil and wine. He lifted you up on his very own donkey, taking you to the nearest inn and paying all that is needed for you to be healed.

Therefore, loving God and loving the neighbor flows naturally from a heart of faith. Faith receives this love and forgiveness from God, and then, it freely flows into the neighbor. We don't love the neighbor in order to earn heaven. Our goodness is done for the neighbor because of the goodness God has done for us.

“Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25) the lawyer asked. As a lawyer, he should have known that an inheritance is not something you earn. An inheritance is given by virtue of who you are. Your children do not gain their inheritance, because they earned it. They gain the inheritance, because they are your children. You have been given the inheritance. “For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise” (Galatians 3:18). So, also, God gives you the inheritance by His gracious promise, and you receive it by faith for Christ's sake.

4) Thought Exercise

How can we build our faith in Jesus to better love our neighbors as ourselves?