Jesus, the Good Samaritan

I'm preparing to speak this week from Luke 10.  The story there of the 'Good' Samaritan (the word 'good' is not in the text) keeps amazing me with its depth and breadth of meaning.  You'll find the exchange between Jesus and the lawyer, and the parable, in verses 25-37. 

One of many interesting points here is Jesus' description of the person who rescued the wounded traveler.  This man was a Samaritan, a member of a group hated by all Jews because of their history as foreigners imported by the Assyrians after the deportation of many of the northern Israelite tribes.  The Samaritans had more than likely intermarried with Israelites left in the land, and claimed to follow the true religion (see John 4:19-20 for a brief comment on this) which just made things worse of course.

But look at what the man, this half-breed who was rejected by the Jews, was like:

• He went out of his way to help another human being in trouble
• He risked his own safety due to the bandits in the area
• He used oil and wine to heal the man's wounds
• He paid for the man's care at the inn
• He promised to return and settle accounts

All these are just as well descriptions of Jesus himself.  He was of suspicious parentage, and was of mixed heritage, being both God and man; he greatly inconvenienced himself by becoming flesh (see Philippians 2:6-8) and was at risk throughout his ministry even before the Cross; he brought rescue and healing to humanity; he paid the price for our recovery; and promised to return for us.

So as a background to everything else going on in this parable, the true character of Jesus is brought out as the outstanding example of 'being a neighbor.'  Then he tells the lawyer, "go and do likewise."  What a challenge for all of us:  to selflessly give, going out of our way to serve others, including pointing them to the One who came to serve us rather than be served.  In what way can we "go and do likewise" today?  Who will we choose to serve as Jesus served us?