Luke 10:25-37 (NRSV)
Read Luke 10:25-37 on biblegateway.com
Verse 25Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Verse 26He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" Verse 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." Verse 28And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live." Verse 29But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Verse 30Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Verse 31Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Verse 32So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. Verse 33But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. Verse 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. Verse 35The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, 'Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.' Verse 36Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" Verse 37He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
Devotion
This past spring I got word that some folks from our state were behaving with the twin actions of blatant fear and hate, setting up seminars to persuade people against allowing Muslims to enter our communities. Particularly disingenuous are the ways in which some people twisted scripture in these seminars to exclude Jesus' scandalously gracious acts of love for the stranger and the hurt ones among us.
In today's gospel reading, the priest and the Levite, both people of faith, know the doctrines about God but fail to do the will of God. The hated Samaritan, the outsider who isn't considered one who knows God at all, does what is loving and right. He does what the Priest and Levite could have done but didn't—attending to the wounds of the victim, bringing him to the inn for care and paying for the expenses. When Jesus tells this story to the lawyer who is trying to tame or restrict God's law, it is not lost on him. He ends up answering Jesus' substitute question: "How are we going to be neighbors to anyone in need?"
Prayer
God we are bombarded by voices all around us, give us ears to hear you, and give us courage to grow into your Son, Jesus Christ, our brother and Lord. Amen.